John and Ken,
        It is all about production or you will not be doing the work.
Once the specifications are made the task is to devise the best
production methods.  Most of the work I am involved with has a
tradeskill/hour estimate.  Once you quantify the task then budgets and
estimates are based on how many persons at what skill level will be
required.  If the job is bid and the bidder does not allocate suitable
skilled labor where required then the bidder is disqualified.
        There is a time for thinking and a time for working.  If there
are a few days of electrical work to be done do I need three men at the
rate of an E1?  Probably not.  If I have a wall to repoint how many
thinkers do I need on site?  When the work commences, I want skilled,
production workers.  They can be philosophers and be cell phone addicts,
during breaks and after work. The great majority of craftsman I admire,
rarely talk while they work.  (And what's with the youngest, greenest
worker getting to choose the radio station?)
        A good budget includes cost estimates for items that may not be
seen, but due to experience can be anticipated.  I call these
predictable contingencies and they can be quantified as alternates.  A
example of same is in the roofing industry it is standard to set a SF
rate for deck replacement.  An educated guesstimate of cost and time can
be made based on experience.  If you have done one or two sill
replacements on a 1750's farm house in Vermont you might have a hard
time giving a price and you would have "The fear of naming a number".
If you've done twenty five you can confidently say:  "  I've done a
bunch of these and they usually run about this much. Would you like me
to take off a few boards, then I can give you a better idea?"
        Good craftsmen/business owners are always working to improve
production.  We often talk about the lack of apprenticeship programs and
accreditation, but even in the education that is available I don't
remember seeing anything on production.  I do know that in Ken's and my
case the cost of our labor pool is fixed and often higher than our
competition (and more skilled) and it is how we determine to skin the
cat that determines if we get the job.  If we can find a better way to
access the site or work a full day uninterrupted by weather or find
better protective head gear or quantify work prior to getting to the
site better, we improve production.
         I think every good craftsman would admit that he does a lot of
thinking off the job, that is why he is good:  Anticipation.  How do I
load my truck?  What is every conceivable tool and material I will need
today so that I do not need to leave the site?  I need to grind and
sharpen my 2" chisel.  I have talked to many craftsman that look at the
job after clean-up at the end of the day and can't rest until they have
been able to build the solution in their heads.
As with a great athlete, all the talent and training does not make up
for game time.
Research and Restore!
Leland

-----Original Message-----
From: The "listen to the silence" listserv ....
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of John
Leeke
Sent: Thursday, October 17, 2002 11:06 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: So what's the deal on the expansion joints...


Ken writes:
>>Not fair to compare the mind-set of production masons
with those who tinker in histo presto or really fine work. Histo presto
masons usually get booted off production jobs because they think....
thinking slows down the process of setting brick. Thinking causes a
commotion and delays production. <<

Ken:
May I quote you on this? Early on I noticed this. Back in the 1970s as a
tradesperson I was alternately accused and praised for "working
delibrately." I now can see that part of the deliberation was thinking
about what I was doing. It was so true that I eventually adopted a
policy of telling clients  that work will slow down when I arrive,
because I usually have to get the tradespeople to think about what they
are doing. We can sometimes set an objective for the work to speed back
up again, occasionally to a higher rate than before, as a result of
solutions, training, etc.

John

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