maintenance mechanic

machine operator

entry level maintenance technician

cnc machinist

Ballistic Advantage LLC

The first thing I noticed was how helpful everyone is. Sure, there is a designated trainer who is knowledgeable, helpful and understanding. But every single person I worked with carried a friendly disposition, jumping at any chance to help a new guy. All you gotta do is ask. Training lasts two weeks, but I've seen guys take an extra week if they need/want it. Again, all you gotta do is ask.
Once training is complete and you're on a shift, you're still never without resources. The shift leads are always available to help with anything, and the other employees love to offer assistance. All you gotta do is ask.
Then, once you're working on your own... You are beautifully on your own. People leave you alone and let you be. There aren't any meetings or videos to watch or silly things like that. You punch in, go to work, and run your machine in peace.
Management is very respectful of employees in this aspect. Once a shift or so, the boss will swing by and check in on you. Not your work. You. Everything good? You need me for anything? Is this working for you, or do you want to learn a different machine? They seem to know the perfect balance of how much to leave a person alone at work to do their job in peace, while still checking on them once in a while to ensure things are okay. But regardless how often they do or don't approach you, you always have a direct line to contact them if/when you need anything. And they make themselves available to you immediately. All you gotta do is ask.
To be fair, there are some downsides to the job. You're on your feet all day, standing in one spot. It is a shop full of machines, so it can be loud. You have to wash your hands at the end of the day. The shifts are longer than a typical 9-to-5. But even these downsides can have upsides, depending how you look at it. For example, the long shifts... You only work seven out of fourteen days. So that's more days off, less travel costs, and all that, but you still get your full time pay. And there are several different shifts, depending on you schedule/needs. All you gotta do is ask.
This job is easy to learn, easy to do, and folks leave you alone to do it. But if you need help, want a new challenge, need to talk to the boss... All you gotta do is ask.

 Ballistic Advantage is staffed with a host of interesting people; some are friendly, some are intelligent, some are even good workers. Socially, the company is a nice place to be; most people get along, there's a lot of camaraderie (depending on what shift you're on; 3rd Shift seems to be the most cohesive), and there's a good support network when it comes to cooperation. The work that they ask of people, whether it be in Production, Maintenance, or Shipping / Fulfillment, is usually pretty easy and direct: there are no absurd goals or quotas that need to be met (make no mistake though, they can tell when you aren't doing your job), and most of the time the work is very well-facilitated. Especially after having relocated to Ocoee, there are very few barriers for those who want to do good work.

 Despite that positive basis, Ballistic Advantage is in the midst of a transitory period in their company structure. They're making the leap between small and large company. This means that their policies are shifting and their standards are changing. In my opinion, these gravitations do not work in favor of the general shop employees; it's geared towards management and office workers, simplifying their work without a direct consideration for the shop floor.
 The problem in particular is HR. The newest department of Ballistic Advantage, that gets to act as the sole arbiter of what goes on with employees. If there's even the slightest problem that they don't feel is reconcilable, they'll cut people loose without a debate.

 Your job will be simple. Your job won't be fulfilling. Your job has no security, if you aren't an example of a 'perfect' (or at the very least exceptionally inoffensive) employee.
The pay is alright, though, and everyone tends to get along. That's not enough to counteract that the company doesn't actually value their employees. Don't make any waves, or separation is in your future.

If you are looking for a good career this isn’t the place but if you are just looking for a temporary job to get some money it might be ok. This place is insanely unprofessional and shady. More than half of the people that are in upper management should not be in upper management because they are not qualified and they have no people skills when it comes to taking care of their good employees. HR is very biased and only listens to upper management on how to handle complaints they do not look out for the employees even if they have proof and valid reasons for their complaints . The company brings you in with promises of growth and reaching goals but then never fulfill those promises and if you voice your opinions or ideas and they don’t like them they completely ignore you. If you ever have any complaints you automatically have a target on your back. They will tell you that they are doing things to resolve the issues but half of the time they’re just trying to find ways to keep you on to fill a spot and use you until they find a replacement. They will have a meeting after meeting after meeting and nothing will ever come of the meetings as far as any type of resolution to any issues you have. Upper management are snakes they don’t care about their people and they see everyone as a dollar signs. Communication is terrible and the environment is very high school click oriented. It’s basically a popularity contest not based on how hard you work or how dedicated you are to the company itself. 

I worked for the company for 6 months. I started in the first shift blanking department. I met great people that were willing to help me learn the trade and helped the work environment be smoother. The manager did not do his part. He continuously made it clear that if you asked anything he did get bothered, reply with attitude and most of the times he barely know the answer or how to solve the existing problem. I truly felt like he does not like to help or have any interest in leading the employees in the right direction. When  I started to get motivated with my work I was unwillingly moved to the turning department by this same manager. He made it obvious that was a favoritism move. This type of manager is what make this company a place where growth is faster with who you know instead of your knowledge and experience. I noticed the favoritism when I started before someone who knows the manager outside of work. Since I started he only made me work on one machine and gave me no opportunity to learn and grow my knowledge in the department I was in. Since that friend of his started he immediately started training him in different types of machines so he can gain knowledge and have room for advancement faster than anybody else. If anybody is considering working for this company I highly recommend the turning department because there’s more opportunities to grow within the company and there’s less favoritism.

For the most part I really enjoyed the aspect of this job. I started on a CNC lathe in the qualifying dept. I was then moved to deep hole drilling which also included reaming and buttoning. (putting the riffling in the barrel) 
Then I was moved back to qualifying for a short period of time before the company let me go. (3.2 years.) The reason I was given was "we have eliminated your position as lead operator" 
I was a very good worker. I rarely missed work and overall I went to work with a positive attitude. Unfortunately no one ever gets along 100% with everyone else. I had a problem with one other employee and although I was professional about things, the other was not. In my opinion, you do not have to like everyone you work with, but you do need to be courteous and professional, which I am. 
I was told by a couple of co-workers that someone who did not like me was complaining about me and talked other employees who did not even know me to join them in said complaints. 
I was not talked to about the said complaints nor given any chance to defend myself. 
Good, hard working honest people don't seem to last here. 
Turn over is very high. 
If you are a favorite, you hide in the bathroom, put out low production and you'll be just fine.

I worked at BA for just over 2yrs and recently left. I had a love/hate relationship with the schedule, at the end of your 4day shift it was nice to have 4 days off. The discounts on firearms were VERY nice! Now for the bad. The main reason I left was management or lack there of. The job is repetitive and monotonous. The pay is on the low end of the scale for a CNC operator. They don’t tell you that you are signing a No Compete Clause when you hire on. There are not enough bathrooms for employees on a brand new building/build out(WTF)? The Air Conditioner can not keep up with the heat the machines are pumping out on a brand new building/build out. The worst part by far is the management!!! It’s a fix the blame and not the problem kind of environment. Management will tell you what you want to hear, but that’s as far as it will go for making a change. The turn over rate has gone through the roof over the last 9 months for a reason. In the end people don’t quit bad jobs they quit bad bosses.

Company doesn't care about employees. When there are issues they have meeting after meeting, promising things will get better but nothing changes. As a business owner myself this place was the best learning lesson I received in 2021. I will never treat my staff in such a manner. Management is terrible. They need courses for the so called managers at BA. Management doesn't know how to talk to employees, they're always on the phone texting or watching videos. New hires have to be  trained by current employees. And the employees aren't compensated for doing more than what their position requires.  Anyone considering this position as the person interviewing you what is the turnover rate at this company! Ask them why is it so high! Then make a decision about working there. Oh yeah and the place is a HOUSE OF OIL. Oil is everywhere you breathe it, it gets in your mouth, you walk in it, it's in your hair after work. Every since working there my breathing has gotten terrible. Smh

The people you work with are fantastic and for the most part are very friendly and open to helping and improving with you. That being said, on numerous occasions someone would be up for a promotion only for the position to go to someone else with no explanation or opportunity for another. No room for advancement even though it's stated that they want you to grow. No set standard for what is deserving of a raise. The environment is fairly stressful, and the oil and coolant is everywhere. As stated by many others, it's in the air so you inhale it all day all while soaking into your hair and clothes. Comfortable enough if you just want a good paying job with benefits that is fairly climate controlled and is nowhere near being labor intensive. Just don't expect to go far or learn much. Great place to start machining.

The job truly is whatever you make of it. You can either be a button pusher/material mover or you can grind, learn a trade, and make a career out of it. It is high production manufacturing ,so the day to day can be repetitive, but that is where you need the self motivation to continue learning. It is a machine shop so the environment can be noisy, somewhat messy and sometimes hot during the summer. A lot of employees liked to complain about the job, but that happens everywhere. It can be quite technical at times, but overall the job is very easy. From my own experience if you come in and work hard they will teach you a lot and compensate you for your consistent hard work. I started knowing nothing about CNC machining, but I was able to learn the fundamentals and become a machinist for a "job shop" style manufacturing company.

12 hour work days on your feet at all times standing in front of a machine. No sick time. Barely accrue pto, doesnt abide by OSHA regulations, promises to give you a raise after 90 days and that never happens, 1 toilet for the males(well over the amount for OSHA regs), had a female walk into the restroom to have a male hiding in the stall and not announce himself-reported it to her bosses and was laughed at. Males receive more compensation than females even if the females experience outweighs the males, pretty much a place if you dont know the higher ups or brown nose you wont go anywhere.

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