Plant Manager at CSX Transportation
How a Marine master sergeant transferred his aviation mechanic skills to the railroad.
By Warren Duffie

Scott Mahanes is a stickler for details, since in his military and civilian careers negligence could result in serious injury or even death. As a Marine, he was a helicopter mechanic and later an aircraft maintenance chief in charge of training new mechanics.

Today as a plant manager for CSX Transportation, Mahanes, 41, ensures that equipment for the railroad giant is repaired and refurbished quickly and efficiently.

“In the Marine Corps, there is such a high standard of excellence – you don’t accept anything less,” said Mahanes, who still serves as a Reservist. “That has really helped me at CSX. You don’t take chances with quality. If you do, helicopters crash and trains derail.”

On the Job
Mahanes is in charge of CSX’s Bryan Park shop in Richmond, Va. Within the 152,000-square-foot facility, he and his team of 78 employees rebuild and repair railroad equipment ranging from spike drivers and pullers to tampers (which pack ballast under tracks).

“My military experience helps in two ways: Management and technical skills,” said Mahanes, a master sergeant. “As a Marine, I worked with diverse people and learned to adapt to new situations. That opened my mind to getting the best out of the people I supervised. On the technical side, I understand the value of being meticulous and standard-oriented. Although I worked with aircraft in the military, there is much direct crossover to railroads.”

In Uniform
Mahanes’ love of tinkering began during high school, when he took an automotive course. The Richmond, Va., native took naturally to nuts, bolts and sparkplugs and soon became a certified mechanic – working at a local garage during high school.

“But I knew I didn’t want to fix cars for the rest of my life, and with my maturity level at the time college was out of the question,” Mahanes said. So he enlisted, and after basic training at Parris Island and mechanic school in Millington, Tenn., Mahanes was assigned to New River Air Station, which is part of Camp Lejeune, N.C. He stayed there until leaving the service in 1993. He joined the Marine Corps Reserve in 1996.

“My wife and I had just had a son,” he said. “I had been deployed a lot before his birth, so I wanted to stay around to be a father. I was on a ship for several months, where I read a lot of books on résumé writing. When I came back to New River, I attended transition assistance classes and began to prepare for my job search.”

The Transition
Mahanes didn’t have to search hard. A couple of months before his separation, his parents saw an ad by Baker Equipment – which repairs and sells truck equipment – calling for a mechanic/welder. Mahanes applied to Baker as well as CSX. CSX’s recruiter told him he needed more experience with welding and diesel engines – prompting the Marine to go with Baker.

After spending a year and a half installing hydraulic and electrical systems on trucks, Mahanes applied with CSX and was hired as a mechanic. Over the next decade, he rose through the ranks and served in several quality-assurance supervisory positions before being promoted to his current position in 2009.

How’d You Get That Job?
“My wife and I had just had a son. I had been deployed a lot before his birth, so I wanted to stay around to be a father. I was on a ship for several months, where I read a lot of books on résumé writing. When I came back to New River, I attended transition assistance classes and began to prepare for my job search.”

Mahanes didn’t have to search hard. A couple of months before his separation, his parents saw an ad by Baker Equipment – which repairs and sells truck equipment – calling for a mechanic/welder. Mahanes applied to Baker as well as CSX. CSX’s recruiter told him he needed more experience with welding and diesel engines – prompting the Marine to go with Baker.

What Mahanes Likes About His Job

• I have outstanding employees.
• The mechanical and technical aspects of my job.
• I’m always busy. I’m never bored.
  

Mahanes’ Advice

1. Use your GI Bill benefits. “Get as much education as you can. Your income directly correlates to the degrees you earn.”
   
2. Connect with service organizations. “I wish there had been organizations like Marines for Life when I got out. They can provide you with so many useful transition tips. Don’t push those resources aside.”
   
3. Save your money. “Pay off your credit cards and car before leaving the military. Get rid of as much debt as possible. Civilian life is expensive, and there’s no guarantee you’ll land a job right away. Develop a nest egg.”
   

CSX Transportation
HQ: Jacksonville, Fla.
Employees: 34,000; 7,600 have military experience
2010 Revenues: $10.6 billion
www.csx.com

Did You Know?
Based in Jacksonville, Fla., CSX Transportation operates a network encompassing about 21,000 route miles of track in 23 states, the District of Columbia and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec.

CSX prides itself on its patriotism. For example, from July 2004 to July 2006, Mahanes’ Reserve unit was activated and stationed in Al Asad, Iraq, where he was a maintenance control chief for CH-46 Echo helicopters. During those two years, CSX paid the difference between Mahanes’ military and civilian salaries. In 2010 he was deployed to Haiti for several months, and CSX once again paid the difference between his salaries.