Production responsibility: He oversees the Haiku 84, ES6, and ES6 Turbo lines, plus the combined Mammoth and Bison line.
- Career progression: Charles Thomas started as a warehouse temp at Big Ass Fans and worked his way up to team lead over 11 years.
- Quality process: Every fan is fully assembled, run, and safety-tested, then disassembled, boxed, and shipped to customers.
- Ambassador recognition: Selected for his work ethic and productivity, Thomas leads facility tours and now serves as spokesperson for all company ambassadors.
- Workforce advice: He urges young people to prioritize safety and work ethic, and urges manufacturers to showcase real products and job benefits to attract new talent.
Starting on the Ground Floor
Career paths in manufacturing rarely follow a straight line, and Charles Thomas's trajectory at Big Ass Fans in Lexington, Kentucky, is a case in point. He joined the company as a temp in the warehouse. Eleven years later, he holds the title Team Lead, Residential Fans, and Ambassador — a role he earned by going full time and working his way up.
His formal training was modest: high school, plus one year at ITT Technical Institute in Lexington. Everything else, he learned on the job.
"Proudest moment, I've got two. The first is making team lead. I started here as a temp in the warehouse. Went full time, worked my way up. I'm still learning something every day, and I'm not done."
Running the Lines
Thomas currently oversees multiple production lines — the Haiku 84, the ES6, and the ES6 Turbo — and is also responsible for the combined Mammoth and Bison line. His day-to-day work centers on keeping those lines moving and stepping in when problems arise.
The production process itself includes an unusual verification step worth noting for anyone in assembly operations: every fan is fully built, run, and tested, then disassembled for packaging.
"The way it works is we build the fan, then we run it and test it to make sure it does what it's supposed to and passes every safety check. Then we take it back apart, box it up and send it out to the customer. Yeah, we build the whole thing and then take it apart again. That's how you know it's right."
Build-test-teardown-ship is a deliberate quality gate, not redundancy. It confirms each unit performs before it ever reaches a customer.
The Ambassador Role
Thomas's second point of pride is his selection as one of a small group of company ambassadors — a program started a couple of years ago. Ambassadors are chosen based on work ethic, productivity, and the ability to work well with people across the company's facilities. They lead tours for customers, partners, and other manufacturers, walking visitors through how the fans are designed and built.
The role required personal growth. Thomas says he once disliked public speaking; he has since become the spokesperson for all the ambassadors.
"When I started, I did not like getting up in front of people. Now it's just part of who I am."
"Since then, I've become the spokesperson for all our ambassadors. That might be my proudest moment of all."
A Message for the Next Generation
Thomas's advice to young people considering manufacturing is direct:
"Show up. Pay attention. Follow the procedures and put safety ahead of everything."
He also encourages students to explore the different types of manufacturing available, identify what appeals to them, and work backward to the classes and skills they need. For manufacturers struggling to attract young talent, his recommendation is equally practical: show them tangible products people actually use, and be upfront about the hours, the people, and the benefits.
His own motivation is simple.
"Putting things together. I've loved that since I was a kid."
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