Pros
Exposes the employees to an array of materials and allows exposure to the metals industry at large.
Cons
Poor pay, management is generally inexperienced in the types of testing they are managing and are more or less "Yes Men" with online MBA degrees and bean counters and rely on certain employees (who spend more time trying brown nose than performing their actual job functions) to make up for their lack of knowledge on what it is they are actually managing. Company has also cost cut itself into a corner where there is little revenue available at the location levels to operate effectively. Cutting costs and slashing prices thinking that it can be made up in pushing out high volume of sample testing, ofen very complex testing (with poor or substandard equipment and minimal staffing). It creates a situation where you are penalized for not getting out high volumes of demanding work to make up for the revenue lost by slashing prices. Needless to say quality is impacted greatly. Company has been notoriously hostile towards women who perform testing across multiple locations both in Pay, treatment, and unfair distribution of tasks without being allocated monies for the increased work load. Women still earn less than men with lesser background and responsibilities. Also, workers are treated like children. Going into element feels a bit like reporting to grade school. It has created a very Us and Them mentality that is not good for production and profitability. Employees are kept in the dark about the internal structure of the company, and it seems to be intentional.