ESSAY - 21 September

19 September

Since my last post, things in the office has been busy as usual.  I took over on a small design that my boss made for Landbou school, for new locker rooms that they wanted next to their rugby fields. It contains 2 locker rooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 showers and a room with urinals as well as a steel staircase on the side and a steel roof that covers an area above the locker rooms on the first floor for spectators to watch rugby.  Louis, the other boss also went to Onrus on during a weekend to measure up an existing building which a client has recently bought.  The house isn't in the best of shape and was hard to draw out the base drawings for a building you haven't been to, other than seeing photos of it.  When I finished with the base drawings, one of the senior architects in the office took over to complete the council drawings.  In the mean time 2 of my plans that I drew up for council submission has been approved without having to be re-submitted, I was pleased to hear that.  We also went to go measure up in a factory area just outside Cape Town, where they want to make changes to the facade of the building, and went to another 3 sites in Paarl to go measure up.  I had the responsibility of drawing out the plan by hand quickly to write the measurements on.  My latest project is an office layout for UDEC offices in Van Der Sluys properties, the plans are currently with the clients to discuss weather they are happy with the plans or if they want to make small changes.  This project helped me understand more about ceilings, since there are a couple of bulkheads and recesses in the ceiling for downlighters etc.  Life in the office is going good though, haven't had any problems so far.  Just starting to learn that the grown up life style of getting up early every morning to work till 5, isn't as easy as it sounds 0_o but I'll survive :)

06 August

Today I had to drop off plans at the council in Stellenbosch, and I have to go back there tomorrow to go and pay the fees required for submission.  These plans I wanted to hand in, in last week, but since the main guy was absent for the whole week, I could only go there today.  Mean while I finished my plans for the farm in Hermon all the required drawings are at the council at the moment and hopefully everything is going smoothly.  We went to go measure up in Boschenmeer again a couple of times last week for changes to an existing dwelling, was nice to stare at the guys audi R8 for a while 0_o  I was also given existing house plans to draw out, also for another house in Boschenmeer, which I finished at the end of last week and gave it back to my boss so that he could go and talk to the owners and finalize the design, so that I can start with the council drawings..  Besides the work, the mountains are covered and snow and we're busy getting blown away by some strong winds! No wonder everyone is getting sick! . . . . 

27 - June

Times are tough in the office now a days, with all different kinds of projects.  Since my last post they have started to build on a project I did in Boschenmeer Estate, I have received the engineers drawings for the concrete slab and up-stand beams.  My boss is having a site meeting today, to make sure everyone is on the right track.  I have also finished all drawings, that include plans, sections, roofplan, elevations, details, siteplan and schedules. These plans were sent in to council today, and i have my fingers crossed that everything goes smoothly and I don't have to change anything.  They have already started to build on the site, so they are in a hurry to receive the plans.  This project is on a farm outside Wellington, and there is also two additional houses to be done for the workers, that I am currently busy with.  In the mean time we have also went to go measure up at Noble Winery, where small changes need to be drawn up as well as seating that need to be shown in order for their alcohol license.  I have also been going to the council in Stellenbosch a couple of times, since there were plans that needed to be handed in that were for a house in Franschoek.  Most of the people at council I know on their name by now, and they hardly ever give me a hard time.

03 - May

Since my last post, a week or two ago, we have still been busy the whole time in the office.  For two weeks before the long weekend we started coming in at 7 in the mornings to work, to make up the hours, so that we would be able to get the Monday off, and we did.  Had a nice relaxing time in Buffalobay, and now its back to work in the office.  The plans for the additions to a house in Boschenmeer has been sent to council, they phoned me yesterday and between us we clarified all the coverage on the site, from internal to undercover stoep areas.  Today I started to draw out the electrical layout for those plans, so that it can be sent to the electrician for a quote.  I finished my bigger project on my own, with help from my co-workers in the office and then gave it to our boss to go over and see what changes and corrections need to be made.  He gave it back to me yesterday so I started with the corrections, and I also need to draw another section through the garage to show its heights, specifically because the client has a boat that he needs to fit in to the garage along with his car.  I'm almost finished with all these drawings for him, and he is having a meeting with my boss this weekend, which will probably lead to more alterations to the house and then it will be finished for council.  Glad to have my first plans submitted to council tho :)