A long week again as things progress with the company under new management. I continued to go through posted jobs on BXWA to find some work for our boys and came up with a few options. We have sent out 2 more bids over the last week. I found myself a bit nervous as I had the proposal sitting there waiting to be sent off at the correct time. Once I hit send my hard numbers can mean completely killing a job and making a ton of money, missing something and loosing a bunch, or anywhere in between! Confidence is something I am learning and getting more comfortable with as I plug my numbers in.
I just received shop drawings back from a previous job we are in the middle of and have come to find out this job is ALOT bigger than I anticipated. Though I didn't bid this job and had no real idea of how large it was it came as a shock when the final quantities of everything we need to fab came it. Looks like it is going to be a busy couple months for us as this job takes off. 80 steel balconies, 25 steel canopies, and 50 steel columns.... HERE WE GO!!!
Though this internship has been a bit out of the realm of diesel tech due to how the company has promoted me into different positions that have come available I have been able to take many things I am learning and transfer them into the diesel world. I plan on sticking around this company for years to come but the thought of having the tools to be able to transfer into the diesel industry at any point is comforting. I have kept my schooling in mind as multiple things have come up which need the experience of a BTC Diesel graduate. Things like servicing of equipment, preventative maintenance, lifting and rigging heavy loads, thinking on your feet and making due with what you have available are all things I come in contact with. The experience I have gained over the last two years is absolutely blowing me away. Its been quite the adventure.
Hours: 62
Total:295
Monday, August 26, 2013
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Monday, August 12, 2013
SummerQT JW-More New Things
After my week off for my honeymoon I am back in the swing of things and embarking and yet another new task. Now that we have gotten through one of the busiest couple weeks I have seen here at Phoenix Metalworks we are going to be needing to get more work line up for the future to keep things rolling smoothly. Bidding/Estimating steel projects is my newest venture in learning. We use a site called Builders Exchange of Washington (BXWA) where owners and/or general contractors post upcoming jobs that we are able to put bids on. Navigating through the site didn't take too long to figure out but crunching the numbers for a hard bid has proved to be quite the stretch.
Things that I am learning when it comes to bidding is being aware of steel prices as they tend to fluctuate drastically from week to week. A bid could be put in months before the project actually takes off and the steel prices can often spike or dive. Navigating through plans can be a tedious process of jumping from on sheet to another and detail to detail of a specific part of job. Things could easily be missed in doing a take-off so attention to details is highly important. Also, considering every aspect to a job needs to be included. For example, if a bid is put in for fabricating and installing steel canopies you need to consider the job site access for use with forklifts/cranes or any other needed equipment. I ran into an issue with a general on our last install that proved to be a learning experience when it came to this. Although we had been to the jobsite and planned out the install with use of forklifts and man lifts, he seemed to think we were complete newbies in doing it this way. He fought with me for 20 minutes trying to get us to rent a crane for the install which would have cost nearly $5 a minute to have somebody operate it.... NOT WHAT I WANTED TO DO!!! After winning that argument we showed up on set ready to rock that morning and had all steel erected by the end of the week. The general was extremely impressed with our decision and we have now made a solid contact with that company for future work.
Learning each and every day is exciting and stressful all at once but I am building confidence with every single lesson learned.
Hours: 40
Total: 233
Things that I am learning when it comes to bidding is being aware of steel prices as they tend to fluctuate drastically from week to week. A bid could be put in months before the project actually takes off and the steel prices can often spike or dive. Navigating through plans can be a tedious process of jumping from on sheet to another and detail to detail of a specific part of job. Things could easily be missed in doing a take-off so attention to details is highly important. Also, considering every aspect to a job needs to be included. For example, if a bid is put in for fabricating and installing steel canopies you need to consider the job site access for use with forklifts/cranes or any other needed equipment. I ran into an issue with a general on our last install that proved to be a learning experience when it came to this. Although we had been to the jobsite and planned out the install with use of forklifts and man lifts, he seemed to think we were complete newbies in doing it this way. He fought with me for 20 minutes trying to get us to rent a crane for the install which would have cost nearly $5 a minute to have somebody operate it.... NOT WHAT I WANTED TO DO!!! After winning that argument we showed up on set ready to rock that morning and had all steel erected by the end of the week. The general was extremely impressed with our decision and we have now made a solid contact with that company for future work.
Learning each and every day is exciting and stressful all at once but I am building confidence with every single lesson learned.
Hours: 40
Total: 233
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