lets look at some simple mistakes that have consequences

Here is a nice one.  See the yellow tape inside the back box?  That tape used to mark out specifically how we wanted this cement pillar to be laid out.  But as you can see the yellow tape is removed and amazingly enough the com box is also in the wrong place.  Now someone is going to have to fix that.  Why did this happen?  What EHS management doesn't know is that we know why the tape was ignored but for now we will keep that secret to ourselves.  As long as they fix the problem.

This one is more obvious.  As you can see there is a line and a word that indicates where we want the data box to be.  But for some reason that was also ignored.  For some reason the journeyman installed this where we wanted something else to sit.  Again we know it was not the journeyman's fault.  
Here is one that ETC did.  The drawings that were approved seemed to be ignored.  The drawing below was approved but what showed up on site was what is pictured.  The difference is subtle but as my email box today indicates.  It seems to matter a lot since this particular difference involves way to many people.  Lets hope the fix is not much of an issue.
What is sampled here are small problems but when expanded out you can see why we have had to be so consistently involved.  These small things end up adding up and causing mountains to fall.

It is the end of the day and i have put up a lot of blog posts so maybe my attitude has been a little effected since i started writing but tomorrow is our Wednesday meeting and i have a feeling that it may be interesting again.  Though this project seems to working out.  There have been a lot of fires lately that make me concerned about the next six weeks.

Stage Electrics

Hey look what showed up in a box.  Oh sweet love.  I love presents especially when i don't have to install them.  Then it really feels like the dream is coming true.

And Look at this.  A new screwdriver to keep inside the terminal box.  Now we really won't have to carry tools any more.  How nice of ETC to provide us with this little touch.
And this is what it looks like.  The Blue indicates non dim.  Plus on top is the twist locks that will power our worklighs and then underneath check this out.
oh woops i uploaded the same image twice.  oh well. This was supposed to be an image  of the underside of the raceway that is also labeled.  

Stagecraft plays it's role.

So after two years of haggeling we finally have what we originally drew before last summers rigging upgrade.  Notice the relatively clear line upstage and downstage on the SR side of the grid.  Except for the Shell cielings we have a relatively clear path to move upstage and downstage.

Notice in the image below it is not that way.  This was all last year we had to deal with this crisscross of cables on SR.
Even though the drawings we had last year clearly indicate what was supposed to be installed.
So now thank goodness we have finally got what we were looking for the first time.  Thanks to the installers who also were able to fix a couple of problems that were a part of our history.  The main one was upstairs on the second electric, our motor lift line was rubbing against the bracket that was holding the loft block in place.  This caused a vibration to run down the line that was noticed on the floor.  There was no clear indication as to why this was noticed seven years after the install but it was and so they notched out the bracket for me.   In addition Joseph asked me if i wanted to raise arbor out trim so that it might be easier to reach when needing to add weight to compensate for those extra big hangs.  
Notice all the cables draping in to our five electrics. What a sight.

Oh and Robert if you happen to be reading this blog. Here is 1/3 of the line drawing you are waiting for.  This is from the original install.  But maybe this could help in describing what we still need from stagecraft.  Of course there will be a lot more lines then this but hey at least there are cable lines in here.

PSP- company switches.

Company switches everywhere.  We have power for days and days.  It is like we are drinking from the well of life.  I suspect that at some point there will be some complaints about not having enough tie in positions on stage and in the dimmer room but hopefully that will be after the Armageddon.  It seems like we have maxed out on this kind of stuff.  So any way this is the innards of the PSP panels.  Tie ins are nice with two option on being a direct cam lock and the old fashioned lug nut.  Provided in the panel is our very own PSP specific Allen Wrench.  

The Most useful PSP panel in the House.  A new isolated ground 100 amps for sound power on stage left.  This is nice.  Now sound can be on it's own ground and be able to tie in to it's own power without having to run feeder from outside on the dock to through two concrete walls across the whole dock making rolling anything impossible and then all the way down stage left. and across a couple of doors.  Now it will just be 25 feet.  In these Company switches you will not have use the lug nuts either now they have both lug nuts and cam locks as tie in options.

This PSP panel is located outside of the dimmer room and will provide a great way to add more dimmer capability.  This is right outside of the freight elevator and will be great for drama or operas that need a little more power to tie in to.  It's the little things really

This is located on the Fly Floor above the SM panels DSR.  This will be most likely used for motor power for the times when we rent a motor package.  Or if we felt like adding a few dimmers up here well there is a 100 amps
This on pictured below is there to replace the giant patch panel that was here before.  we just felt that we should have something on this upstage wall that would remind us the the patch panel.  So why not Tie in Power in the form of 400 Amps.  Seems like a good idea to me.

Since a long time ago.

I am here to start my blog again but i can't seem to get rid of this underline.  And no there is no option in this cryptic browser based blog writing application.  Maybe if i move past this image it will correct itself for me.
Let see-   Yeah back to normal.  So any way as i was beginning to say.  I have been absent from my blogging since i went on my art camp residency at smoke farm.  A lot happened in those ten days.  Here is some images that ryan took before they closed this wall off and sealed up these feeder runs that go up to the dimmer room above the hallway.  They had to extend the existing ones so that they could get to the new position for the Distro panel which was three feet to the left and sex feet to the right.
Now when you look down the hall way to the freight elevator the ceiling makes you feel like you are an industrial building instead of a hospital.  Plus now it makes the reality of where the dimmer room lives so clear.  Above this area of the hallway lives the hundreds of dimmers.
In the image above behind Ryan is DBA which powers all of the dimmers and then to Ryan's left facing the camera is DBB which is the distro for all of the PSP panels.  Which in my world before now has classically meant company tie in switch but hey PSP sounds good too.  We will get to these PSP in a minute but for now lets go the bigger news
Pictured above is our NEW FOREMAN.  Yeasss that is right we have yeat another grand change in the plan.  New Foreman.  You may have remembered earlier when i told you Pat was our foreman who was leading the on site charge to make things happen. He tried hard but in the end he and upper management seemed to have some major differences that couldn't be reconciled and so Pat quit.  If you come into the theater i will give you my real assessment of the situation but at this point in the game we still have to deal with the management.

So New Foreman-  So far so good and i have high hopes that management is committed to helping Aaron complete this project.  So since i have been back the pace has picked up a lot in terms of how many people are working.  A lot of the devices are arriving and now that the slow tedious part of trying to run conduit is pretty much finished now we seem to be seeing a lot of exciting things showing up on our walls.

Aaron has definitely stepped up to the plate and has been a good job of trying to get up to speed on the project.  He has the sub foreman previously and now he is lead foreman.  I think it just might work out in the end with minimal hassle.