Mike - PowerPoint Presentation

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Mike Gonella--Summer Externship Arroyo Seco ConstructionAdam Graham, CEOJune 16th, 2016Slide2

Case Study #1Patio Renovation – The Set UpClients are interested in redesigning their entry courtyard. Landscape contractor (Adam) meets with landscape architect (Steve) to find out more about client’s wishes, and work out any design and construction issues.

Steve

Entry Gate

Front DoorSlide3
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Client’s Desires for Entry PatioCurrently the patio is almost completely paved with pink Oklahoma sandstone and mortar joints. Client’s wish to overhaul the look and feel of the patio, to more modern style by removing all sandstone and mortar, from the entry gate to the front door, and replace with new materials.

Remove oversized spherical sculptures

.

Remove existing olive tree near entrance gates.

Install

large, rectangular concrete slabs that are like over-sized stepping stones, staggered, leading from gate to doorway.Fill space around slabs with colored gravel.

Add new plants; new olive trees and spherical boxwood bushes. Add lighting for new trees, accents, etc. Fix wall cracks and bubbles

, and repaint walls of courtyard.Slide5

Entry Gates from Outside. Laying out location of slabsSlide6
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Overhead View of Patio

Doorway

Entry GateSlide8

Entry Gates

Front Doors

Slab Outlines in ChalkSlide9

View of Front Doors from Gates. Laying out slab placement.

The existing olive tree is to be removed. Where might the 4 new olives be placed as focal points?Slide10

ChallengesDesign Challenges:Where should new slabs go to lead eye from gate to doors?Where should the four new boxwood trees be placed?How do the slabs orientation align with the four olive trees to be installed in the courtyard? --Should the placement of the slabs lead your eye to those trees as focal

points?

Construction Challenges:

What

should be the thickness of the slabs so as to avoid cracking

? What aggregate to use to avoid cracking (see next slide)?What can be done so that slabs do not pool water?How to avoid slabs slowly tilting over time?

Where should oversized slab joints go, to prevent cracking?Should there be a filler in the slab joints, like a metal band?Students form groups of 2-4, and answer these question to the best of their ability. Slide11
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Review of Construction PlanSteve and Adam: reviewed the above steps involved in the plan, the contractors that would be involved and their needs. Thinking ahead so one contractor or step plans for the future steps/contractors1. Demo existing sandstone2. 3.

4. Plant 24” box olives and

boxwoods

5.

6.

7. Pour new slabs8. 9.

10. Plan for maintenance of features and plants Student Groups fill in the missing steps in construction design.Slide14

Overhead View of Patio—Possible Outcome

Old Olive Tree

New Boxwood BushesSlide15

Other courtyards on site (this slide and next), to review for stylistic continuity with the courtyard. Slide16
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Case Study #2 – Johnson ResidenceLandscape Construction ProjectFinal DetailsSlide18

Critiquing the Design  Assessing Plant Palette used:Mixture of many species – would you add/subtract any other species from this mix?Do these plants appear to be separated by water needs, into hydrozones?What do you guess the client’s landscape style desires were – for a desert scene, tropical, other?

What are some reasons why a landscape designer can’t use the exact

plants he/she wants? IN other words, what are some constraints to choosing plant palettes?

Plant materials:

Name as many of the plant species in the images as possible.

What type of soils do the majority of these plants require – name 3 soil types they can handle.What is the irrigation system for this site?

Or what should it be?Slide19
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Labor Market InformationArroyo Seco ConstructionSalary: Company average wage: $21.00/hrEntry level wage:

$

14.00/

hr

Semi-skilled level wage: $24.00/hr

Skilled average wage: $30.00/hrManagement ave. wage: $40.00/

hrManagement ave. salary: $80k/yearExperience/training:

Arroyo-Seco looks for able-bodied people who are willing to learn. They hire any experience level, with more experience comes a higher pay level. They also look for someone who is willing to work a lower pay level and work their way up through hard work, dedication and expression of management skills.

Employability skills:Good communication skills. communicates well with co-workers, clients, superiors.

Good addition to existing crew – jack of spades, OR filling in a spot that is needed in their crews: mechanical skills, tiling, carpentry, flooring, etc.Slide25

Labor Market InformationArroyo Seco ConstructionOpenings: It is a rolling hiring process—during spring and summer months there are 4-6 openings and fewer in the winter.There is always room to fit in a good, skilled, new worker. Career Pathways:

Having management skills, or the potential to gain management skills, is the key to upward mobility at Arroyo

Seco

.

Arroyo Seco has

hired many managers but very few who can get involved with actual work, demonstrate skills in a number of key areas alongside of workers, correct workers when tasks are not done properly, reprimand them if needed, and lay off individuals who do not follow basic safety rules and act professionally. Slide26

Challenges to JobLong hoursNeed to be in office before workers, during work day and often at end of day. In constant communication with workers, crews, clients, subcontractors, etc. throughout the day. Many people, resources and skills need to be matched to daily job-site needs, and supervised. IJob sites need to be visited frequently by the boss, to make sure things are going as planned and/or working with client’s as their desires change. Multi-Tasking

Speaking directly to subs to coordinate what they are doing to prep.

For example: CEO spoke

with a wall-prep contractor to make sure what he was doing would work for subsequent tile installer. Suggested to wall

contractor to use

hardiebacker over studs, because its better

to tile on top of that material instead of drywall, although client told him to use drywall. Coordinating 12-15 projects at any one given time.

BillingSome clients fail to pay on time but their work requires an outlay of significant funds

at onset. Contractors (Arroyo Seco) has to ‘float’ the rest of that until client’s pay. If multiple clients

are late it becomes burdensome, and the depreciation related to the late payment eats away at profits.

For example: In mid-June, 2016, Arroyo

Seco

had 6 of 15 client’s who were far past due in payments.

Finding

good

managers

Management

skills are very hard to find in people, almost impossible. Often, the really good people move up and on and are hard to retain, and the workers who want to do management, but lack the skills

needed.