Kyle Aubut
WMCC, Associate of General Science, Welding, 2012
After graduating high school, Kyle Aubut began taking classes at White Mountains Community College (WMCC). He didn’t realize that he would find a community that served as a continued source of inspiration that guided his education and set him up for success for each phase of his career path.
“When I was a student at WMCC, I didn’t feel like just another number. I felt like the faculty cared about me and were invested in helping me learns skills that turned into a rewarding career.”
WMCC was a place of continued learning that prepared Kyle for both the real-world and his future.
“I was learning from people who had ‘been there and done that’ successfully. Having instructors who knew what it took to be successful was beneficial, especially at the start of my career.”
Because of the faculty members’ real-world experiences, Kyle was set up for success as soon as he graduated.
“I showed up to work at my first job with another new hire that started on the same day. Our supervisor gave each of us some tasks, and I went right to work. However, my supervisor spent time training the other new hire. At that moment, I knew WMCC had set me up for success.”
After starting his career in the trades as a nightshift maintenance welder at a lumber manufacturing plant, Kyle worked alongside two industrial mechanics. It’s then that he realized there was still more he wanted to learn.
“The skills of the industrial mechanics blew me away. They could work on any piece of equipment we had and could fix anything that came their way. After seeing that, I knew I wanted to do more.”
Industrial mechanics repair and maintain equipment such as pumps, motors, gearboxes, conveyors and power generation turbines. The day-to-day tasks of an industrial mechanic vary by the minute – an industrial mechanic could be performing a precision alignment on a pump, and the next, they could be welding a stainless-steel pipe. They are the tradespeople that diagnose, troubleshoot and fix problems in facilities such as hydro stations, paper mills, wind turbines, biomass’s, nuclear plants, lumber mills and ski resorts, to name a few.
Kyle worked his way up from a welder at the lumber mill to an industrial mechanic at a paper mill. From there, the paper mill hired him as a mechanical supervisor and onto a slack maintenance manager.
“A career as an industrial mechanic is versatile. There’s a new challenge every day, and people rely on you to get the job done. If a machine breaks down, it’s your job to get it back up and running.”
Then, in 2018, Kyle returned to WMCC as the college’s industrial mechanics program coordinator to pay it forward to new students by sharing the wisdom and experience he had learned during his career.
“Going back to WMCC as a professor has been a dream of mine. Now, I have the opportunity to positively impact students’ lives the way faculty impacted mine. For people looking for ways to move forward in their lives and careers, the industrial mechanics program at WMCC gives you the foundation and skills to be work-ready in a great career. So, why not go ahead and learn a versatile trade that sets you up for success?”
The industrial mechanics program at WMCC provides training in millwrighting, welding, print reading, rigging, hydraulics, pneumatics and establishes the foundation and skills to be a master tradesperson. Upon completing the program, students can apply their knowledge to troubleshoot, repair, install and maintain industrial equipment.
