Tugan Bypass Boys Mark and Terrence take shelter under a bridge on a rainy morning. Mark and Terrence have been doing the concrete and formwork at this crash barrier foundation.

Mark and Terrence at Tugun Bypass Project

While doing formwork on the Gold Coast, I was staying at some beach-front apartments in Surfers Paradise which had a pretty good view of the beach and surrounding buildings. Sometimes clouds would surround the Q1 apartment building, and this time I caught a photo.

Q1 Tower in the Clouds

Yet another beautiful day for doing formwork on the Gold Coast.

Sunrise Surfers Paradise Gold Coast

There is nothing more disappointing than stripping the formwork from columns or walls and discovering that there is absolutely no cover from the edge of the concrete to the reinforcement steel.

No Cover Concrete Column

Experienced formworkers will see this problem in advance and therefore ensure that the steel has the specified cover before closing up the formwork. This either means fixing it yourself, or organizing it to get fixed.

Obviously this is just another one of those dodgy high-rise construction projects on the Gold Coast where there is no quality control in place. Yes, there must be a Work Method statement in place, but it seems that on this job it is only good to wipe your arse with.

What is more disturbing to think about is how many of the columns on this 50+ storey appartment tower have the steel just 5mm under the surface of the concrete and therefore not detected? If it was not detected, is was probably never repaired.

Tip: before placing the Column Steel Cage onto the Column Starters, mark out all the columns on that floor in order to see in advance how much cover there is. Then, reposition any Starter Bars that are in the wrong position.

It is extremely rare to find Starter Steel in the correct position 100% of the time. Marking out the columns before the cage is placed will make it easier to reposition the starters into the correct position. In the long-run, this is quicker, cheaper and easier than making concrete repairs.

All work and no play can lead to stress and unhappiness. So, while living away from home doing formwork construction at the Townsville Sugar Shed job, I decided to do something I’ve never done and go for a solo skydive.

Going Up For My First Solo Skydive

Solo Skydive A Success

This little formwork job was made quick and easy because there was plenty of Blinding to place the concrete forms and to brace off. The supervisor on this job asked how much Blinding we wanted, and to our amazement, enough was supplied.

Crash Barrier Foundation Formwork

Too often, formwork foundation jobs are made difficult and time-consuming when there is not enough concrete Blinding to secure the formwork. This usually happens when earth movers or supervisors do not consult with the formworkers and go on to blind to the exact size of the job according to the drawings.

I have had supervisors get the plan out and argue that the blinding is the right size because that is the size of the job on the drawing. On the other hand, experienced civil supervisors know to allow extra blinding not only for the concrete forms, but for bracing and holding-down as well.

A construction worker told me yesterday that after seeing co-workers suffering from bleeding noses, nasty coughs, and angry skin rashes, he decided to do the right thing and not return to the Mining Construction site located at Mt Isa Queensland after his scheduled R&R.

Required PPE In Some Areas

The man also concludes that there could be a heavy-metal poisoning risk due to the mandatory blood testing conducted at the companies expense on all workers. It is reported that lead, copper and zinc levels are so high that sweeping or blowing is prohibited. (Tell that to the wind!)

It is also reported that on this particular mining construction site, 60 workers have quit in the last 150 days and that this could be the reason why they have stopped issuing winter PPE jackets even though it is pretty cold in the morning.

Workplace bullying such as name-calling, mocking and embarrassing (pussie, harden-up, making fun in front of peers etc) of blokes who report health concerns and injuries have also been reported.

Formworkers Dino, Chewy and Marco cram inside the Personel Hoist at smoko time.

Formworkers Dino, Chewy and Marko

In a previous post, we asked what was wrong with the mobile scaffold, but that pales in comparison to the following photo taken today at a Beenleigh construction site 37 KM south of Brisbane CBD.

Dodgy Mobile Scaffold

Yep, that’s somebody actually working up there.

Dodgy Mobile Scaffold Wheel

Don’t you love technology? Somebody in Queensland takes a photo, sends it to me here in South Australia and minutes later it is live on the World Wide Web. Thanks Joe

I just received this photo today. This V-Dub is transporting what looks like a full 6 meter length of roof guttering on a busy main road on the Southside of Brisbane. At least he did the right thing and attached a white plastic bag at the end

I hope it’s not heading towards the South East Freeway. Thanks Joe