An instrument operator should be proficient at setting the instrument up centered on the tripod head as near as may be without running the footscrews very far from the center.
And for God's sakes know the difference between cheap bourbon and a 12 year old single malt Whisky.
Construction staking: Straight hubs, use the proper hub for the job (don't be putting 6" hubs in mud). Legible handwriting. And face the lath in the correct direction.
Boundary: Be as polite and friendly as possible to neighbors/client. Again legible writing on lot stakes. And refer all questions from neighbors/client to the party chief if asked any type of question. Looking/sounding uneducated is better than giving out false information.
Image also goes a long ways in my opinion. Most clients don't understand quality of a job. Legible handwriting and straight lath/lot stakes are really what they see in the field. I've also tried as much as possible to wear collared work shirts and clean jeans without holes in them. Makes you look more professional.
Learning will come on its own. Don't be asking questions on the job, wait until the ride back to the office or lunch time to address questions.
What a tremendous list of positive thoughts so far.
Ignore the jokers suggesting that expertise in alcohol is somehow helpful.
My 2 cents is to be observant (Not only running equipment like others posted) of things around you. Had employees that saw a rebar or other survey monument and didn't say a thing. You sometimes have to dig to find the answers too. Good luck on your new career.
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1ST rule of survey club, always protect the instrument. 2 hands & sure footing when going to or from the leg to bag. Locked down on the tribrach or secured in the case or backpack at all times. Seen more guys pull the brach off to set up over the point, put the gun back in the box and just shut the lid w/o clamping it down. Sooner or later you or someone else will go to grab it & she is going to hit the deck, most always with poor results. Remember that thing cost 1/2-3/4 of your salary.
2nd rule Check, Check, Check & often; your zero, level, plummet, height, and speak up as soon as a problem occurs. You are on the leading edge & any bad data in will haunt the project till the end.
As with the theme with most of the other replies, you are there to help with productivity, not hinder it. The p/c is going to have a routine and if he is waiting on you, there is probably room for improvement in your game.
Always be prepared. The showing up early is being ready to roll when the clock starts, 7:05 is not the time for coffee and the rest room.
Pack lunch (or at least snacks) as well as spare socks, if not shoes & pants as well, sooner or later you'll get wet at 8:30 & that makes for a long day. Never be the guy that needs to leave the site before the work/day is done.
At one firm we used to get interns from the T-school at UNH, while those guys were always eager & had survey theory and the math nailed down, they would be short on practical field craft. That will come with experience. Keep your eye & ears open and ask questions when the time is right. Good Luck
Look both ways when crossing the street. Always watch out for yourself and the guys your work with. Two hands on the instrument. Check and double check. Measure twice and cut once. Never tell the chief that your are just an I-man, that "(whatever) is not your responsibility". You are part of a survey field crew, and as such you help to get the survey done to the best possible standard. Nails, flagging, and a sharp axe go a long way.
Be the eyes in the back of your PC's head. Keep track of what he shot so that you can tell him or her what they missed and make sure they don't get hit by a car or truck waiting for you. Spend 30 minutes every day learning something new about the data collector, computer, drafting, calculations and law that you didn't know the day before. BTW, You will never run out of topics to read up on. If someone critique's your work, don't get mad...listen and analyze the situation over the next few days. Most cases you were mad for no reason. Enjoy the weather...all of it. Good luck, its a good profession to be a part of.
I'm serious, about knowing how to setup a tripod/tribrach over a point with no cliffhangers allowed.
Dave Karoly, post: 425825, member: 94 wrote: And for God's sakes know the difference between cheap bourbon and a 12 year old single malt Whisky.
THAT much for a quick bit of advice for a newbie!! There's a registered in Austin that says he can consult for a six pack of Pearl beer .. 🙂
Cary M, post: 425599, member: 11598 wrote: My question is: any advice for my first day/week/month?
Day: Find out which vehicle and crew you're assigned, where the supplies and equipment are stored, what is the normel stock of supplies on the crew. Where 'your' equipment is stored and batteries get charged. You may have to lean on the chief, i've seen some companies where a new I-man means looting of that crew's previous assigned equipment, mostly because either; the company was parsimonious about acquiring new equipment, or the crews were too stupid to look after their own. Relax and be yourself, thing's will shake out. Finally there's probably at least seventeen employment forms that need to be filled out again.
Week: You may or may not always be on the same crew but, that eventually will shake out as the chiefs or manager settle you in. The daily routines may not be the same between crews, learn to adapt to their differences. You should be getting a code list by now and learning these, and how the different chiefs approach data collection, which sometimes makes things smooth. You're going to start learning now the equipment you're working with and all their quirks.
Keep your eyes open now. You're going to start learning the strengths and weaknesses of the crew and equipment, don't say a word for now.
They'll be some equipmnet that needs maintenance and maybe periods of downtime where you can start; keeping a running tally of the things that need done, maybe put your feelers out and ask the chief about the way he likes to handle that, or tackles the simple fixes when there's enough time. Don't start too big a project that can't be put back away, or be done quickly enough. Learn about the equipment. There'll probably be more employment forms you need to fill out again.
Month: Hopefully you get with a crew that work well together. Everyone will have their strengths and weaknesses in ability. You'll have seen some of this by now. Some people are good at driving irons, hubs. Some can work a machette or shovel. Some are physically out of shape or may not have learned some best practices. Taking the weight off the next guy is a helpful approach, if you can see an in where you can pitch in, it makes things smoother, and more people have a good day. Work makes a sucky day go by a lot faster. Keep that running tally of to-do things handy.
Be positive and cheerful.
I went to an incident...I took the "kid" with me (he is 30 and already licensed). The surveying went extremely well, it was the administrative stuff that was a giant cluster. I got my ass chewed so many times the first day I didn't have much ass left, over administrative stuff like our orders to go to the incident which got hung up. So in an extremely aggravating and stressful situation (I'm just trying to do my job, no good deed goes unpunished) the kid pipes up and says, "Dave, it's an adventure!" LOL. I had just been told over the phone by a young Admin. Captain that I couldn't get a hotel or any food (I'm a middle aged Grandpa with a lot of government service, I think I can figure out how to get a hotel and a meal and make the State pay for it). The kid was so unfailingly cheerful that I think it helped me calm down and prevent me having a meltdown into the phone which would result in a lot of bad meetings and paperwork back at the office. Eventually that evening I tracked down our Agency Rep and he straightened everything out in about 5 minutes of phone calls. One thing Firefighters will do is take care of their own people.
On the last day they told me I had to go through the check-out process before going home which involves going to 20 different places for signatures including getting the truck a mechanical checkup. We usually don't have to do this, the Law Enforcement Chief we are working for just makes a phone call and gets us released over the phone but this was a Federal incident and that wasn't working. So the kid says, "Dave, this is going to be so much fun! like a treasure hunt and think of all the people we are going to meet!" Well who couldn't be cheerful and have a good attitude after that.
Be mellow, a common issue I have found with green hands is restlessness when standing by.
Take ownership of your own safety. Do not follow anyone into an unsafe situation.
As far as start time goes, I am of the belief that all work should be paid for. If you show up early then get permission to go on the clock early. 15 minutes a day works out to about a week and a half per year. If you have the chance to learn something off the clock that is one thing, but loading trucks and taking out the trash for free is a looser in my assessment.
It's good you have prior study behind you. I can remember as an engineering graduate going out in the field with the surveyor and on our way cruising through suburbia he got very excited and asked: "we're getting very close to The Baseline, do you know what that is?". I hadn't got a clue but after thinking long and hard the only thing I could think of that would cause that much excitement was: "a bar?". He nearly fell out the car.
party chef, post: 425964, member: 98 wrote: 15 minutes a day works out to about a week and a half per year.
One lesson I wished I'd earlier in my working career (be it surveying or digging a ditch) is: while "they" are paying you for a service; you are in fact selling a piece of your life, which is a finite commodity. Be frugal with it, insist on a premium and always provide excellent value.
Dave Karoly, post: 425951, member: 94 wrote: Be positive and cheerful.
I went to an incident...I took the "kid" with me (he is 30 and already licensed). The surveying went extremely well, it was the administrative stuff that was a giant cluster. I got my ass chewed so many times the first day I didn't have much ass left, over administrative stuff like our orders to go to the incident which got hung up. So in an extremely aggravating and stressful situation (I'm just trying to do my job, no good deed goes unpunished) the kid pipes up and says, "Dave, it's an adventure!" LOL. I had just been told over the phone by a young Admin. Captain that I couldn't get a hotel or any food (I'm a middle aged Grandpa with a lot of government service, I think I can figure out how to get a hotel and a meal and make the State pay for it). The kid was so unfailingly cheerful that I think it helped me calm down and prevent me having a meltdown into the phone which would result in a lot of bad meetings and paperwork back at the office. Eventually that evening I tracked down our Agency Rep and he straightened everything out in about 5 minutes of phone calls. One thing Firefighters will do is take care of their own people.
On the last day they told me I had to go through the check-out process before going home which involves going to 20 different places for signatures including getting the truck a mechanical checkup. We usually don't have to do this, the Law Enforcement Chief we are working for just makes a phone call and gets us released over the phone but this was a Federal incident and that wasn't working. So the kid says, "Dave, this is going to be so much fun! like a treasure hunt and think of all the people we are going to meet!" Well who couldn't be cheerful and have a good attitude after that.
Comparing civil service jobs to working for private concerns is totally different.
Dave, you have had plenty of years experience within the bureaucracy of state employment. You should know how to deal with it.
