The PA Correctional Industries Vehicle Restoration Plant has frequently done work for sister agencies on trucks and plows, but recently they were hired for a new type of project.
The PA Game Commission ordered 132 gates, and the plant had much of the material needed for the project available. The work crew cut and made the necessary jigs to construct the gate parts.
All the gates were constructed from raw materials that had to be cut and fabricated to exact specifications.
“It took the ingenuity of the workers to create the ‘jigs’ that would make every piece be exactly the same,” Plant Supervisor Tim McKinney said. “We kept the same team of workers from start to finish in order to keep the continuity of the product that was being made.”
Pictured are the jigs, a custom-made tool used to control the location and/or motion of parts or other tools.
Despite a slow start figuring things out, the crew was able to complete the project by the deadline. By the end of August, 122 gates were delivered to the 12 northern Game Commission Districts, and an extra 10 gates were delivered to the Indiana District on Sept. 1.