Jon Anderson Prototype Design Product Development CAD CNC Milling Turning Welding Tooling Fixtures Fabrication Grass Valley Nevada County

I am a 54 year old American, married to a native of Cootamundra, NSW. I have long loved Australia and
nearly moved there in the mid 70's when skilled welders were being courted by the government. I'm happy to say that
I am finally immigrating to Australia permanently within the next 18 months depending upon how long the immigration
process takes.

I have lived in Grass Valley, California, located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Lake Tahoe, for over 30 years.
Most of the rest of my life was spent in the San Francisco Bay Area, or 'Silicon Valley'. I was most fortunate to enroll in a
high school work experience program at NASA's Ames Research Center where I learned TIG, MIG, and stick welding,
light fabrication on wind tunnel models, and some aircraft sheetmetal. Upon graduating HS, I entered a work experience
program through a local junior college in conjunction with NASA Ames.

In 1976, I entered the job market as a production TIG welder. Working for a variety of small shops, I gained much
experience and skills. Left the bay area from Varian Associates as an ultra high vacuum welder when I came across a
UHV welding job in Grass Valley, leaving the hustle and bustle of Silicon Valley for the semi-rural lifestyle I now enjoy.
14 years ago I decided to strike out on my own. Starting with a Bridgeport mill, borrowed engine lathe, one customer,
and little cash reserves, I have been self employed to the present day. But long distance marriage is not much fun, and
I will pack up and move to Australia permanently and seek citizenship as soon as I qualify.

I have a total of 35 years in various aspects of metalworking. While I have served no formal apprenticeship and do not hold
trades papers as exists in Australia, I offer a very broad range of skills and knowledge. Apprenticeships are not common
here, especially on the west coast. However, I invite you to consider the scope of work featured in my
Picture Gallery page (link below) as well as my resume. NASA Ames gave me fantastic exposure to a wide range of
metalworking disciplines. Instead of entering the workplace and focusing strictly on welding, I sought out and took every
opportunity to work in other areas with every employer. It is upon my own initiative that I expanded from a production
welder, to a machinist, designer, machine builder, and business owner. In addition to my work, I dabbled with sign language
studies and spent several weeks over two summers as a camp counselor at a summer camp for deaf children.
I also spent a number of years involved with local community theater, learning to hang and run lights, but also functioning
as stage crew, set construction, special effects, house manager, producer, and member of the Board of Directors.
I am always open to learning something new! When I do arrive in Australia to stay, my first priority will be to connect with
TAFE and pursue trade papers in welding and machining.

I have pondered trying to bring my entire shop over, but the expense combined with the rural nature of Cootamundra suggests
finding enough suitable work to justify bringing my CNC machines won't pay off. Accordingly, I will be downsizing, focusing
on those tools and machines that will allow me to pursue my metal working hobby interests, and perhaps a low level hobby business..
My hobbies include miniature engines, restoring antique engines, tinkering, photography, and designing/building my own widgets, to
facilitate my hobbies. Being able to make and fix things is a large part of defining who I am. I just cannot imagine not having some
basic machines and tools to do what I love.

The likely machine list for my future hobby shop include: Bridgeport manual mill w/DRO, engine lathe yet to be purchased
(and maybe will be purchased there), antique Hardinge Cataract lathe (restoration project), Roll-In cutoff saw, drill press,
several bench grinders, sanders, 24" bench sheetmetal shear, 24" bench finger brake, corner notcher, and a wide variety of
power hand tools. I will purchase oxy-acetelyne and TIG welder locally. Also bringing enough hardware to build a benchtop
CNC milling machine for hobby use.

If you are interested in my skills as an employee, I would love to discuss how I might best serve your business.
I frankly would welcome a chance to return to working for others, the better to have a life outside of work, to spend time with
family, and and have time to explore and enjoy your lovely country.

The Picture Gallery link below features work I have done either in my own shop or for past employers, and showcases the range
of work I am capable of. This link takes you to my main USA based web page, there is no link back to the page you are on now,
however clicking all links will open a new tab.