Meetings/OwnersClub20-05-2013

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Attendees

Names removed for GDPR. Listed in Google Spreadsheet. Request from Management. Apologies for the inconvenience.

Actions / Decisions / Highlights

Induction / Training nomenclature

Basic education of the risks and safe usage of equipment is covered in Induction. Some Owners may also offer a degree of Training, to help users become more skilled, but this is not assumed. Use of Red Tagged equipment requires completion and sign off of the appropriate Induction session. Experienced users must still complete the Induction session, but will probably not require further training.

Streamline risk assessment process

All new assessments to be live on the Wiki, members encouraged to review and discuss. Owners will then grab a Director and talk them through the document. This gives the Director more confidence that the assessment, owners confidence, and training plan are acceptable, letting them sign and file it more quickly. Record the signed timestamp, but leave the risk assessment editable to encourage continuous update and revision.

Induction timeslots

We should not plan a fixed timeslot for each piece of equipment, and should not look to book months ahead. Users need slots to move around as some people can't do evenings, others can't do weekends etc. Also Owners are donating their time, so must be allowed some flexibility (which booking 3 months in advance would lose), as cancelling slots should be avoided.

Purchase approvals process

We need to move to a more formal sign-off process, prior to expenditure. Simon to look into a suitable Google Doc for this, aiming for a lightweight way to allocate a PO number to approved purchases. People can still buy before approval, but do so at their own risk of non-reimbursement. Removal of cash from the kitchen for miscellaneous purchases to cease.

Clubs

We should encourage 'clubs' for trained users of some tools, to help share ideas and knowledge. Could include meets, discussion groups, email lists etc.

Future Discussion

  • Formal policy for induction session no-shows and late arrivals to be agreed, aim to have all Owners follow the same scheme.
  • Should there be a regular Makepsace newsletter?
  • What should Makespace stock, what should users supply. Grey areas: Glues, solder, misc consumables.
  • Should we be better prepared to fail people during induction sessions. How do we ensure people step in when they see dangerous behaviour. Difficult to police behaviour with 24/7 access.
  • Workshop re-org: Look at moving safer, cleaner tools out. Roland mill and laser cutter likely candidates. Clear space, add more clear surfaces, room for more fun tools. Maybe re-purpose the Store Room.


Notes

Risk assessments still require a Director to sign them off, but the Director is also looking to ensure Owners are have a strong appreciation of the risks involved, and a good training plan to counter them.

Owners should try to anticipate maintenance costs and seek pre-approval for them. This will then allow stocking of replacement parts where appropriate (long lead-time, predictable wear & tear).

Owners need to monitor stock usage, and keep pricing schemes clear, quick and profitable.

The kiln has a very long cycle time (~8 hours) may need a booking or collaborative system.

The phone needs to a louder, clearer ringtone.

Training time should be tracked by owners, as Makespace has a responsibility to report on the total training hours donated by members.

Positives from the Equipment Owners

  1. Training sessions are popular and appreciated
  2. Lots of demand for more training on: Laser, lathe
  3. Training sessions great for meeting new members, learning names

Negatives from the Equipment Owners

  1. Laser needs more owners to help with maintenance
  2. Laser needs more trainers to help with backlog
  3. There is no queueing system for training slots
  4. Users are failing to clean the laser bed after use, fire hazard
  5. New power tools need owners, risk assessments, training
  6. Risk assessment sign off process is stalled
  7. Problem of no-shows at booked training sessions
  8. Some people assume Makespace has staff, need to ensure people realise everyone is volunteering their time
  9. Increase contribution, reduce assumption of entitlement amongst members
  10. Workshop can become crowded if training sessions overlap
  11. Some tools cause enough noise to disrupt training sessions
  12. Late arrivals for training sessions even more disruptive than no-shows, consider punctuality a requirement
  13. Unclear how owners should pay for equipment maintenance or setup costs
  14. Unclear what should be paid for from central funds, what users must supply themselves. Makespace cannot stock/supply everything.
  15. Fine metalwork bench requires very long training sessions, limits throughput and requires greater dedication from users and trainers.
  16. Equipment database could use some explanatory text on some fields.