John Pepe, Jr.

Vice President

John started working at SMI in 1988 as an install helper in the field under the direction of his father, John Pepe Sr., who was a field foreman at the time. The drive to make his father proud was probably a big reason for John to push so hard to learn everything about the fabrication and installation of the many types of railing systems produced at SMI. Within two years, John had achieved multiple certifications in both Mig and Tig welding. He was promoted to a field foreman to run the railing install at Scottsdale Fashion Square when Brad Wines decided to bring John Sr in to run his shop operations. Along with Scottsdale Fashion, John also ran the field on a few of the biggest jobs in company history, including Phoenix City Hall and Sky Harbor Terminal 4. John also traveled the United States doing the railing remodel of all Dillard’s, complete turn-key stair installs in Hawaii, and even a trip to Singapore to install a monumental staircase in the US Embassy.

In 1995 Brad brought John in the shop to learn and run the shop for SMI’s Elevator Division. Back in the sights of his father, John was driven once again to succeed at this new challenge. It was there that John started to check fabrication drawings and decided to just project-manage the elevator jobs that were being sold for SMI – projects such as complete glass cabs that were being shipped all over the world in places like Shanghai, China, and Cairo, Egypt. John decided to start a small install business in 2001 so he could travel less and spend more time coaching his kids in youth sports. Still installing jobs for SMI, he continued his relationship with Mr. Wines and returned to SMI in 2006 once his oldest entered into high school.

Being on his own taught him a completely different side of the business. This would help tremendously since the new goal on his return to SMI in 2006 was to help Mr. Wines manage his company in any department that was in need at the time, including PM responsibilities, Field Superintendent/Safety Coordinator, and even going back in the field on a few high-profile installs like the POW job in Hawaii that consisted of two massive aluminum entryway trellis frames and a radius glass staircase that was suspended by seven 1/2” stainless steel rods at the Sandridge Energy Building in Oklahoma City.

John was officially promoted to Vice President of Operations, Shop and Field in 2011. In 2016, John became the VP of Operations which added the Project Management, Detailing, and Purchasing Departments to his responsibilities. In 2019 John’s responsibilities grew once again when he was promoted to Chief Operations Officer. ×

Jim Toney

Outside Sales Executive

In 1986 Jim graduated from high school in Yakima Washington at the age of 17 and enlisted in the US Navy where he spent four years aboard USS Antietam CG 54. Homeported in Long Beach California, he got to see the world making 2 Westpac deployments and becoming an honorary “shellback” crossing over the equator twice in his time aboard. Traveling to Japan, Singapore, Korea, Thailand, Hong Kong, and the Philippines to name a few. In September 1990, Jim’s enlistment ended and he got out of the Navy and went to work for the Del Monte Foods Corporation as a boiler engineer while attending college at night. At which time he started to work with the millwrights at the plant learning the metal fabrication trade working with stainless steel in the food grade environment. Quickly picking up welding and fabrication skills, and also being a musician, he then became interested in the art of Architectural Metals and Glass fabrication.

In 1998 he went to work for his first Architectural Metals subcontractor as a field installer. Jim grew up in a family with Construction in their background so adapting to the construction industry wasn’t a problem. Armed with the leadership skills he was taught during his time in the military, he quickly rose to field superintendent level and worked into a project manager position. Jim came to Southwest Metalsmiths in 2002 after doing some subcontracted installation work for SMI in the Seattle market. At the time there was a need for leadership in the field and he jumped right in and spent a couple of years running larger projects in the field for SMI. In 2004 was promoted to Project Manager and in 2009, opportunities for professional growth came along as a General Manager for an Architectural Metals company in Las Vegas.  Jim returned to SMI in 2015 as the Vice President of Sales, “returning to Metalsmiths is like coming home to family”.  

Jim is currently working to help expand the company’s market share as an Outside Sales Executive for SMI’s Texas office expansion while helping to support company growth in Oklahoma, Colorado and Nevada markets. He currently lives in Texas with his wife Aimee and their 2 kids Ezra and Ella. ×

Ed Preininger

Shop Foreman

Ed Preininger has been employed at Southwest Metalsmiths forever.  From 1988 to 2000, he worked in welding and fabrication. After taking a hiatus, he returned and continued working in welding and fabrication from 2003 until 2006.  He then became the shop foreman in 2006 and continues in this role presently. As the shop foreman, he has led a team of 25-30 employees that are responsible for material handling, cutting, fabrication, and finishing for the final installation of the product. He continues to oversee employees at Southwest Metalsmiths with varying skills, using several materials including steel, stainless steel, brass, and aluminum. He has had intensive training in safety and holds several welding certifications. ×

Stephanie Carrier

Controller

Stephanie Carrier was just a newlywed and new to Arizona when she first walked through the doors of Southwest Metalsmiths back in 2001 and she’s never left. Originally hired to assist in the Accounting Department, she quickly proved that she was capable of stepping up and handling whatever we threw at her. She’s one of those employees that SMI has always been able to depend on to keep things running smoothly. Stephanie has always taken great pride in doing as much as she can to help each employee in any way possible and has built great personal relationships along the way with many of her coworkers. When she’s not taking great care of everyone at SMI, she can be found at home or out enjoying this beautiful state with her family. ×

Eddy Juarez

Field Superintendent

As an Arizona native, Eddy Juarez worked as an installer and concrete foreman before joining Southwest Metalsmiths. His prior work experience and stellar work ethic resulted in quickly being promoted to a foreman and then later as a Field Superintendent. He works on projects all over the country including Texas, Colorado, Washington, and Hawaii. Eddy has also received several safety and welding certificates and is a certified trainer for boom lifts and forklifts. He embraces daily challenges in the field and likes to train younger team members. Eddy enjoys working and communicating with people and does whatever needs to be done to accomplish a project’s goals. He is a jack of all trades. ×

Stephen Schiavo

CAD Manager

Stephen Schiavo is the CAD Manager/Senior CAD Detailer at SMI. Throughout his career, Steve has worked with organizations across a wide range of industries, gaining – from construction and metal fabrication to electro-mechanical design and IT. His ability to remain multidimensional allows him to work closely with management, shop, and field employees in order to reach the ultimate goal – Getting The Job Done!

Steve, by nature, is an intellectually curious problem solver and uses his diverse practical experience and knowledge, as well as his critical thinking and meticulous attention to detail, to find and solve any problems or issues he finds from the beginning design stages of a project to the final execution. He also finds that taking a simple preliminary idea and creating a tangible product that is both appealing and cost-effective, as well as meeting all design criteria, is the most fulfilling part of his job. ×