Unreal

60 hours this week, 70 the week before! Things are busy and moving along. This last week was spent in the office for the most part and running a crew of 2 guys on the floor. I was able to complete another revision of shop drawings for the cornerstone building going up in Barkley village. We are fabricating the canopies and balconies for this new building.

This week I also learned more about project managing as I had a crew of 4 down in Seattle that I was in constant communication with as they installed a previously drawn project for the Mercedes Benz dealership. Keeping those guys stocked with all needed equipment proved to take up quite a bit of time in itself.  Also this week I was pretty much thrown into the middle of learning how the office runs purchase orders, keeps track of job cost, etc. needless to say I'm learning a ton in a short amount of time. Slightly overwhelmed but excited to settle in with all these new opportunities.

Below are some pictures of the job site in Seattle 

Hours 60

What a week!

This week was quite the stretch. We were 2 man down and had 13 storefront canopies to make in 5 days. A jig was built out of some steel ibeam and we were lucky enough to get them fabricated and shipped out on Saturday. This week was new for me in a lot of ways with project managing, running a shop floor, and keeping stress levels down! 

Hours: 70

Summer13 JW

Last week as been a big transition as our lead project manager is leaving. I spent much time going over bid jobs and shop drawings wrapping my head around ever detail I may need to know once our project manager leaves. I also did a steel order take off for 26 canopies that I drew earlier last quarter. The last two days have been spent down in Seattle erecting  steel at an REI and silverdale. Rigging straps and hard hats!!

I have learned a lot this last month in project management, being detailed, organization, and time efficiency. All need to be considered and practiced in the new role I will be taking in the company. Being a man down and trying something new on my part should stretch me quite thin. Bend don't break... 

Included is a picture of the hanger plates (just a small part of these canopies) as well as the beam we erected. This beam was HSS 10x6x.5  and 63ft long! At the time of the picture we were somewhere around 70ft-80ft in the air. Up and over the parapet and wedge anchor and welded the rear of the structure. Quite the experience moving iron today. 

Hours:63

Spq13 jw

Shop hours: 40

Running total: 336

Last week was spent more with hydraulics with an intro into preventive maintenance. The Bobcat mini excavator became a great teaching tool in that we were able to actually see and feel the hydraulics working and not just look at a schematic. My group and I traced through the joystick pilot controls and not only learned the system but studied about what the specific service schedules and procedures were. I feel confident in the hydraulic system in that particular machine as well as what the needed servicing. 

On a somewhat related note I was driving over the pass and had some transmission problems. Looks like I'm going to need to pull it and dive inside... More pictures to come.

Spq13 jw

This week was spent on hydraulics and we dove into the bobcat joystick and pilot control system. We looked through schematics and traced the entire system so we could see exactly how this system operated. I put to use the knowledge of schematic symbols as there were a few within this system. Not only did I learn a ton about a pilot control system but I was also able to operate the machine multiple times and refresh my memory with that. 

Spq13

Last week the highlight was going down south to BG Machinery. We were able to see a business that thrives of of everything we are learning in class. This shop takes on heavy duty machinery engines and re-furnishes them. The biggest thing I took from the tour was how their attention to detail and precision. These guys work with measurements that are 1/30th of the size of a human hair! Their product comes back more precise than when they leave the factory! It was quite the experience and despite the fact it's in Seattle it would be an awesome place to find a job at.

Shop hours: 50
Hours to date: 118

Spq13 Jared

Last week was spent studying about hydraulics and basic operations of different systems. Hydraulics are much like electricity. I spent some time on the board going through the assignments and quickly found things I didn't understand. I had to learn a few basic hydraulic symbols and their operation. One thing I learned is different valves that are restricted depending on different pressures or temperatures. Pretty cool stuff! After I figure out how to post videos I will add to this blog