JANUARY 2019 – East Coast Metal Systems (ECMS) Estimator DJ Hores is this month’s featured employee.

DJ earned a degree in the field of Communications/Journalism and worked as a marketing director prior to discovering his passion for working with metal. DJ has a total of 12 years experience in the metal industry and began his career on the ECMS team in August of 2011 as an apprentice in the metal fabrication shop. In December 2017, he was promoted to Estimator and began working in the office.

From apprentice to estimator, DJ has always liked a new challenge. He enjoys estimating atypical designs and especially enjoys the math portion of the work. “My co-workers are very knowledgeable, and I’ve leaned on them heavily while learning this position,” said DJ. “Their help is invaluable, and the office environment at ECMS is better than any other I’ve experienced.”
DJ’s most memorable project as a sheet metal worker was fabricating large copper panels for Camp Dawson Army National Guard Facility in West Virginia. He recalled it was intricate work which required attention to detail and careful handling so as not to damage the panels, as the copper was easily dented and scratched.

“I’m very grateful for the help and advice I’ve received from Mike Gilli, Chris Wack, Bob Nixon, Karen Porter, and most recently Tiffany Wildern. I also consider myself fortunate to have worked with some extremely talented sheet metal workers – not to slight anyone, but Jeff Spradling and the late Guy Bellanco offered a wealth of knowledge, experience, and humor,” said DJ. “Last but not least, my wife Jacqui deserves credit for encouraging me to take a chance and submit a resume to ECMS and for tolerating my work stories!”

“For six years, DJ demonstrated a great work ethic and knowledge of our products while working in the shop. He put in the extra time to master his trade and was excited for the opportunity to do more in an office setting, and the transition was virtually seamless,” said ECMS VP John Trifonoff. “His positive energy has allowed him to consistently build a constructive reputation with our customer base and enhance our customer relationship management efforts. DJ has proven himself to be a great addition to our estimating team.”

Pictured from left to right is stepson Zachary (19), wife Jacqui, son Tyler (13), DJ, and daughter Odessa (18).