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Title: The America I know is gone... Post by stevegeebe on Apr 27th, 2006, 10:56pm Family....help me here... My job, is to coordinate the drawings that build buildings. I try make sure that things fit and that constructability is factored into the project. I coordinate the architecture, structural, mechanical, electrical, civil...and such, to try to make certain that it is fits and can be constructed. Imagine Christmas instrtuctions. When I visit a construction site, I know what is wrong because I have been through the drawings and, trust me, I know. This is the problem. I am so tired of correcting the various trades and marking-up the drawings (for correction) and finding out that they did not bother to correct the work and now I have to correct work in place that needs correction at change order prices. I mean, I pointed to the problem, proposed a solution, and the jackass did not bother to pick it up prior to bid. It is truely killing me. Now I have to design a solution and wait to see how much the contractor is going to fuck me. On a second front, we have hired a contractor to repair some of our properties and I am now punching out their work. You would not believe what they are trying to get by with. The quality is terrible. It would take me too long to describe the shit that they are trying to get away with. I can not continue to correct the work of professionals. I cannot continue the help contractors that screw up the parts that are correct. Everywhere I look, its messed-up. I'm tired and I cannot keep this up. You would not believe what I see. I am about to resign a well paid position because I cannot continue to deal with the incompitance that I am surrounded by. I can't take it anymore. In my life, 50 years, I cannot believe what has happend. Steve G |
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Title: Re: The America I know is gone... Post by Sean_C on Apr 27th, 2006, 11:10pm on 04/27/06 at 22:56:59, stevegeebe wrote:
Steve are you talking federal tax dollars, or your personal savings? As a contractor, unless there is an "official signed change order in hand" with increases or decreases in dollars with a plan which states a detailed directive, I'm moving forward as planned. It sounds like your over worked and under staffed to me. And I'm sure your surrounded by wannabe contractors due to the crisis there, so I guess just hang tough and do the best you can. If all else fails grab a nail gun and fire at will ;;D Sean............................ |
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Title: Re: The America I know is gone... Post by alchemy on Apr 27th, 2006, 11:10pm I know what you mean steve. when i was customising caddies i put out a quality product that got me requests for my work. i worked on phx suns players vehicles and diamondback players because of my work, we would hire people who would slap any shit out and be surprised when after spending 120 grand on a vehicle the people would bring it back wanting a new vehicle. these workers only response was oh well fuckim. quality is fast becoming a thing of the past. it's really to bad. jim |
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Title: Re: The America I know is gone... Post by boonie on Apr 27th, 2006, 11:24pm It is true workmanship is not the same as it used to be Pride should be more than just a word. I own a business and I bid alot of jobs per specs. I build network infrastuctures and take a great deal of pride in my work but low bidders who don't take the same pride can get the job it has always pissed me off. I understand your anger but hold the contractors liable as much as possible The fact you care is what is most important don't quit and don't stop caring then the lousy workers win boonie |
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Title: Re: The America I know is gone... Post by Sean_C on Apr 27th, 2006, 11:42pm on 04/27/06 at 23:24:32, boonie wrote:
What a bunch of crap that is Boon. Regardless of the status of a bid, if the plans and spec say build the bridge here, the contractor is going to put it there "as approved by YOU" If you tell me over a cup of coffee that you "think" maybe we should put it over there instead, and don't make a change order then I'm putting it where its detailed to go. Furthermore, if you then decide "after" its constructed to change the plan, I will without a doubt be submitting a claim for extra work guaranteed, and I'm gonna laugh all the way to the bank. I hate nothing more than an engineering firm that monday morning quarterbacks a play. I say the federal government should make the engineering firm pay for all extra work orders due to the fact that they couldn't build a dog house themselves, but they let them draw prints and copy paste old specs to projects without the samecharacteristics. It makes me sick. THEN they want us to fix there fuck ups on OUR dime. Get bent, both of you. I'll tell you what Boon, you give me "your" own money and see how you feel then. Its statements like that, that make my skin crawl. Sean.......................................... |
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Title: Re: The America I know is gone... Post by BarbaraD on Apr 28th, 2006, 7:19am Steve, Take a deep breath... You've watched a city you love destroyed and now you're working to get it restored. You've got a lot of "fly-by night" contractors down there trying to get in on some "easy money" and they don't care - you do. And no, people don't care about workmanship the way they once did. I wish I could say something earthshattering to make it all better, but I can't think of anything. I've seen the type of contractors you're talking about and have no patience with them either. Take a day off and go fishing.... That sometimes gets your mind off everything and when you come back, maybe things will look different. At least you'll be rested and mad at the fish for not biting... Hugs BD |
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Title: Re: The America I know is gone... Post by Bob P on Apr 28th, 2006, 9:52am The name of the game is construction docs. I spend hour after hour reviewing progress drawings (schematic, 50%, 75%, 90%) for 40 million dollar buildings. If you go to bid with a good set of plans and specs 90% of your troubles are gone. There are good and bad design firms. They all carry "Errors and Omissions" insurance (although I've only seen it gone after once). There are good and bad contractors. If it's in the plans & specs, the contractor has to build it. That is what he bid afterall. Your contruction inspector is there to make sure he does. Change orders are what bug me the most. There are contractors who, like Sean says, will laugh all the way to the bank with the money he gouged you on a change order and with a deletion will give you back 50 cents on the dollar. Then again, there are contractors who will partner very well with the owner and everyone walks away happy. Over time you just have to weed out the bad ones (I've black listed a few for the Calif. State University System). No matter what, you have to start with a good set of con docs. |
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Title: Re: The America I know is gone... Post by Opus on Apr 28th, 2006, 1:16pm Yup it is gone. I work ( sometimes) as a Union Journeyman Electrician. Every year it gets worse. The plans we go by have more and more stupid mistakes, which require changes to make it correct, which results in jumping around to something else. The contractors hire Foreman's who have no idea how to do the work correctly, and who want you to do stupid things. The only way to do the work correctly is to do it behind their backs. Every year the materials we work with get worse, it started with Mexican junk, and is now Chinese trash. Fittings not being a standard size is the biggest problem. Sending the bad boxes to the shop is useless because it will just go back out. The contractors wonder why we use twice as much material as the figure, but they won't listen to the reason we give. The men who seem to do the worst work ( we call them shop rockets) work all year round. I do get some work cleaning up their disasters but not much else. The contractors complain the quality of work is falling but they keep on the worst of the lot because they look good on paper, and blame their losses on the ones who are brought it to make it work. Someone who wants to take the time to do the work correctly the fist time, is considered slow in America today. When I was a foreman, my jobs would end with 100% working, and nothing on the punch list. Now the punch lists are 50 pages long, and some of what is done will never work correctly. Opus/Paul |
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