Finally got it sorted out with the supervisor.
I called NICEIC and told them about the situation. They said what I thought they were going to say but it confirmed what I already new and I could then have backup for my assertion.
I have had many different versions of what can be done like, "you only need to test the new part of the circuit" etc, but simply stated the whole circuit is tested as to fitness before work and the MWC confirms fitness of the circuit. No loopholes etc.
The supervisor came to site today and, after discussing this with another who spark who is working in the same place but doing something else, we talked to him.
He said that there has been a misunderstanding as a result of both the boss putting pressure on everyone to get things done within his schedule and pure panic from the other sparks and mates.
This resulted in ignoring things that should not have been ignored and, I got caught up in it.
As and example, a job we had previously done about 10 weeks ago. I won't bore you with the details but 4 weeks ago 3 of the 100 fittings began to fail. When the maintenance supervisor dropped the fitting and looked inside the coffin boxes the wiring which had been heat damaged was not cut back. We're talking about heat damaged insulation so bad that when you bend it it cracks and fall off. They used the old earth sleeving that had browned. We had a hank of sleeving so I don't understand such laziness.
That was in the coffin box behind the fitting. New here's the most unbelievable bit. We were using butyl flex from the coffin box to the fitting. They were putting the switch line link to the perm feed in with the old core that had cracked and flaked off.
He showed me a picture. I couldn't believe it. We know who the culprits are because none of the other four of us that were on that job would ever do such a thing. Problem is we don't know which one.
One is an apprentice. The other went to collage to get his papers but does not have the understanding and never will. When working with him once on fixing lighting that wasn't working I hit the ceiling to steady myself at the top of the steps and the light came on. He said he wanted to move straight onto the next one as that was now working. Bloody hell. I knew, even when I was a kid, that there must be a loose connection that couldn't be left like that. We ended up arguing over it.
The apprentice is too relaxed in his approach. Both of them don't seem to want to learn new things. I find that really frustrating working with them as I am always looking to improve my knowledge and skills and when I want to check something out when I don't really need to but want to to get a better understanding of it's construction or operation they moan.
For the last few weeks someone has been going round to all the ones in the suspect positions and sorting them out.
I don't know what the supervisor and boss are going to do about this as they have not told us. I suppose it's their business but it's not made them look too good with the client.
Even I feel embarrassed and I had nothing to do with the bad workmanship.
Anyway, to get back to the subject at hand, even the other 2 sparks who would never do that were still panicking about keeping to schedule and that we can't just stop work to properly sort things out. I was for feeding any free cable through the wall from the other side, get heat shrink etc. "No, we don't have time to do a perfect job,". I said that due to the state of the wiring we should stop and IR test the circuits. You would have thought I had just suggested that we all work in the nude. So although they wouldn't have done what the other two had done they still could have done better.
Unfortunately, under pressure I went along with it.
Now at this school under discussion I carried on the same panicky, "I've got to get this done" attitude.
My supervisor said that from now on do what I think is right and don't get pressured. If I thing something is wrong, no matter what anybody else says or does, stop work and report it.
I should have known better but after two years of working with panicking sparks I ended up the same.
Still, every experience is good. Even the bad ones. At least I won't let this happen again.
He did pay me a compliment, though, that set me up for the day. When I said that "I know I'm not the fastest but working with the others who are faster....
He interrupted me and said "You're not slow. Your methodical". A boost to the ego I think. At least he recognized that I don't like to just lash it in. I like to do things properly. Up to now I thought he considered me as too slow.
He said that how many of the others know the things you know. He mentioned my understanding of lighting systems from the differences in glow starters to semi-resonant, DALI DSI 1to10 Lutron Thorlux Thorn controls etc. Whenever there is an existing system they call me as they can't work out what's happening. I understand motor controls, heating controls, etc which I find that only a minority of sparks seem to understand. I must admit, my lack of speed has left me feeling a bit inadequate, so find it hard to contradict when I think something is wrong. In that post some have used that as a "who do you think you are telling us when you work slower then us".
No more. From now on it's "I may work slower that you but I still know when you're doing something wrong"
Anyway, enough or my rant. I wasn't originally going to go on like this.
Today was a good day. I only had to stop a few times when the schoolkids came down the corridor like a herd of bulls. This lasted for 20 mins. Not long after it happened again.
Still, better than starting something and then someone walks in and says I have to stop.
No arrangement at all. It's all left up to me on the fly.
I come in at 06:00 and get as much done as I can when it's quite. Then the nightmare.
I can't understand why this can't be done at night. I would have been done by now. What's taken 3 weeks could have taken 1 week.
Still, it will be finished tomorrow.
The pressure is still there from the boss. We have WhatsApp on the mobile and every single thing that causes any form of a delay from the basic no problems encountered (real world?) install now has to be put on there. Even when we start lunch and finish lunch.
Before anyone says why don't I get another job; this one is convenient to me at the moment despite the hassles for various reasons that I don't want to go in to. I don't intend staying indefinitely though for other reasons that I don't want to go into.
As far as the other thing goes that Lucian was mentioning, I will put this up on a new post drawing attention to it by putting his name in the heading with something like IR testing with electronics. That way anyone interested in that part of this post will see it.
Bloody hell. Look how much I've typed. I got a bit carried away.
I think this post is all probably all talked out now. Nothing much more to be said that hasn't been said, so that's it.
Thanks for your replies.
