Heat is a Hazard
They say "Necessity is the Mother of Invention". And so it was, on a particularly hot summers day, while raising a series of manholes during a paving operation. We came up with a new way to combat heat stroke and dehydration.
As usual we were on site at the start of the shift, to remove the frames and cap the holes prior to milling. If you look at any of the photos here you'll see the obvious gains from this methodology. The miller had a straight run without any impediments, so he's faster and smoother. Gone are the days when the service crew followed the miller with Hilti's to "hand-mill" around the ironworks. And because the milling is smoother, the paving is infinitely easier too.
But that's only half our job done.
Once we've extracted the frames we're ready to start the process of raising and stabilising the ironworks so the paving crew can pave right up to the new frame. This is a time consuming task which includes cleaning and prepping the holes, building up to the right base height, then securing the frames. We usually have a small window between when the miller finishes, and the bitumen truck arrives to lay the membrane.
If we're rushed, or we have a lot of frames to reset, we might impose on the milling crew to prepare an area (mill and sweep) so we can get straight to work. But on this day we were well ahead of critical path. We'd got our frames out before the miller had even made his first pass, and the paving crew were not due for another 5 hours, so we made the decision to drive around the corner to survey another job starting the following week. This is better for everyone since when we vacate the site the milling crew have one less obstacle in their path.
We got back close to midday, and the Auckland summer was really starting to turn up the heat. The milling crew had finished the area where our manholes were, and we more or less had the site to ourselves. After a pause to admire how nice and smooth the surface looked, we considered our plan for the next hour or so.
Rolling out of the aircon cab, the heat was oppressive. It was classic conditions for heat stroke, and/or dehydration. We were under no illusions as to how much this was going to extract out of us. I turned to my cohort and said "Wouldn't it be nice if we had a bit of shade?" A moment of confusion creased his face before he broke into a smile and reached up into the truck ...
That's right! We put up a tent!
Given that reinstatement takes anywhere from 20-60 minutes per location it makes real good sense to spend a couple more minutes putting up some shade. It's big enough to cover our work footprint, but small enough that it does not impede other traffic on the site.
Not only did it turn an oppressive work environment into quite a pleasant one, but it also helped our asphalt go off, which probably saved us 20-30 minutes per site waiting between layers. We weren't rushing or worrying about hydration. We just got about our work to make sure the finished product was racetrack smooth. And you be the judge... here's the same manhole the next day after the paving crew have done their thing...
This tent was not purchased as a sunshade - it was for protection from the rain. As I'm sure you're aware, asphalt needs a dry surface to adhere properly. So coupled with temporary channels to redirect surface water around us, this tent has taken inclement weather out of the equation for us.
This is what we got it for...
... in case you're wondering, this rain photo was taken 36 hours earlier during a rain delay on the West End Rd job. So while all that paving equipment lay idle, we were catching up on some urgent jobs. It takes a little more than a tropical downpour to keep us at home!
And so West End Road marked another first for us. First time we've used a sunshade on a live milling operation. With the tent still wet in it's bag from the rainstorm two days earlier, it now proved it's value as protection against the debilitating effects of heat and dehydration.
Pretty much every job we do introduces a new issue, which we evaluate and overcome. We've adapted tools to make our job easier, and we've adapted our systems to improve our product. So long as there's space on the truck, we'll keep adding things which make our job easier or better. Who knows what's next? Maybe we'll throw in a couple of deck chairs so when we're finished we can kick back and enjoy the rest of the shift!
:: Faster :: Stronger :: Smarter ::
Hole World is arguably NZ's only civil contracting operation set up specifically to reinstate manholes. Whether it's an emergency repair, or part of a routine maintenance operation, we'll not only save you time and money, but we'll help you turn out a better product with a longer life expectancy. DM us for more information. www.holeworld.co.nz