Papercreters: [papercreters] Re: Jay Cleaning up our act.

Monday, March 26, 2012

[papercreters] Re: Jay Cleaning up our act.

Okay, valledecalle. You're not getting off that easy.

I appreciate that you agree with the importance of a clean and organized construction site, but share your details.

Tell us what you do that works best to keep things under control. Tell us about areas where you are frustrated. Post photos of each.

This might be anything from how you organize and store your tools, to how you postition machinery, to how you divide up work tasks, to little tricks to minimize waste of materials, to how you hen-peck that "not a neat man." :)

--- In papercreters@yahoogroups.com, calle vallede <valledecalle@...> wrote:
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> Hi All,
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> I agree that the sites look very messy.Â Our place has no neighbors or anyone that would really see our mess, but I will organize it so it does not slow us down.
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> You have to draw up a plan for production and that way everything has it's place and it's function.
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> My spouse is not a neat man on a construction site.
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> I have a degree in a field that demands organization and order.Â So I am always talking about safety and organization.
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> It takes so much longer to do a job when you can't find the tools or the materials are strung out all over.Â I am so sorry to tell you guys that I can become a real strong demanding woman when it comes to doing the right thing about expensive equipment and the proper use of it.
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> A carefully thought out plan about how your construction project is to go and what you will need to do it are not just smart but ends up costing you less.
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> Our place is 80 miles round trip at the least for any supplies, and it takes us 20-40 minutes to drive out 4 miles.Â So it is so unwise to not plan.
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> Thanks for sharing your experience, it makes total sense to plan and plan and plan again, then reassess each day what is going to happen the next day.
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> My wife put you up to this didn't she?! :-O
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> On Sun, Mar 25, 2012 at 9:19 AM, Jay <slurryguy@...> wrote:
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> I recently helped out on a Habitat for Humanity build.
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> This particular build was very frustrating because the project manager did a poor job of organizing the work site. Materials were all over the place. Trash was everywhere. Nobody could find what they needed. Much time and effort was wasted simply trying to find things instead of getting work done.
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> To add insult to injury, the building inspector stopped by and got frustrated because several issues (these were valid important items) had not been addressed because work had proceeded much more slowly than anticipated. Again this was a result of disorganization.
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> Later, even the neighbors started to complain about the work site looking like a disaster area.
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> I got frustrated enough that I overstepped my authority and simply started drafting volunteers to clean up the work site and organize everything. It took an entire day out of the construction schedule, but it was amazing how much more efficiently and quickly work proceeded from that point forward on the project. The quality of construction also improved. The clean work site inspired everyone to perform their best work instead of sloppy work.
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> That experience has got me thinking a lot about papercrete, and how messy it is.
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> I pose the following questions:
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> What is the best way to organize a papercrete construction site to make work the most efficient, and most safe?
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> What can be done to improve the appearance of the site during construction to be a good neighbor, but also to give a good impression to building inspectors as well as any other visitors.
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> Do you clean your equipment at the end of each day? If you did, would it function better?
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> I've seen a lot of photos of a lot of papercrete construction sites.
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> Many, but not all, look like a bomb was dropped on the site and someone is still trying to pick up the rubble. You have probably seen photos like this too.
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> Are you a messy worker?
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> I suggest that one of the best ways to work with less effort while accomplishing more, and having fewer problems is to organize your construction site cleanly and efficiently.
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> Designing how your construction site is laid out may in many ways be just as important as the design of the building.
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> What are your thoughts?
> What do you think are the best practices?
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> Do you have any photos that demonstrate what works really well for you?
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> Do you have any photos of problems you are having that you would like some suggestions on how to organize your work site better?
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> Do you wish you could find a way to work cleaner?
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> Let's not hide from the mess. Let's face the mess and find ways to clean it up.
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> Calle
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