Editor’s Note:
This is part of Equipment World's in-depth series that explores the troubling state of mental health in the construction industry and what can be done about it.
Also in this series: Why the Industry's Suicide Rate So High?
Brandon Balwanz was operating a chop saw cutting forms for a concrete pipelaying job when he tripped and fell.
He was still holding onto the saw with its 14-inch circular blade as it cut into his leg.
That was in 2012 and so began a long struggle with addiction, starting with the opioid pain pills he was prescribed. He’s been clean three years now and has been able to help others in the gas and oil pipeline construction field who have struggled just as he has. At 40, he’s a foreman and equipment operator and leads a crew of 10 to 12 workers.
He’s found that being drug-free has made life much better for himself, his family and his coworkers.
“I had a lot of anger issues for a long time,” he says. “I try to let that baggage go. Once you do, it's a weight off.”
