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What I wish I knew before starting phase 2!
This kind of links in to AER3 and a discussion that the civils were having on WhatsApp. I will leave the concrete supplier conundrum to Jo. But I hope my fellow Phase 2 PETs will all add comments.
I wish I had agreed from the outset that I would do 6 months on the site team then 6-8 weeks with the commercial team.
I also wish I had more of a data base of TMRs and AERs to baseline against.
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I have arranged to stay on site until Xmas and start Phase 3 in early January – it seemed like a natural break. Having done a bit of an estimate for AER 3 and my focus towards achieving my competencies i have realised that my learning curve has plateaued out somewhat over these last few weeks. Maybe i have been on site a bit too long. I have found myself doing the same tasks over and over with little value being added. To quote Andy Bayley ‘if i am not learning anything i am being misemployed!’ So what….change of plan and start looking for new learning opportunities to maximise my final six weeks on site. I have approached the OHS team in head office to get involve in some H&S opportunities pan Multiplex Melbourne and get off site, as well as working more closely with the contacts team no site to expand my knowledge and experience with them. I do think departing site in early December would have been a better decision but there are still plenty of opportunities out there if I look for them. The AERs really do give focus towards what we have achieved vs what we still need to.
Concrete supplier question to follow…..
Jo this is great. I feel like you. I have plateaued. I am trying to throw my lot in with the commercial lot and have done quite a bit on OHS planning and bearing capacity. My chief concern is economic and social sustainability. What does it mean and how does it apply to a ruthless business.
Especially when the company you work for has no interest in being environmentally friendly. I’m throwing my hat in with the other two Ps. Providing accommodation for the over populated area, providing shopping units for local businesses and the social implication for residents as well as the use of local companies and subcontractors so good all round effort of supporting the local economy.
Agreed. I’m struggling on the accommodation thing. The market is saturated but, we have shops and we are rejuvenating an area.
I think the important point about planet is that you are aware of it and can identify where it did/didn’t register on the radar of the contractor. Pollution/contamination might come home to roost in later litigation, potentially years from now at re-sale of the site or interest in the site. Use of cheaper less environmentally friendly materials might increase operating costs or replacement/refurbishment costs if materials are of a lower quality or harder to re-cycle (might not matter now but in ten to fifteen years it might). Site waste and disposal is always a cost to someone…
I wish I’d known that the start on site would have been delayed for 2 months. I could have ticked off some of my more designish attributes rather than sticking with the mediocre site stuff, always hoping it would kick off next week. A more flexible approach to a combined Phase 2/3 like Stu Douglas has would have served me well I think.
Great point Tony. I think key to this is doing the research and knowing that firms lie through there teeth. My job was supposed to be at the foundation stage when I arrived and they hadn’t even put the first props in.
Without apportioning blame I think it is safe to say Tony had a pretty poor run at the start of his placement. I think yours was the reverse Doug in that you had the joy of seeing all of the future problems in the making as the excavation went down and have since been involved in sorting much of it out on the way back up. You are leaving site just as it moves into the pretty dull shore, pour, strike, repeat loop. Once you’ve seen the beginnings of the steel supply and fixing issues and those associated with concrete it’s good to get on and go.
I can vouch for it being out of their control on this occasion as it was the over run of the enabling works by another PC that delayed the start. Annoyingly the work on site is really good now but it’s all happening at the same time so I just can’t get around all of it before it finishes.
I said in my AER 1 that I think we should negotiate with a number of contractors before we decide where to go, I wonder if inviting the HR and PMs to a job fair style day at Chatham, with a presentation from the Wing might be useful.
The team at my site now understand what experience is useful for us but it took me a while to firstly understand it myself, and secondly to educate them.
I might be wrong but I seem to recall that PEW might have spoken to BM at Chatham to shape the placements. Do you know if this did happen and if it helped you Oz guys in the initial stage of your Phase 2?
PEE did speak to BM in the UK but nothing has filtered down to the people on site. I spoke to The regional director and PM before I got out here which rather lulled me into a false sense of security that they cared. Sadly they are used car salesmen. Maybe Tom Docker has some thoughts about the UK?
You are spot on that you need to educate site as to what you need and the difficulties of understanding what you need to do first. My thoughts are if there is an area which has structurally failed or particularly difficult technically and commercially then it offers the best learning but this requires trust. Additionally we are well educated but don’t necessarily have the organisation specific trg regarding procedures.
Some more thoughts that I found in my diary. PETs should arrive on Phase 2 confident that they will know more about technical issues than 90% of the people on site.
Take 30 mins at the end of every day to reflect on what happened and write it in a diary/notebook. Review your diary every friday and draw conclusions or post a blog. It can then be cut and paste into an AER. Don’t worry about it being perfect in the blog you can add to it as you go. It will mean you are not faced by a blank piece of paper and will mean you start your AER with 2500 words already written. So once you add the standard intro and recommendations your done.
AERs – Annexes that are required. (I can provide if messaged)
– Chartered Professional Development Record (WHAT YOU HAVE DONE AND CPD HRS TOTALLED) Add a the chart and the pivot table from the ICE spreadsheet.
– Development Action Plan (HOW YOU INTEND TO GAIN YOUR ATTRIBUTES)
– Attribute Summary (ONE PAGE SUMMARY OF ATTRIBUTES)
– ICE Attribute Achievement (A MULTI PAGE DOC WITH ONE ATTRIBUTE PER PAGE).
-Any other annexes that you will use on review to demonstarte what you have done.
TMRs. I often struggle for titles and subjects for TMRs. Think about what attributes you wish to demonstrate – some are better in AERs than TMRs. Look for where there are interfaces between trades. This often leads to risk and scope gaps. Poor communication is prevalent so something always fails. If things fail – why, can you run the numbers, trace the risk, what role did management play, what processes are at fault and how are they solved? (I can provide mine if messaged)
Think ahead. Deadlines are known – PEW are flexible if given enough time. Plan and take your leave! I delayed an AER because I was going to the Great Barrier Reef. Understand when you will be busy on site and when not. Make hay when the sun shines, so if you are less busy get ahead.
Establish a battle rhythm. Build a routine that works for you. I have kids so when I am home, I cannot get anything done. I therefore stay later at work and get it done during slow periods. Some people prefer to get everything smashed on the weekend before the deadline. Know what works for you. I try to get ahead to allow more time to spell check and proof read. Slipping deadlines will only compound the problem.
Thesis. Choose something that is site related, interests you and do little bits and often.
Commuting. Take up more time than you think from your day – so use it. Bike in, blog, reflect or read.
All sound advice! I’d add to the TMR subjects: Look ahead to what you will be managing on site and ask yourself how much you know about it and where it could go wrong. A good TMR is an investigation into the parameters/potential challenges and how they interact/can be influenced. This gives you a double hit on reading around something useful on two fronts: When the job goes through n site you can call bluff when required or engage intelligently. You will also then have a case in point to extract data from or use as an example. The third win in this is that you also have a topic for CPR which can form good scenery… More in phase 4!
When I was about 3 months into Phase 2 work really began to heat up. This is typical for PET students but, I really struggled with work/life/study balance. John Moran gave me the best advice. “Prioritise your work and get the most important stuff done. Leave work at a reasonable hour and the rest is someone on a higher pay grades problem.” In the Army we like to lean into a problem and get the job done. The civilian world will keep on loading you up with work until you say enough! Your priority is Charter not someone elses profit margin. This may seem hardnosed but, selection and maintenance of the aim has always been the first principle of war.
TMR ‘s do not have to be written on site activities… Still cannot get over that revelation after being told a few weeks ago by Fred and others.
What how does that work!
For any Phase 2s that are looking over this some potential Thesis ideas I will update periodically –
10.8.1 The use of Monte Carlo/risk analysis in assessing safety in slope design for military operations
10.8.2 The effect on the Young’s modulus of rock in foundations where the rock has been significantly unloaded and then loaded.
10.8.3 Review of CMT training – is it fit for purpose
10.8.4 Review of Royal Engineer Geotechnical survey equipment – is it fit for purpose?