This is a letter sent to MRO Today from David Lantz, an engineering manager at Borroughs Corporation in Kalamazoo, Mich. Lantz hopes to some day be a member of a three-person team picked for the cable television show "Junkyard Wars."

Says David: "I've worked at Borroughs Corporation for 19 years. Borroughs, which employs approximately 300 people, is a sheet metal factory whose current products include checkout stands (used in grocery and retail stores), industrial shelving, library shelving and various OEM work. My responsibilities include design (the best part of the job), personnel management, customer contact, sales support, vendor specs, hands-on factory support – generally anything required, as most MRO Today readers probably do.

"The thing about Junkyard Wars that grabbed me was taking something thought totally useless (junk) and being able to design and build it into some type of working unit that could be used for fun or competition. The thought of tearing something apart (a specialty of mine, so my employees state) and building it up for a different use makes the creative juices flow.

"Unfortunately, the interest for the show does not extend to others I've talked to at Borroughs. I've tried to get my engineering team to possibly join with me, but the interest is not as strong as mine. Some have seen parts of the show here or there; others don't have the channel available to them to watch. We do talk about the show, mainly when I bring up what they built the night before.

"Before I put my name on the [Junkyard Wars team-building want ad] Web site, I asked around work for others to join. There were no takers. I have had response from the site but a three-person team is not in place yet.