Construction Details

Hands on construction will make you a champion of detail drawings, and an architect loved by builders instead of hated.  I don't have time to prove it, though.

Swissline Designs - First week - Feb 18 - 23

I have experience and great interest in timber construction, so I was pretty pleased to get a job with Swissline Designs where I will work under Swiss Master Carpenters.  I had a great first week working on a house in Vredehoek.  A very old single story house has been gutted, and a second story / roof living space is being added.  The original brick walls of the ground floor have been kept and a new suspended timber floor added.  The 2nd storey, which may officially be called a roof-space, consists of exposed timber rafters supported by a large laminated timber ridge beam on timber posts.  Set back from the ground floor walls, are dormers running the length of the building on both sides, allowing light and views.  (photos coming soon...maybe drawings if i have the time)

I spent the whole week balancing on battens and purlins on the rooftop.  It was tall, steep, and hot as heck, but sure beats sitting in an office.  We installed a membrane called Alububble which acts as an insulator, a reflector of radiant heat, and a moisture barrier.  We secured the Alububble using 38x38 treated pine battens nailed directly to the top edge of each rafter.  Not crossing the rafters like purlins or ceiling battens, but along the tops of each rafter.  The purlins were then nailed to these (right through to the rafters) in the usual horizontal manner.  I was told that the architect wanted the 38mm battens to increase the space between the roof tiles and the membrane for greater air flow.
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I started writing this post on Saturday and got sidetracked and thought I could finish it on Monday. Its Monday now and was hotter than hell on site and I'm completely exhausted so although I had some other stuff to add, this is the end of this post.

Mansvelt Construction Feb1 - Feb 8

I began working for Mansvelt Construction www.mansveltconstruction.co.za on Feb 1st.  I was hired as foreman for an addition & remodel of a home in Constantia.  Mansvelt is a small firm building upmarket residences, including a current project in Tamboerskloof for Philip Olmesdahl of SAOTA.  There are three projects/ sites under construction  with a long term employee of Mansvelt running each.  The Constantia job is a new contract thus the firm hired me as a new foreman.

For the first few days I rode along with the project manager to see the various projects and meet the team.  I  was also given the plans for my project to study.  We were to build a second storey addition on top of an existing part of the house that had a concrete slab roof.  There was an open plan bathroom, dressing room, and bedroom with a thatch roof that would tie into the existing roof.  Then several doors and windows were to be replaced in the existing house, a large deck was to be built, and another bathroom to be renovated.

The boss challenged me with creating the program of work using a software program called Gantt.  Planning the program involved working through the entire job step by step in my mind, which was an excellent exercise as I then felt very confident about getting to site to build it.

Unfortunately, on my 7th day on the job the client stopped us while we were busy establishing the site.  He told us that the engineer had a concern over the foundation and the job may be on hold while they redesign.

In conversation with the boss, I asked what we would do if we don't get back on site soon.  The boss said that if we don't get back on site within a couple of weeks, we would have to take a "break".  It was obvious that without this project, it did not make business sense for the boss to keep me on.

I left the office very disappointed, but immediately started to pursue other work.  Since I have a great interest and experience in Timber Construction, I decided to contact Swissline Design  www.swisslinedesign.co.za, who ended up offering me a position beginning Monday the 18th Feb.  The boss at Mansvelt construction was understanding and wished me all the best.

I'm really looking forward to building homes with Swiss Master Carpenters.

About Rayan

I am a Canadian and South African living in Cape Town since 2002.  I studied Organisational Psychology at The University Of Cape Town and I presently  (2013) study Architectural Technology at Cape Peninsula University of Technology.

Throughout my secondary and tertiary studies, summer work was always in construction.  I was a general labourer and timber framer on many projects in Canada and a few in England.  At the end of each summer I would return to school or varsity to prepare myself for some sort of 'white collar' career that i would eventually begin and develop, only I never really stayed on one road.  I excelled in each of my various roles / jobs but was always unfulfilled and always felt a need to keep moving.  Between those endeavors I usually went back to construction and was always welcomed back on site because I work hard, solve problems, and try to make people laugh while we're at it.  I always enjoyed building, but just didn't consider it as a long term option at the time.

During the remodel of my own home which I designed myself and undertook with the help of only a brick layer, a plasterer, and a labour hand, I finally realized that my passion is for a combination of design and construction. I love to customize, improve and adapt things!  It seems that I am only fulfilled when problem solving, creating, and working with my hands.  My father is an Engineer, and my Mother an Artist. My interests and aptitudes seem to come in equal parts from the two of them.   So it was back to school to study Architecture!  It is never too late.  

here's a model

Internship entry

Entries labelled 'Internship journal' will be written specifically for the attention of my lecturers and program facilitators.  They can be found under the shortcut headings on the right hand side of my blog page.