Byron Comb, a long-time machinist for Louisiana-based Maxim Watermakers, lives by a simple code: “Anything you do in life should be done to your fullest capabilities.” Comb has worked in fabrication his entire life and is in his 32nd year working for Maxim. Combined with his previous experience, Comb has been cutting metal for 43 years.
One of the things Comb loves about his job is that the work he does directly contributes to ensuring clean water is available for crews performing critical missions. The Navy uses heat exchangers to create clean water from seawater and waste heat. Comb’s craftsmanship is vital to the process. Working from drawings, he makes components and tube sheets – custom-sized pieces of metal into which holes are drilled – through which water passes. The 1,000 bed hospital ships USNS Comfort and USNS Mercy use this system to produce more than 200,000 gallons of fresh water each day.
A perfectionist with high standards, Comb has earned a great reputation for quality workmanship. He’s never had work come back with defects and takes pride in knowing inspectors tasked with looking at products before they go out know his work will always be in perfect order.
When early-to-mid career machinists look to him for guidance, Comb encourages them to make sure they don’t rely solely on computer programs. Being skilled in both the newest technologies and manual machinery allows a modern-day machinist to keep working when computer numerical control machines fail. Employees in need of guidance seek Comb out because they know they can rely on his breadth of knowledge and willingness to help.
Comb is also a stickler for safety and advises coworkers to always be safety conscious. Things don’t always work on a machine as expected, and a cautious approach minimizes risk. Comb says maintaining a healthy fear of the equipment you’re working with while at the same time being confident in what you are doing is an acquired skill, one that takes either experience or working alongside someone who has it.
When he’s not at work, you’ll find Comb wood working, engraving, or spending time with his grandkids.
With retirement in sight, Comb isn’t quite ready to stop working. All types of mariners need water, from the military to sail boats, and Maxim makes the parts that make fresh water possible for those applications. He envisions staying for at least a few more years, giving him time to help train the next generation of machinists.
Until then, don’t be surprised if you hear Comb dropping pearls of wisdom as any good mentor would. He’s often telling folks to “learn everything you can from anybody you can,” regardless of age, and to “do 110% of what you are doing and do it with pride.”
