…things are progressing according to plan… The “end of the world” went off without a whimper… As far as non-events go, this one was a spectacular success… We were all to busy here to notice it if there had been a “big bang”…!!
Today the production in all the factory came to a grinding halt so that employees in all the factory’s could take their annual leave… Except for the team that has been allocated to me to continue setting up and moving raw materials and components from the old factory into the new one…
We have moved the first factory into it’s new premises and are in the process of checking all the electrical and mechanical working of each machine. My layout has been approved and 80% of the machinery is in position and ready for a “dry run” over the Christmas shutdown… By the 7th of January, when all the staff return from their holidays, we should be good to go…!!
Here are a series of photos to show what I’ve been up to…
The first CNC Linear Shaper is edged out of the factory door. A delicate exercise to say the least. As you can see it came out with inches to spare on each side… There are only four of these machines on the entire continent, and we have three of them…!!
The width between the two factories was shorter than the machine, but only just…!!
The first shaper is safely on the truck and heading for it’s new home, about 15 km away…
The second one is levered towards the door and waiting truck… This one is the latest model of the three, and getting it scratched and dented was NOT an option…!!
Once again, I hold my breath as we manouver the machine out of the factory…
Later that afternoon, both machines were safely in their new positions… The engineers get ready to hook them up with some “juice”…
And the floor we had prepared for concrete on another part of the premises, is ready for the final step…
The concrete mixers roll in and begin spreading their loads… 18 of them…!! That’s my former business partner and owner of the factory’s I am moving, keeping a beady eye on proceedings…
Meanwhile, at the far end of the premises, another big change is about to take place… In this space, the second factory I am moving in late January will be set up… But before that can happen, all the machinery that was stored here has to be moved out…
A day later, the machinery was gone and the paving was being lifted… The floor had to be raised in preparation for the concrete which will be poured on the 8th of January…
About 250 cubic metres of soil is brought in to raise the level of this factory to match the existing one next to it…
Out in the parking lot, I notice that the Germans are well represented… Audi, BMW, Porsche and Mercedes…
I decide to buck the trend and swap cars to zip about in this Mazda RX 8… Lots of va-va-voom…!! My BMW was in dire need of new tyres and was away to have them fitted…
The next day, it is the turn of the third and last shaper to be moved… Same process, same bated breath…
The earthworks is nearing completion… Everything seems to be going according to plan…
That is until a massive storm tears through the area, dumping enough rain to cause serious concern…
Water pours down the incline leading into the factory space…
Within minutes the place is flooded and the equipment bogged down under a foot of water… Our earthworks need to be scrapped back out and re-compacted… Grrrrr…..!!!
In the factory next door, thing are just as bad. Machinery on one half of the factory is underwater… We are not amused…
I change cars to match the weather conditions… I now drive a Land Cruiser VX Series…!! It’s like a bloody bus…except much quicker…!!
We pour another 150 m2 of concrete in a small section of the factory I am moving into… The trucks had to drive right down the centre of the building to get to the site…
The three linear shapers are hooked up into the dust extraction system…
And the first of 20 truckloads of lumber arrive in preparation for start-up on the 7th of January…
We had managed to get everything in place by the deadline which was today, that I had set when I arrived here just over a month ago…
In celebration, I treat myself to the same sort of food that kept me going for the last three years…!!
And after yet another storm, a double rainbow hangs over Joburg… A good omen…?? I certainly hope so…
It is now time for a short rest, and I am heading down to the coast to spend Xmas with my parents and my sister, who I have not yet seen since my return from the USA… My team will be back on station on the 27th to ensure that all the machinery is ready to rock and roll come the 7th of January…
©GBWT 2012
Question……………..Have you been forced to invent any new swear/cuss words, or are the old reliables doing the trick? 🙂
i knew you wouldnt be able to stay away from those treats!!