Job Scenario

As I mentioned previously, Intel extended my contract for the Water Chemistry Control scope for another quarter, which means I will be there until the end of June as opposed to the end of March. In all, that will be 6 ½ months of this crazy schedule instead of 3 ½ months. The sale of the rental house alleviates a big chunk of financial obligation, but continuing at Intel will allow us to do some things. Our house needs all new windows, and we can use some of my Intel income over the three months to accomplish that. I also need a storage shed/barn at our house to help with the wood working equipment and tools. I got a quote of just over $3200 for a 10’ x 16’ out building (materials only, I would build it). I did a quick construction layout and estimated $1500 to purchase materials and build it myself. I don’t think it would take that long if I use 92 5/8” studs and I have a framing nail gun. I could bang up a building pretty quickly. Tracy also wants to have the exterior of the house painted, and we need a new fence. My Intel $$ would allow us to accomplish all of those things this year.

My scope at Ft Carson has been much more difficult than I expected. I have one project with five buildings and a second project with three buildings. Both are government contract jobs (Army Corps of Engineers), which means the paperwork and red tape is unbelievable. The project start dates were supposed to be staggered so that the overwhelmingly busy times of the two projects would be staggered. Due to design delays, both projects hit at the exact same time. It has been horrible. We have been letting people know that our choices are:
1- Concentrate on one project and do it well, and have the other project team be absolutely livid.
2- Split our time between two projects and make progress on both, but keep no one happy.
Well, we were directed to split time and keep no one happy, thinking that over time the scope would get completed and things would smooth out once in construction, as opposed to going through the submittal process. Well, one of our projects ended up bogging down. The equipment deals that were structured between our head quarters in Denver and the various equipment vendors were strained due to the project being significantly under bid by the estimators. As a result, baseline, inexpensive equipment was sourced for the project, long before the IFC (issued for construction) design drawings and specifications were issued. Once we started getting information on the equipment, we noted that it did not meet the project specifications or the design criteria. As a result, we have spent countless hours trying to get equipment that meets the project requirements at the lowest cost available. It has been a complete nightmare. Unfortunately, all of this pre-construction work was set in place long ago, before William and I were involved. We inherited a botched project, and the GC could care less about the problems. They just want us to get our equipment, build the building, and do it all on time.

As a result of the problems with one project, the other project has also suffered. It is not as difficult, but will be soon, as we have been directing most of our time and attention to the project with huge problems.

I have been a project manager/project engineer/quality assurance manager/system expert on many projects in the semi-conductor and nuclear industries over 22 years. Regardless of the challenges or problems any project has ever presented, I have always found a way to be successful, and to exceed all expectations. The only way I could see to be successful in this situation at Ft Carson is if I work 50+ hours per project, meaning 100+ hours a week. I don’t have that kind of time available to me, and I’m not willing to put in more than about 50 hours a week total since it is a salary position. The workload has been truly unrealistic, and there are no successful options with the resources available. This is the first time in my life that I can truly say I don’t enjoy my job. I love a good challenge, and I like it when things are difficult, but this situation is impossible. It is not much fun. But, I have never quit a job or a project, ever, and I’m not going to now. After elevating my concerns to our management, and being told to just keep plugging away, I decided to show up at work, be productive, and get as much done as I can during the time that I am here. I recognized that the amount of time I have to put into these projects would not meet the expectations of two separate general contractors and two separate project teams. I decided all I can do is work hard and go home with a clear conscience. I must say, though, that I have never been in a situation like this. “No winning options" is not a good position to be in…

Hope you have more fun at work than I’ve been having lately…
JD