Who We Are:
Plain Dealing Lumber is a harvesting and lumber manufacturing company in Plain Dealing, LA, committed to sustainable forestry and producing high-quality wood products. Our fast-paced, hands-on environment prioritizes safety, teamwork, and opportunities for continuous growth and long-term skill development.
Precision and performance are at the heart of the Saw Filer role at Plain Dealing Lumber. This position inspects, sharpens, repairs, tensions, and maintains saw blades and cutting tools to ensure consistent performance, maximize lumber recovery, maintain product quality, minimize downtime, and extend tool life. Working closely with Maintenance and Operations, the Saw Filer monitors saw performance, troubleshoots cutting issues, and helps keep sawmill operations running safely and efficiently.
This is a shift-based position at our Plain Dealing, LA facility, with the following schedule options available: Monday–Friday, 6:00 am–6:00 pm, or Thursday–Monday, 6:00 am–6:00 pm.
Hourly rate: $29 - $38, based on relevant experience.
Essential Responsibilities:
- Sharpen, tension, level, and balance circular saws, band saws, gang saws, and edger saws using precision filing, grinding, and tensioning equipment.
- Inspect saws before installation to ensure tooth geometry, hook angle, set, and tension meet specifications for the material and production requirements.
- Install and remove saws from production equipment, ensuring collars, guides, arbors, and mounting components are properly fitted, aligned, and secured.
- Monitor saw performance during production and troubleshoot issues such as drift, wash boarding, vibration, burning, and poor surface quality.
- Make necessary saw adjustments or replace saws as needed to maintain production efficiency and lumber quality.
- Maintain an adequate inventory of sharp, production-ready saws and coordinate saw rotation schedules to support production needs.
- Maintain the saw filing room, filing equipment, and tools in clean, organized, and serviceable condition, including routine maintenance of grinders and tensioning equipment.
- Maintain accurate records of saw condition, filing history, gauge readings, rotation schedules, and saw life to identify replacement needs.
- Communicate with Operations and Maintenance regarding saw performance, filing schedules, replacement needs, and saw-related quality concerns.
- Provide technical input when evaluating saw products, suppliers, filing techniques, and equipment needs.
- Follow all company safety and lockout/tagout (LOTO) procedures when working with saws and production equipment and promptly report safety concerns or equipment failures.
- High school diploma or GED required; formal saw filing apprenticeship or equivalent vocational training strongly preferred.
- Minimum of 3 years of saw filing experience in a sawmill, lumber, or wood products environment; circular, band, and gang saw experience preferred.
- Proficiency in saw tensioning, leveling, sharpening, and fitting, including gauge measurements and proper tooth geometry.
- Strong mechanical aptitude and precision skills, with the ability to use grinding, filing, and measurement equipment and diagnose saw performance and quality issues.
- Strong knowledge of LOTO and safe saw-handling practices, with flexibility to work early mornings, weekends, and on-call as production needs require.
- Formal saw filing apprenticeship or certification through a recognized trade program or industry association.
- Experience with a variety of saw configurations including large circular head rig saws, thin-kerf saws, and carbide-tipped edger saws.
- Bilingual (English/Spanish) skills a plus.
- Work is performed primarily in the saw filing room with regular presence on the sawmill production floor, with exposure to metal filings, grinding sparks, noise, sawdust, sharp saw components, moving machinery, and varying temperatures.
- Regularly work in physically demanding conditions around saws, cutting tools, industrial machinery, and production equipment.
- Prolonged standing and walking throughout the shift, with frequent bending, reaching, and movement between the saw filing room and production areas.
- Frequent lifting, carrying, pushing, and pulling of saws, tools, materials, and equipment weighing up to 60 lbs.
- Regularly bend, crouch, stoop, reach, push, pull, and perform repetitive tasks associated with saw filing, sharpening, maintenance, installation, and removal.
- See, hear, communicate, and perform tasks requiring manual dexterity and visual acuity to safely inspect, sharpen, repair, and handle saws and cutting tools.
- Required use of personal protective equipment (PPE), including cut-resistant gloves, safety glasses, hearing protection, steel-toed boots, and additional PPE as required during grinding and filing operations.
- Follow all lockout/tagout (LOTO) and required safety procedures before working on installed saws or production equipment.
- Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the role.
Plain Dealing Lumber is committed to cultivating a workplace where diverse voices, perspectives, and experiences help drive our innovation and success. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. Plain Dealing Lumber is proud to be an equal opportunity employer.
Skills Required
- High school diploma or GED
- At least 3 years of saw filing experience in a sawmill, lumber, or wood products environment
- Proficiency in saw tensioning, leveling, sharpening, and fitting
- Knowledge of gauge measurements and proper tooth geometry
- Strong mechanical aptitude and precision skills
- Ability to use grinding, filing, and measurement equipment
- Ability to diagnose saw performance and quality issues
- Strong knowledge of lockout/tagout and safe saw-handling practices
- Flexibility to work early mornings, weekends, and on-call shifts as needed
- Formal saw filing apprenticeship or equivalent vocational training
- Experience with circular, band, and gang saws
- Formal saw filing apprenticeship or recognized trade certification
- Experience with large circular head rig saws, thin-kerf saws, and carbide-tipped edger saws
- Bilingual English and Spanish skills
What We Do
At Compass, we drive organizational performance with proven HR consulting and business solutions that are as unique as the clients we serve. Our clients range from start-up organizations to Fortune 500 corporations in industries as diverse as health care, manufacturing, professional sports, technology, and more. We also offer an array of outsourced HR solutions to our clients. Our HR project solutions encompass all aspects of the employee life cycle. In addition, we partner with clients on other initiatives, such as defining business strategy, setting goal metrics, and developing customer excellence. Our mission is to create work environments where people thrive — all people. We believe embracing, celebrating, and advocating for a diverse and inclusive culture is the right thing to do and essential to all organizations. We champion conversations around diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion in all aspects of the employee experience. Our passion is ensuring practices create a culture of dignity and respect.
Why Work With Us
Everywhere you turn at Compass, you meet professionals with incredible experience—people who share an unrelenting commitment to maximizing performance. And each one is always eager to share the knowledge and skills attained over storied careers. We’re driven to deliver real impact for our clients, and we’re just as passionate about driving success
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