Present were:
- Mike Downes – President | Dan Doyle – Vice President | Jim Ratley – Appointed Treasurer
- Jim Volenec – Appointed Member at Large
Absent were:
John Thompson – Secretary | Harold Alleman – Member at Large
Working in the Shop Alone.
One of the main reasons we met was to discuss the policy of ‘working alone in the shop’. With the intent of trying to make the shop more enjoyable and trying to find ways to help the CNC users manage the long run times that are needed on the machine, starting in January the Board instituted a trial process of ways to use the shop.
It was discussed in the two (2) past Board Meetings:
From Minutes of The Board meeting held on January 7, 2019
“Our policy of working alone in the shop was discussed.
Currently only monitors can work alone in the shop, but the work is restricted to glue-ups, hand tools small electrical tools (i.e. random orbital sanders and small drills etc.) and use of the Makerspace computers for the CNC.
We plan to expand this to include the following large tools. These include the CNC, floor mounted sanders and the drill press.
If this works out OK, we may expand in the future it to include bandsaws, jointer and planer but do not ever expect to allow the use of the table saws, router table, lathes or chop saw while working alone.
Again, this applies to Monitors only.
This is expected to help in the recruitment of new monitors which we need!”
From Minutes of The Board meeting held on April 1, 2019
“Because of the ‘long runs’ on some of the CNC programs, the board decided to allow work in the shop by experienced monitors alone in after hour periods but in no case before 7AM or after 9PM which is when the Patrol locks down the building.
Shop tools may be used except for table saws and chop saw.
This will be a trial period and if it seems to work out OK, we’ll need to modify some bylaws and procedure documents in the future.”
This trial process did not work out as well as we hoped. This is ‘On the BOARD’. We take responsibility.
The trial process findings were:
- We did not really recruit new monitors ‘as a result of the change’. (so we still need more monitors!)
- We had a couple of machines misused/damaged during this time frame which pointed directly to a safety factor.
- Mike Taylor, the POA’s General Manager, was recently brought into the subject matter of ‘Working in the Shop alone’ and the particulars of the subject were discussed. The ‘take-a-way’ from that meeting was that the Policies and Procedures from the QCPOA Creative Arts & Tech Center must be followed.
Page 6 of 10 of the QCPOA Creative Arts & Tech Center:
“Studio Monitors
It is the policy of the Center that all Clubs will certify and appoint Monitors to be present at all times when a studio is open or that a club member or other person is using the studio.”
In other words:
- A Monitor will be present when the Shop is open (If Monitors are available, the standard open hours are 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM Monday thru Friday and 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM on Saturdays)
- A Monitor will be present when a club member or other person is using the Shop
This is a ‘Buddy System’ – each person assumes the responsibility for one another’s welfare and safety. The POA cannot accept the risk level of someone getting hurt without someone also there to assist.
The Policies and Procedures manual by the POA has already tagged us as a ‘perilous’ member of the CATC. This is straight out of their manual: “Where dangerous equipment is involved as in the Woodcrafters Shop . . . .” This club is supposed to be fun and we should have a good and safe experience there, but remember that this club also operates as an instrumentality (the fact or quality of serving as an instrument or means to an end; agency) of the POA.
As of the publishing of these minutes – The following Policy needs to be observed:
A Monitor will be present when the Shop is open
A Monitor will be present when a club member or other person is using the Shop
Meeting closed – 9:15 am
Signed,
The QCWC Board
Quail Creek Woodcrafters Club 