Pros
In Core Tech you're a helpdesk monkey, doing routine things that the CNCs and infrastructure guys can't be bothered with; and honestly, for a long time, I loved it. The work was easy, the environment was laid back, and for the most part, expect the few times I royally screwed something up, I was left alone. There's free food, drinks, and an on-site gym. Working second or third shift also means you pretty much get the building to yourself. I understand this doesn't appeal to everyone, but if you're a tech-savvy introvert with low overhead, just looking for somewhere to get comfy and collect a check, I can't recommend Core Tech enough. There were many evenings I genuinely looked forward to coming into work, because it often felt like a clubhouse. It's you and the other one or two people on shift just killing time between tickets. Everyone was friendly, and in almost 4 years I can honestly count on one hand the times I felt overwhelmed by the work.
Cons
Core Tech is the red-headed stepchild of the company, and is often treated as such. That is to say, unless you cause undue grief for someone higher up, you're likely to fly completely under the radar. At the end of the day, no one wants to bother with you, for good or ill. The team is supposed to be a "proving ground" of sorts, where someone with little experience puts in six months to a year, proves they're competent, and then moves up into a higher tier of support, typically as a CNC or someone in Infrastructure. This is all well and good except, due to lack of communication from managers and stingy hiring practices, most people on Core Tech end up spending way more than a year there. There are no tried and true paths to getting yourself off the team, you're sort of expected to put your own feelers out and sell yourself, as it were, to the managers of whatever teams you may be interested in being on. The problem is Core Tech, being as it's only supposed to be a stopover position, doesn't have any real policies in place regarding scheduling, PTO, or raises. In my nearly four years I never got a single raise, and was subject to arbitrary and often times capricious schedule changes. Everyone wants the day shift, despite it being the busiest one, because good luck getting yourself trained and promoted when all that hinges upon your ability to get the attention of people who are all out the door by 4. And, as I mentioned earlier, no one who isn't on the team really wants to be bothered by the helpdesk guys. By the end of my time there I had developed some personal relationships with many of the on-call folks and managers, but it took years to get there. Also, more a minor thing, but if you work 2nd or 3rd shift you will inevitably have to call and either interrupt someone's dinner or wake them up. Most people handle it well enough and are understanding, even if a bit miffed. But there were a few who, to put it gently, did not. I was cussed out more than once, and never got any support from my manager about it. Those calls were few and far between, and I learned to have a thick skin and be appreciative of the fact I was getting paid to basically put my feet up and kill time.