Page 1 of 1
Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 11:59 am
by Tony McC
Our local Supermarket had its frontage re-paved a couple of weeks back by some "High Class" pillocks who got just about everything wrong.
Parking your van in one of only two disabled spaces? WRONG!
Dry cutting pavers outside a busy supermarket with no dust suppression? WRONG!
Setting out so the paving is perfectly aligned at 93.65° to the building? WRONG!
Having the threshold paving just 6mm proud of the main entrance? WRONG!
But the detail of the cutting-in is their real crowning glory....
No haunching to that already wandering edge course, so I expect to see it disappear at some point obver the next few weeks.
And the real craftsmanship on the corner detailing....well, it's completely missing from their work.....
...and it's not a one-off. They're nothing if not consistent!
I hear they were booted off one of the Approved Installer schemes recently. So how can they win public area work such as this?
Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 12:10 pm
by lutonlagerlout
price tony
i was speaking to dave jessop the other week and sadly luton is one of those towns where everything seems to be price led
so we dont do many drives or patios,because doing it right is too "expensive"
you get to harpenden or st albans and the local folk dont mind paying for a proper job
LLL
Posted: Sat Nov 23, 2013 2:54 pm
by Bob_A
Tony McC wrote:Our local Supermarket had its frontage re-paved a couple of weeks back by some "High Class" pillocks who got just about everything wrong.........
I'm not sure who it would be but can someone be notified about this?
If not quaity at least it should be heard on parking & dust
Posted: Sun Nov 24, 2013 8:20 am
by lemoncurd1702
My pet hate is the cutting in, those tiny triangular pieces and thin slivers Urrrgh. 
Posted: Sun Nov 24, 2013 9:09 am
by Dave_L
I don't think anyone would be interested in our feedback; they've had the job done and only looked at the figures in the bottom righthand corner, their short-sighted fault imo, I sadly see this all far too often.
Posted: Sun Nov 24, 2013 10:12 am
by Tony McC
The supermarket doesn't actually own the frontage, it belongs to a local entrepreneur who is only interested in price. But it struck me that, while some of the faults such as the mis-aligned setting out and gaping joints between the edge blocks to curved planters might only be spotted by the likes of us, surely those corner details are obvious to the landowner and the general public?
So, we have a village with a population of 12,000+ (some village, eh?) and almost every single resident uses this supermarket at some point because it's the biggest shop in the village an dopen late nights. All of those people will be traipsing across this paving and some of them are bound to assume that the standard of finish seen here is somehow 'acceptable', which further undermines block paving's battered reputation.
There would only be questions raised if there was to be an accident. I'm fairly certain that the two edge courses laid against old bitmac will fail in the first 12 months, spreading the joints and rendering the cut blocks loose. Those loose pieces could pop out purely due to the number of pedestrians and cripple chariots using the pavement, but more likely is the risk of them being 'untimely ripped' by the throng of disaffected youths which blight the village centre each Friday evening in a sort of pubescent courtship ritual where young males with more spots than active brain cells attempt to impress the never knowingly over-dressed young ladies by exploding bottles of value lemonade on the car park, plighting their troth in felt tip on the windows, and launching clods of earth, water bombs or pieces of block pavers at their peers whizzing past on the hair-dryer powered twist-n-go scooters.
Could be the best ammo they've ever had!
Posted: Sun Nov 24, 2013 12:03 pm
by Bob_A
Tony McC wrote:The supermarket doesn't actually own the frontage, it belongs to a local entrepreneur who is only interested in price.
But that doesn't allow him to break H&S and allow dust.
If the contracters are made to work safely it may slow them down and then at least some satisfaction is gained?
I wait for the paving to start lifting up and then 'no claim no fee' bandits start taking advantage :p
Posted: Sun Nov 24, 2013 3:17 pm
by mickg
I was thinking who could this be working local but the first line of text gave the name of this guy away 
I have drove passed him 3 times this week as he is heading towards Bolton, he must be inflicting the same mayhem in our town now
Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2013 8:32 am
by seanandruby
Sadly that is the way it's going now with quality if work. It's not just the small firms out to make a killing but the big boy's are just as bad. I'm currently on a £200 mill' job and the quality of the work is disgusting. The photo's I have would make a grown man weep. One day all will be revealed.
Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2013 10:07 am
by Tony McC
It's a race to the bottom on far too many jobs.
I've been doing some consultancy work on a large multi-million poung public sector scheme where the design is by a particular 'service provider' company, who also provide the labour and, most worryingly, the supervision. That *has* to be wrong. Design and build is now an accepted practice but supervision must be independent otherwise it's valueless.
I know the old Clerk of Works systems had their problems, but at least there was a degree of effective external supervision. I worry that the forthcoming NHSS30 will make matters even worse as everything is the responsibility of the contractor. What's the odds on phoenix firms arising, falling into liquidation as soon as a big claim is made only to emerge a few days later under another name and free from any liability?
Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2013 5:08 pm
by lutonlagerlout
at least with the old clerk of the works,everybody hated him so we all had common ground
I know a retired builder who is doing consultancy on multi-million pound jobs
his remit is to go through the tenders and check they have done it right
he reckons the profit margin is down to about 5% for the majority of sub-contractors
so to make money something has to give.....
LLL
Posted: Mon Nov 25, 2013 5:34 pm
by lemoncurd1702
Bad quality is driven by the consumer who keep demanding more for less.
That goes for the commercial side as well as domestic, all those firms accountable to greedy shareholders who never get to see the crap work produced.
