To anyone not familiar with manufacturing, David Gomory’s desk can be overwhelming.

Surrounded by countless binders, books and drawings on shelving, desks and the walls, the Livi Steel engineer has a method for where everything is located.

Livi Steel is a member manufacturer of MVMC.

It’s all in a directional flow, each binder organized by year, spanning his career.

Starting at the beginning

Gomory went to Penn State University and Youngstown State University, two years each, earning his bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering.

Following college, Gomory started out in a nuclear power plant, doing inspections during the construction phase.

Had he continued with the career, he would have had to travel around the country.

“That lifestyle didn’t appeal to me,” Gomory said.

That’s when he decided to look into the manufacturing industry.

Taking the idea from his own father, Gomory started with Livi Steel about 30 years ago as a detailer.

“The basic aspect is when erectors in the field receive a delivery of steel beams, they look at the diagrams on how to assemble them,” Gomory said.

Then, if there are problems or the contractor has a question, “that’s when they call me,” he said.

There’s a lot of attention to detail that goes into each diagram. Once they are completed, the work is looked over by a “checker.”

After about five years in the industry, Gomory started doing checking, eventually leading to problem-solving out in the field.

Building resources

Looking at his workspace, Gomory knows where each document is, and how it’s precisely organized.

“After you’ve been at this a while, you get to a point there’s a library,” he said, laughing.

That library includes codes and zoning information, parts of the job he enjoys learning and knowing.

He encourages anyone to find work they like doing.

“You can have a first job you don’t like and that’s okay but find something you enjoy doing because otherwise you’ll be miserable,” Gomory said.

Looking back at his career, he said he feels fulfilled.

“I really like it. I can actually say I enjoy what I did.”