In our shop, we have a standard that we must achieve before we are content. Our ‘standard’ is that a random person who happens to be passing by needs to take a picture of our project before the installation is finished. These days, with everyone having a camera on their phone, it is easier than it used to be, but it is still a high bar. The JD Transport semi-truck load of signs left Chilliwack this morning on it’s four day journey to Ontario. Our client excitedly contacted us this evening and passed on a picture from Instagram that had been tagged to the farm. Someone had snapped this picture as they passed the semi full of our work on the road through Calgary. That is advertising that is already working for our client, and it is still 3,400 kilometres from being installed!! Standard achieved!
Loaded and gone
We are never in a hurry when we load the trucks with large features. Every nut, bolt and weld had previously been checked and rechecked. The crane is billed out with a three-hour minimum, and the trailer from JD Transport is generally dropped the day before, so there is no need to rush. Our primary concerns are our crew’s safety and not dinging up the finished features. We love working with Greg of Wishlow Cranes because he is so capable, calm and smooth. We hold a safety meeting before starting to ensure each member of our crew knows what is about to happen and that every tool and ladder is at the ready. Today’s loading of the features and signs now bound for Downey’s Farm in Caledon, Ontario, took about three-quarters of an hour, and there were seven inches of deck to spare. That’s efficiency! We are eagerly looking forward to seeing photos of all the signs and features installed at the farm. Stay tuned…
Off with the wheels
Loading day is always exciting! We’ve done it many times over the years and this experience has allowed us the opportunity to have systems to make the job easy, quick and safe. Lifting points are designed and built into every feature. We believe there should be no drama or frantic running around on moving day for that is when things can go badly. To be safe, the space under an active lift is absolutely off limits. One of our favourite tricks to speed things up and keep our crew away from the danger zone are the swivel wheels that allow us to easily roll the projects around our shop during fabrication and position them for loading. When we hook the piece to the crane, the wheels drop off like magic, as the feature clears the ground. We gather them up after the load to reuse on the next project.
