Will Knotchange

I'm a believer that to be the best we must continually strive for improvement and that we can't become what we want by remaining what we are.  And it's impossible to improve if we're not open to change.  We all know people who are so blindly confident or set in their ways that they refuse to consider that there may be a better way.  It's even worse if that person pretends to be open to change, but they have no intention of actually following through.  Those people drive me crazy.  This one's for them.

For cartoons of more people like this guy, click here and here. 

Reindeer Games

I've seen enough Christmas shows to know that Santa's elves are always studious and hard at work making toys in the workshop, but the reindeer?  They have nothing to do except for one night a year.

With all that time on their hands, they've got to do something to keep themselves entertained.

A "Ninjaneer"

Credit for this one goes to Tye Havey, our partner who oversees Wright Engineers' two Arizona offices.  Here's the email exchange:

Tye: Cartoon Idea:  Sometimes I walk quietly  - or come in through a back door - or forget to tell someone when I'm coming or going.  We've started calling me a 'ninja-neer'.  Seems like it could be adapted for a good cartoon somehow.

Me: (with cartoon attached) The fruit of your inspiration.  He does sorta look like you.

Tye: I love it.  And yes, it looks a lot like me in my pajamas :)

All I know is I wouldn't want to mess with an engineer with serious "plan"-chuck skills.

Inspected and Special Inspected!

Last month's cartoon showed a high schooler sandwich inspector proudly serving up a BLT.  This time it seemed like a good idea to add a special inspector.  After all, if one inspection is good, two's gotta be twice as good, right?  Especially if it's a designer gourmet sandwich - no way you can trust the plain old inspector to make sure it's whole grain bread and real mayo.

As a structural engineer, I certainly appreciate the need for special inspection on critical elements of a project (and since we offer special inspection services, I'm very glad it's required) - but I can't help feeling a bit bad for the plain old inspector.  Do we not trust him?  The way things are going, one day the poor guy'll be out of  a job unless he becomes more... well, special.

And if you think it's bad for the plain old inspector, consider the poor mason.  Unless his masonry work is inspected by BOTH the plain old inspector AND a special inspector, his work is trusted to be only HALF as strong as it could be.  Talk about a lack of confidence in your work.  It's a wonder they all don't have a complex.

For all the abuse the inspector gets, though, he can hold his head high knowing that in a very real way he's helping to make his community a better and safer place.  All you have to do is read about the horrific death toll due to collapsed buildings after almost every earthquake in a third-world country to appreciate the quality construction the inspector is enforcing.  He or she deserves a hug.

For more cartoons having fun at the expense of our inspector friends, click here.

Inspected!

I'm a believer that the best way to make sure a job is done well is to build quality into every system and process.  That prevents most problems from ever occurring.  An inspection to catch mistakes after its all done is good, but it's much better (and cheaper and faster) to not make those mistakes in the first place.

This cartoon reminds me of Sunday dinner at my house.  Most Sunday afternoons, all 17 of our kids and grandkids gather at our house for dinner.  As the little ones play, the adults assemble in the kitchen to prepare the meal.  I personally provide so much "quality control" while we're cooking that sometimes I'm no longer hungry by the time the meal's finally ready.

I thought it would be fun to show a high schooler proudly delivering a fully "quality inspected" sandwich to his customer.  At least he can personally attest that it is delicious.

For more inspector cartoons, click here.

What Are You Thinking?

Occasionally builders complain (and sadly, sometimes justifiably so) that an engineer or architect they know can draw pretty pictures, but he doesn't have a clue how to actually build anything.  And it's worse when that engineer doesn't know he doesn't know and insists that the builder just "build it how it's drawn." 

...and it's even worse if the engineer can only communicate in "engineerese".

On the flip side, it's not uncommon to hear an engineer gripe that the builder on such and such a project needs a lot of "hand holding", or that he fires off dozens of "duh" RFIs which the engineer could answer with, "Did you not even look at the drawings?"

It's a love-hate relationship.  Depending on the day, mostly love.

It IS An Emergency!

You can't blame the poor guy.  He's got his trailer onsite and his crews and equipment ready to go.  All he needs now is the construction drawings so he can git 'er dun. 

Unfortunately, the design team is still revising the revised version of the last revisions that will now need to be revised once the owner stops changing his mind.  ...again.

For more "It's an emergency!" cartoons, click here or here.

Here's My 2 Weeks Notice...

Good thing this guy's giving those 2 weeks notice - he sure wouldn't want to leave his employer in a bad spot.

...and he's got to stay on good terms just in case his new job doesn't work out.

Who can blame him for at least partially mentally checking out after giving notice, but...

I see the problem

No doubt this poor guy's an engineer. 

...or an architect.

We just can't help ourselves, though - we love to solve problems, even when it's not necessarily in our best interest.  It's one of the things I love about design professionals.  It's also one of the things that drive me crazy, especially when engineers that work for me (or architects we work for) are so focused on solving the client's problems that they forget a minor little thing like sending out a bill so we can all get paid.

Going Manual

These days, if the computer's down, nothing gets done.  Thankfully, there's Etch A Sketch - the pioneer in flat panel monitors.  ...and they're sleek and energy efficient!  Besides, if you're doing a piping diagram, it looks a lot like Etch A Sketch anyway.  

This guy's like the solitaire-playing receptionists who had to "go manual" with actual playing cards since their computers were down. 

GOT GRAY?

Sometimes you need some "gray hair" on your project.  After all, they've supposedly already seen it all, done it all, and made all their mistakes long ago - on someone else's project.

Gray hair is hair you can trust - and having lots of it (or for some, at least remnants of it) can be an advantage for us humble engineers.  I was "blessed" with enough gray hair in my mid- twenties that I could easily pass for someone ten years older.  More than 20 years later, I still claim to be in my "late, late twenties".  It must be a genetic trait (the age claim I mean) - my mom still turns 21 again every March 6th.

This cartoon was inspired by a project with a particularly cantankerous owner's rep who insisted we put "more gray hair" on his project - after all, how could some young whippersnapper with a full head of "immature" hair, an engineering degree, and "only" a decade of experience with similar successful projects possibly be trusted?

Good news for that owner's rep:  dealing with him caused the young whippersnappers to sprout a few gray hairs of their own.

Holiday Season Productivity

Everyone knows that not much gets done around the office between Christmas Eve and New Years Day. Most people are on vacation anyway, and those that aren't wish they were.  Even if there's work to be done, no one's around to crack the whip and make sure it gets done.

Christmas 1999, our first Holiday Season as a company, we had about ten employees - all but one of whom were out of the office happily enjoying their vacation time.  The one person that remained could not work independently, so I had to come into the office each day during the Holidays to try to keep him busy.  I felt like we were the only two people working in the entire city.  The phones were dead.  It was a huge waste of time.  I vowed it would never happen again.  Every year since then we've closed between Christmas and New Years Day.

Safety First!

Anyone who's spent time at a construction site - especially in the old days - has seen people do some pretty dumb things at one time or another.  I could be wrong, but it seems this guy's not strictly following OSHA regulations. At least he's wearing a hard hat and steel toed boots!  Here's hoping he makes it to day 5.

It's an ARRRRRRRchitect

Most of our clients are arrrrrchitects, and we're very grateful to work with some of the very best. 

As I was finishing my senior year at BYU, I had fleeting thoughts of getting an MS in architecture - until I discovered that it would take 3 more years compared to only one more year for an MS in engineering.  With 2 kids already and another on the way, it was easy to make the decision to stay in engineering - and I'm glad I did.  I love what I do, and I would hate to try to compete with the creativity I see from the architects we work with.

For another cartoon poking a little fun at architects, click here.

Round-Off Error

This reminds me of a clever ad I saw in an engineering magazine a few years back that depicted construction workers who were erecting a bridge from opposite sides of a canyon.  Where the two halves met in the middle, they were misaligned by a few feet and the construction workers stood there scratching their heads.  Each side was blaming the other for the mess-up.

Missing

We're often called upon to do the impossible: predict precisely when the owner will get his building permit.  We may know about how long it's recently been taking on average to get through the system, but each project is different.  In the minds of some owners, any "guesstimate" we offer is a firm commitment.

Sometimes a desperate owner will insist we "do something to get me my permit".  Surely "you  can make a phone call or go down there and..." 

We might be able to call in a favor now and then, but really there's not much we can do to expedite the permitting process - put together a complete set of documents is the main thing (though even that's no guarantee our plans won't get nit-picked to death by an overzealous planchecker).  For the most part we have to wait in line just like everyone else. 

Maybe this idea will speed things up.

__________________________________________________________________________________ 

Credit for this one goes to an email from Matt Ryba, CEO of TWC Construction:

 

Brent,

I thought I would share the humor in an email I sent to [our roof truss supplier and installer] when they missed their truss delivery date.  I don't know if you take suggestions on your cartoons but several people have suggested I forward to you.

        Rob,

        "I was in the Quick Mart this morning getting coffee and I saw this in the cooler"

Final Notice!

Consultants are in a tough spot.  We don't get paid until our client gets paid -and if he gets stiffed, we're usually also out of luck.  To add to it, some people view the architect and engineer as no recourse, zero-interest lending institutions who will finance their project on a handshake for an indefinite period until they "get funding."  If the funding never comes through - "Sorry about that.  But good news! I have this other project I'd like you to fund, er I mean do.  When can you get started?"

20/20 Hindsight

If only I'd put on a pair of foresight corrective lenses just before making some of the dumber decisions in my life... 

For another cartoon on "corrective" lenses, click here.

Dang Engineers!

I'm happy to support a good cause - and especially one that also involves fun and  creativity.  CANstruction is a charitable event where teams compete to make the most creative sculpture solely out of cans of food.  After the competition, the food is donated to a local charity to help feed the hungry.  On one occasion I served as a judge for a Las Vegas CANstruction event. Most recently, Wright Engineers' Phoenix office participated.  

Though this cartoon depicts the engineers executing an outrageous design, most often it seems - and it was this way in Phoenix - it's the architects who come up with the creative design; the engineers mostly provide cans and labor.

Dang Internet's Down

I know lots of people work from home and many of them feel they're more productive.  I wonder just how productive some people really are, though.  Whenever I've tried working at home I seemed to be constantly interrupted with things like "Honey, since you're here anyway, can you just [insert any number of domestic tasks here]..." or "Daddy, daddy, daddy, there's a bean stuck in my nose".

It's clear this guy's been working from home for a long time.