So BCITO (who im doing my apprenticeship through) have changed the way in which they assess you. With majority of the work now done online. I thought to make it easier i will use this blog to pretty much submit my work! This way you guys can see what ive been doing AND maybe learn something too. Plus there website is very limiting, so this way i can share exactly what i need to so i can show how much i understand. I will start with a few images, followed by a detailed explanation. 

Ceiling Framing: The two most commonly used framing options are Rondo or timber ceiling batten. I will comment about Rondo below. 

When setting up the heights of which your ceiling framing is to be set, we usually take the overall height of the wall (floor to top of top plate) We then think about how the walls will be lined (x2 1200mm sheets fixed horizontally with x1 layer of 13mm GIB for the ceilings, this information can usually be found in the plans) So we have 1200 + 1200 + 13 + 10 (the 10 is for ease of installation of wall sheets) = 2423. Instead of using an awkward number, we round this to 2425. 

Rondo: Using a line laser (or rotary) we set it to 2425 off the floor, before then going around each room and marking most corners and if its a long wall, a few points in between. Sometimes 2425 actually hits a nog line so its best to drop the laser 100mm and use a ruler to measure back up, this also means less needing to move the laser between rooms. 

Once all points are marked we use Rondo "C" Channel and fix it every 600mm using GIB wafer head screws around the perimeter of the room (tin snips cut this well), with the bottom of the channel flush with our marked points. Sometimes the screws can be hard to fit, so pre punching with a nailpunch and hammer can work well. 

After all perimeters are complete, look at the orientation of the trusses, measure the longest wall which is Parallel to the direction of the trusses. Divide this by two, and mark the centre of the room. From the centre point measure 300mm from either side of this, then measure 600mm thereafter. This will ensure the spacing is correct to ensure the Rondo battens don't get in the way for downlights. Complete this on both sides of the room, these are the centre of each Rondo batten. I like to then measure across the floor in the directions the battens will go, and remove 20mm of this (for ease of installation). 

I use a grinder to cut my battens to length. Slide each batten into the ends of the channel, ensuring each end lines up with the marks on both ends, keeping them straight. Where each batten intersects a truss, install a Rondo clip and loosly nail this with a product nail so it can still be moved up and down. Rondo rails can not span more than 1200mm so if you're trusses are less than 900mm apart for any reason, you may not need to include a clip on each intersection, but majority of the time, this isn't the case. 

Once all clips are fitted and all the ends line up, i like to turn my laser back on again set at 100mm below the desired height (2425mm) using my ruler or a laser card, push each clip point up until its at the correct height and hammer in the product nail, once all clips are set to height (or do this after setting each clip) i will go back and add two more product nails to each clip in the provided holes. 

Rondo is now complete!

I will update this later to include Diaphragm ceilings 

 

This is something I've wanted to write about for a while, as it was one of the MAJOR things which were holding me back from taking that first step into a trade. I hope that this will help someone else who is in a similar situation to me. 

Ever since I can remember, numbers have never been a strong suit of mine. One of my most dreaded subjects. To the point where I used to get in hysterics at school knowing maths was next. It didn't matter how hard I tried, how hard I studied, it was like the numbers just went in one ear and out the other. Numbers just NEVER (and I mean NEVER) stuck. 

We tried all the after school tutors, the extra maths classes even tried changing after school tutors to a different company to see if it was the tutor... no success. As my school years went on I was so focused on at least getting my University Enterance credits so that when school was finished, I had the option to get into University if that was the path I chose to take. 

Back in 2008 (my last year I attended maths at school) the University entrance was 14 Credits..... I got 15! Boom, that was me.
Maths done!

After year 10 at high school, maths was then an optional subject and I was all about it. Leaving school and knowing I was going into a career that didn't involve numbers was awesome, I didn't even have to think about them! It wasn't until I was thinking about taking on an apprenticeship that it really started to bother me again. I knew that majority of trades worked SO much around numbers, and this is not something i was ever comfortable with. 

It was a phone call with one of my older brothers who had been a builder for many years now, that managed to change my mind. It was one of the things holding me back, I didn't (still don't) know my time's tables and suck at basic adding and subtracting. I knew if I took on a trade, this would make me look stupid and really hold me back. But the one piece of advice that he gave me: "it's 2017, you have a phone, your phone has a calculator, USE IT!", and that's exactly what I did.
Knowing that using technology to move forward is acceptable within the trades is something that made me feel, I guess, accepted, in a way. I was sold. I COULD take on a trade, and my terrible math skills were not going to hold me back. 

Fast forward 2 years and I've found that I'm wanting to now go out of my way to learn more maths (weird, who even am i) from the girl who used to ball her eyes out over a bunch of numbers and a maths test, to someone who will happily sit there and fill in her Apprenticeship bookwork full of maths equations. And the reason behind the change? I can relate all these numbers to real life, the numbers have become physical objects. I can see in my head myself measuring an object to get a number and then working out the size of another object which I need to take away from the other one. I'm not just taking "Jills apples" and working out how many jack ate. 

It's crazy how having numbers in a real situation can really change your mindset and ability to do the work. 

Again I'm not the best at blog posts, but I hope that someone else in my situation can relate to this and realise that you don't need to let numbers hold you back, technology is there for a reason, use it. 

Long time no talk. Its been almost six months since we have moved to Queenstown and I made the change from desk to building sites, and what can I say? I LOVE IT!

Some of the first weeks were pretty hard, VERY physical, and with starting in the peak of summer we were hitting 35 degree days, I was shattered by the end of those few months. Tying steel, lifting massive 5-meter posts (about a dozen of these), lifting frames, laying flooring, floor joists, putting up GIB... and well, a lot more.

After some thinking, and asking a million others what their thoughts were, I've decided to take the next step and begin a BCITO carpentry apprenticeship! Before I made the decision, these were some of the thoughts I had about joining up at this point in time.

Have I been working long enough to know I'm ready to take on an apprenticeship just yet? Do I start now or do I wait until I know more, saving me money in the long run because I don't have to be signed up for as long?
These are just some of the questions in my head prior to making the decision.

Because I have previously been to uni, I don't qualify for the governments' new scheme of free fees for the first year (rather silly when they're trying to get more people into trades and wanting people to "trade up" except if they have already studied there is no incentive to make them want to get a trade qualification) so, I would be dipping into savings to pursue my trade qualification. My boss told me, in the end, it was totally up to me as long as I felt comfortable that now was the time to sign up. Otherwise, I wait a year, have a lot more knowledge and as long as I am taking notes and photos of my work, I can backtrack and fill my books in when I finally do sign up. I did consider this option...

BUT..

At the same time, I feel like I loosely know enough of what I'm doing to be able to complete the work required, even though I've only seen theory books from years ago so have no idea whats currently in them and live with two builders who can help explain things to me when I need it. With the books in front of me, I can understand what I need to be doing to be able to get to the end of my apprenticeship as fast as possible.

So I took the leap! Because I already have a job in building, it made signing up to BCITO a breeze! I went to their website filled out the form, 20 minutes later I had a phone call from the team to confirm a few details and I have someone coming out to talk to me on Monday, all within the week.

It was so easy, I'm kind of kicking myself I didn't do it sooner. Can't wait to get into the books and see how much I've already learned.

I don’t want to say as a Designer you get paid like crap, but if I’m comparing the two, I was a qualified graphic designer with two diplomas and 5 years industry experience and in my first week as a labourer in the building industry, including one rain day, my weekly pay is more than what I received as a designer in any of those 5 years.

For so many years I was like a lot of people in New Zealand. I WANTED to be a builder so bad, but as a female, it’s just not what we do right? We go to uni, get a diploma or a degree and sit at a desk all day while the guys do a trade and make the bucks for the family. It wasn’t right. We have just as much skill and muscle as the guys do and I wasn’t just going to sit back and let them have all the fun. I may not be strong right now and have no clue what I’m doing half the time, but with a great mentor to help explain the job and help push my body’s physical ability to the limits, I can see myself being just as much of a asset as the “new guy” on the site. I’m just annoyed that it’s not something that was pushed more when I was at high school, if I had the courage to push through that “it’s a mans job” stigma when I was 16, who knows where I would have been right now!

If you are a teacher, parent, mentor, social worker or careers advisor and you know a girl who is lost in their career path, I can 100% recommend a trade, I have only been in this journey 3 weeks, but I can already say I have so many more dreams and aspirations for life than I ever did before choosing to take up a trade. Along with the need for more builders in New Zealand and the great starting wage, it’s one job you will never get bored. I hope that over time, this blog can grow and help others to see just what it’s like to be a female in the building industry, because when I was in the apprehensive stage of making the change, it was one thing I wish I had to read, someone else’s real life experiences.