Will Fleischer: Stick With it: Building a Lifetime Career
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Intro:
Today our guest is Will Fleischer, a 25 year veteran of the elevator industry.
Will first got into elevators by answering a newspaper ad and has never looked back.
He has worked in and around Texas throughout his career, in a variety of roles and companies and currently owns and runs his elevator inspection company.
Most of all, Will loves coaching and developing the next generation, making sure they have all they need to stay safe and be successful
Summary:
Will Fleischer discussed his 25-year career in the elevator industry, starting from answering a newspaper ad for a helper position at a small lift company in North Texas. He transitioned to passenger elevators, worked on government contracts, and eventually earned his mechanic’s card. Fleischer moved to Schindler in 2006, completed neap school, and advanced to a TM role. He later ran his own inspection business for 2.5 years before joining Kone. Fleischer emphasized the industry’s benefits, including a pension and comprehensive health plans, and highlighted the importance of mentoring and developing the next generation of professionals.
Transcript:
Matthew Allred 0:03
Will welcome to the show.
Will Fleischer 0:04
Well, Matt, it’s a pleasure. Thank you.
Matthew Allred 0:07
Likewise, I’m pleased to have you. Always enjoy the conversations and it’s good to good to be able to connect. And love to start by just kind of finding out, how did you get in the elevator industry in the first place
Will Fleischer 0:21
Well, So back in the old days, I say I could say that now, the 25 years in the business, we used to answer adding the paper. So I actually answered an ad in the paper and started working for a small mom and pop belt and cage man lift company in North Texas.
Matthew Allred 0:37
So some people might say, what’s the paper? Right? The newspaper, right. But I mean, yeah,
Will Fleischer 0:44
Yeah, classified ads in the newspaper. I just, just happened I was working at a car lot at the time. Okay, yeah. So just read through the paper. Was looking and answered the ad in the paper.
Matthew Allred 0:56
So they were looking for a mechanic. Is that what it was?
Will Fleischer 0:59
They were looking for a helper. Oh, wow, yeah. And me, having no experience whatsoever, I walked up there interviewed that very day, and it turns out that one of the supervisors there knew my dad, so that kind of helped me out. Sure he’s like, give the kid a shot. So they, they hired me, and, yeah, I never looked back. That was April ’99
Matthew Allred 1:22
So this was a mom and pop. Was that like? Did they do commercial elevators? What was, what were they doing?
Will Fleischer 1:29
No, well, so they it was a lot of industrial type stuff. So power plants and grain silos, chemical plants, that kind of stuff. So industrial type areas have belt and cage man lifts. So like a small, special purpose personnel, Carrie is another name for him, like a small, just a cage elevator where you, you push the button and hold it the whole time to ride up or down, and then the other is a continuous belt that you just basically, there’s holes in the floor. The continuous conveyor belt that’s vertically oriented. You walk up and there’s a handhold and a foot and you just footstep, and you step on it, and hold on the hand, hold and Up you go.
Matthew Allred 2:11
That sounds scary as heck. I mean, I’m but
Will Fleischer 2:17
Yeah. Especially the first couple of times you get on one, it’s, it’s a little creepy. Yeah no kidding
Matthew Allred 2:23
You just jump on a conveyor belt and does it slow down? I mean, when you get to your floor, or just got to bail?
Will Fleischer 2:30
There’s a rope pull on the side that you use to turn it on and off. But there’s, there’s sensors. So for instance, there’s hoods on the floor openings. So if you’re leaning out to one side and you bump the hood, there’s a, like a mercury switch in there that try to keep it there, uh huh, yeah, and it’ll turn the unit off, actually. And then there’s over travel switches like you would have on an elevator, only, it’s, well, probably more akin to what you would see on an escalator, where the step roller comes in and punches a switch and turns it off. There’s several safety mechanisms on it, and over travel bar. But yeah, they’re, they’re a little sketchy. Not gonna lie
Did you? Did you work on rack and pinion as well? I did hear that, yes. Okay
Yes actually, uh huh, yeah. In fact, I can remember one on the side of a grain elevator in Corpus Christi, that was really tall that I had to work on from time to time. Yeah, yeah. I worked on a couple of those.
Matthew Allred 3:30
So that’s how you got started. And you say as a helper. So you eventually became, I guess, a mechanic, or what was your progression?
Will Fleischer 3:37
Yeah. So I worked as a helper for several years on doing that, and then moved into the passenger elevator side of things doing construction. Started out as a helper there, and just kind of worked my way into, yeah, into a mechanic. Did a lot of government contract work and stuff. I started out in non union. So, you know, government contract work all over the country, just kind of following the work, wherever it
Matthew Allred 4:01
Gotcha. Lots of travel then
Will Fleischer 4:04
Yeah, construction, modernization, yeah.
Matthew Allred 4:07
What were some of your early learnings and things that, I mean, it sounds like it was a whole new world for you. What were some of the, you know, the things that light bulbs going off or just learning to survive in this world?
Will Fleischer 4:22
Yeah, well, I mean, pretty quick, you know. And as a young man raising a family, pretty quick, I learned that I can make a pretty good living doing this if you work hard and, you know, sometimes you have, kind of have to follow the opportunities where they’re at. So that’s what I did. I learned to live on a little bit, you know, and you’re having to move around and stuff. It’s, it takes a lot to do that. Also learn how to, you know, how to write off moves on taxes and just capture every benefit that I could along the way. And, yeah, finally got enough of all that moving around stuff, and so we moved back to the Dallas area in 2006 and I started to work for Schindler then. So and then I had to go through the neap school because I didn’t quite have enough time in the trade for them. Because I guess if you have eight years that they’ll basically give you a card, like as a mechanic, because you have, yeah, you have the on the job hours I had seven years. So they gave me a big stack of books and said, Here you can test out in 40 you got 40 days study all this. You can test out of two years with your experience. So I did. I sat for the exam, both exams at the same time and passed them after studying my butt off and and then I went ahead and took two years of the school. Within a within a year, about a year, I was set up as a TM doing mods. So they had me doing hydro mods on my own with a helper. And so that was great. And then once I got my mechanics card and passed the test, man, I wouldn’t, you couldn’t stop me. Yeah, I got in the service department about that time and just loved it.
Matthew Allred 6:04
And so, so you, I mean that that seemed like it really hit a spot for you, but prior to that, I mean, did you feel like you kind of hit a groove? I mean, you ever look back and think, man, I want to go back to the used car lot?
Will Fleischer 6:17
No, not the car lot, no, but there’s times where I’ve thought about picking my tools up again. Yeah, I’m not gonna lie. So that kind of neatly segues into the next phase of my career, where I went into the business side of things. So I was in modernization and service for better part of seven years, and decided I wanted to learn the business side of things kind of open up that part of my career, and just learning a whole new thing, it’s basically, it’s a career change. I mean, it’s the same industry, but you go in the office, it’s a it’s a whole different game.
Matthew Allred 6:54
So, when you said learning the business side was that what it was? You moved from being on in service, in the field, using your tools to more of a like a superintendent role?
Will Fleischer 7:05
Right. Yeah, Superintendent Operations Manager, yeah, yeah. So went to work for TK. T Well, it’s TKE now. It was Thyssenkrupp back then. Went to work for them and started in Tulsa as a service repair and modernization.
Matthew Allred 7:22
So another move, right? Sounds like you went to Dallas and then back to Okay
Will Fleischer 7:26
Yeah. So, yeah, my career has bounced around a little bit, but I can honestly say it’s just because I was following a trail. I mean, you know, if there was a better opportunity, I didn’t mind jumping up and going after it. But, yeah, so ended up there for a little while, and then was back in Texas, and then they called one day and said, Hey, do you want San Antonio? It’s a graded branch. Would be a great opportunity, kind of the next step for you? I was like, Sure. So ended up down there and and had some changes in my life. Ended up moving back up to the DFW area, and was doing inspecting for a while, and now I’m back as a superintendent.
Matthew Allred 8:09
So you in full circle, yeah, yeah. So, so you actually, you know, ran your own business as an inspector for what, a few years, two or 342, and a half years, yeah. Okay, what was it led you kind of that direction Was it, was it, did you need to get out of the field or, or out of the office?
Will Fleischer 8:29
Yeah, so not necessarily needed to. I had some family things that came up. So basically that, that’s what moved me back to the DFW area. So there, really wasn’t a whole lot of opportunity at that time, and I’d kind of waited around for about a year, and there just wasn’t anything that could make a move within the company. So I was like, Okay, I’m gonna have to figure out something. And that’s when I decided, yeah, I had some friends that were doing inspections down there and and did pretty, pretty well with it. Of course, they’ve been in business for years, and so I thought I’d take crack at it and did okay with it that, you know, the markets pretty well represented here in the DFW area, and the cost of insurance and just everything was a little more than I think I wanted to take on as just a single guy wearing all the hats. So that’s kind of what led me.
Matthew Allred 9:24
It’s interesting. You say that the markets well represented, because there are certain markets around the country where multiple companies knock on my door. How you find me an inspector? And the inspectors i i talked to are like, leave me alone. You know, stop calling me. Well, yeah, it just seems like in certain markets, there’s, there’s a drastic shortage. You’re saying in DFW, that is not the case.
Will Fleischer 9:45
It doesn’t seem to be no no, that we’ve got a couple of big players here that do pretty well. And I’m not going to say that there’s not work out there. There is, you just kind of have a chase after it. And it was a little more, you know, I’m not. Gonna say it wasn’t worth Yeah, worth it, but because it was, and I learned a ton about running a business, and because I just kind of did it all, you know
Matthew Allred 10:09
Yeah, did you have employees? Or were you?
Will Fleischer 10:12
I had a part time guy that, okay, I had a part time guy that was helping me out a little bit here and there, but for the most part, it was me and, yeah, you know, handle all the bookkeeping, the paperwork, everything. So, you know
Matthew Allred 10:24
It’s interesting, because I think in in Texas, and from what I hear, at least Houston, I think it’s only city that has their own city inspectors, and outside of that, everything else is like third party. And as we talk about it, you know, there are, when I mentioned the markets that have a shortage. It typically those markets that have some higher criteria. So maybe, you know, you don’t necessarily get people flowing in and out as much and saying, Hey, I’ve got my qei, I’m ready to go to work. It’s like, no, you gotta stand in line. And sometimes that may take a long time. And so it can, can, can make it feel like there’s a shortage, I guess. So, that’s what I was getting at.
Will Fleischer 11:03
Yeah. So a lot of, a lot of times, or at least, speaking, from what I’ve seen here in Texas, guys retire out of the field or the office, and it’s, it’s a good way to continue, you know, continue being active, being in the industry. And I think it’s a good thing, because a lot of guys, unfortunately, when they retire, I mean, their health just kind of starts going south. And so if they can get do something to keep themselves going and keep moving out there, then and they enjoy it, make a little money, and, you know, it’s good. So that’s we see a lot of that in Texas, or at least, in my experience
Matthew Allred 11:40
And I think my experience, yeah, certainly for union mechanics, you know, inspecting something that doesn’t, you know, isn’t a threat in any way, you’re not going to be at risk of losing any kind of benefits. Whereas, if you were to move to a non union shop, or consulting, or there’s certain things that it’s like, you know
Will Fleischer 11:58
Yeah, yeah, you kind of have to be careful with some of that stuff, especially going, yeah, if you don’t want to go to work for the non union stuff anyway, but yeah, the inspecting thing gives them some freedom and I think it’s good, yeah.
Matthew Allred 12:16
So you said you, you recently started again with, with Kone a, what was the kind of led you back to the to the majors? Or did you, did you look at some smaller shops as well?
Will Fleischer 12:27
Yeah, I did just so they like to promote from within, which is, I completely respect that. So they’re just the opportunity hasn’t been available for a smaller shop. And it’s not to say, you know, that I may or may have not have done something that way, but the Kone opportunity came available, and it’s, it’s like a small mom and pop shop in a big company. They’re kind of one of the last companies. It’s still playing the game that way, and I totally respect that, and so I’ve had the just the best, warm welcome, and it’s been great. It’s awesome.
Matthew Allred 13:07
That’s awesome. So what would you you know as you look at your career? You said 25 years you you’ve done a whole lot of different things. And what would you say to those who are listening today about your career, or, you know, elevator careers in general
Will Fleischer 13:25
Man, in general, it’s a great career. It’s, you know, provide a great living for your family if you get in there at while you’re young, you know, stay with it. There’s so many benefits. And one of the few, I mean, there’s so many good things you say about it, but one of the few trades that still has a pension, you know, got a lot of great benefits, the medical and dental and vision are second to none. I mean, just get in there. Stick with it. Work hard, work safe, especially. Pay attention when you’re being when you’re learning new skills. And if you get a chance to learn some of the old ways of doing things, you know, learn as much of that as you can, too, because a lot of that is going by the wayside. So that’s good, but the main thing is just work safe and stick with it, and you’ll you’ll do well for yourself, absolutely
Matthew Allred 14:17
Absolutely, absolutely and well. And it seems like you and you obviously took opportunities. You said I was kind of following a path, you know, kind of, you know, learning new things and new places, new people, new things. But it does seem like you’ve, you’ve got, you know, within yourself, kind of this set of tools, that knowledge experience, where you you can kind of write your own ticket a lot of different ways, right? You have a lot of options when it comes to where you want to be, what you want to do, which, which is, I think that’s a great spot to be in. You know, just to have that many options
Yeah, I can, yeah, I guess so I could definitely go a bunch of different directions. So. I can say I’ve enjoyed the trip that I’ve had. I’m really looking forward to the future.
Awesome, awesome. And you’ve kind of, you know, I guess the next question I was going to ask is, you know, the advice you would give to somebody that’s new or starting out, but you’ve kind of already answered that. But what? What, I guess, what I want to say is, where would you like to end your end your career and you’ve and not just location wise, but yeah, what do you see yourself doing?
Will Fleischer 15:31
Man, good question. I think one of my favorite things, especially about being on this side, is is coaching and developing the the next generation that’s coming up. So we had a fresh helper, I mean, just brand new come in the other day and just start his first day. And it was, it was good getting to see that. And it, it’s a different feeling from, you know, 10 or even 15 years ago, when I’d see a helper come in, it’s like, Okay, here’s another one. Let’s go. Now it’s hey you know, I want this kid to succeed, and so I think the coaching and developing side of it, for me is, is the way going forward and bringing up the next generation, teaching them how to do things right and how to do it safe. I would have to say, that’s probably where I see myself going from here.
Matthew Allred 16:23
Yeah, do you? Do you feel like the the mentoring, the coaching, the development you’re providing, is is a different from what you received 25 years ago?
Will Fleischer 16:33
To some degree, yeah, mechanics were a little harder on us, I think back then. So you know, if you didn’t show up at 7am you were there at 645 you had the gang box open at 7am tools laid out ready to go. You know, you had your pencil, your tape measure and your pocket knife with you at all times. And you know, that’s just the way it was. And I think the way the industry is changing a little bit, I think there’s still that same spirit involved. It’s just maybe aimed in a different way
Matthew Allred 17:13
Sure, sure. Well, and that might be generational, you know, it’s go back a few and, yeah, they’re just kind of a harder way of dealing with people. And for sure, maybe we don’t need to be as hard as we used to be. So
Will Fleischer 17:26
Right the generation before me, I mean, I heard stories of guys saying that, you know, helpers didn’t even eat lunch with the mechanics. Like you sit over there and I sit over here, and I’m glad it’s not that way. I heard some stories, yeah, yeah, yeah, some of those old timers were hard
Matthew Allred 17:42
Yep. Well, Will, what else would you like to share before we end?
Will Fleischer 17:50
No, just recap. Definitely, if you get in, if you get in this industry, you won’t regret it. Assuming you get in, you work safe, you work hard, you know, get out there and make it happen. You’ll make good money, you’ll do well for your family. So it’s been good for me. Hopefully it’ll be good for you, too.
Matthew Allred 18:13
Great. Yeah, thank you. Thank you for being on with me today. I appreciate it.
Will Fleischer 18:16
Yeah, glad to be here, for sure. It was fun
Matthew Allred 18:20
Likewise. Yeah. I mean good luck to you as you continue to to build your career and start on your next journey. Appreciate that. Thank you.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai