# Scene Shop Floor (sigh)



## Chris Chapman (Mar 4, 2009)

Goofy favor I have to ask of all of you:

Could you please email me or upload pictures of your scene shop floors? I have a Facilities Manager who is going to force me to repaint the floor in the shop because "it has paint on it."

Please email pics to:

[email protected]

I need to educate someone on what shop floors look like.

Thanks,

-Chris


----------



## gafftaper (Mar 4, 2009)

We built our theater a year ago. I can't tell you how many times I had to explain to the architect that the purpose of a scene shop is to be used. I didn't want any sort of flooring or paint. Just give me a functional bare MDF surface layer that I can paint at random, screw things into, and easily replace down the road when sections get worn out. 

I'll try to get you a picture this afternoon.


----------



## theatretechguy (Mar 4, 2009)

I see by your email addy that you work for a school district. Maybe the issue here is that your shop needs to be organized with "safety zones" around machinery. (Safety tape showing safety clearances around machines, etc). I can certainly see where that's desireable from a safety standpoint, (especially if any students are using the machines) but I don't understand the whole "paint your floor" because it's a shop, and something will eventually spill, get oversprayed, etc. 

Maybe facilities can repaint your floor on a yearly basis for you?

Sounds like he's not telling you something. I'm guessing he's trying to make your shop look like the high school's woodshop (devoid of clutter, because they literally do nothing in those classes anymore).


----------



## Chris Chapman (Mar 4, 2009)

The issue, literally, is paint. Not tool storage, or where our chop saw is. It's paint. He wants a clean shop floor. He has no clue about scenic painting, what happens when you use a hudson sprayer for texture, what happens when you use flogging as a texturing process, no clue about scenic art and it's application in general.

I'm the first person to be concerned about shop safety, but come on, paint on the floor?


----------



## Van (Mar 4, 2009)

You're obviously not using enough Bogus Paper!

Sounds like Scenic Painting with The Anal Retentive Artist;
" Oh my, Ok we got paint on the floor. What do we do now ?
That's right first we mop up the excess with paper towels, which we wrap in foil, place in a zip-lock baggy, then put into the Garbage. Then we go back over the spot with a sponge mop and some environmentally responsible Simple Green. "
< Just imagine Phil Hartman in brand new white painters pants and shirt.> 

I'll send you a picture of our setup room floor if that doesn't make him run screaming out of the building, nothing will, but only on the condition that, that picture never get posted anywhere. <I'd hate to develope the reputation as a slob.>


----------



## Chris Chapman (Mar 4, 2009)

I would NEVER repost it Van. Cross my heart and hope my facilites director dies. At most it will go into a photo report that I'm collating of Shop from across the State and country to make my point.

Thanks,

-Chris


----------



## mnfreelancer (Mar 4, 2009)

Unfortunately I don't have a picture but back in highschool we were told by our TD not to worry about paint on the floor since the new sealed concrete floor was excessively slippery and the paint helped put some texture on it making the shop generally safer. Large spills were contained but we never sweated the small drips and spatters.


----------



## 1kfresnel (Mar 4, 2009)

I hear ya. I'll try and remember to take a shot tomorrow!


----------



## cprted (Mar 5, 2009)

I'd take a picture, but our shop won't help your cause. Being a road house, we don't build anything, so the floor is more or less black. Sorry.

If the guy who's complaining about your shop floor wants to do the painting, why not let him go to it during a dark week?


----------



## Chris Chapman (Mar 5, 2009)

He doesn't have the staff for it and would demand my staff (and budget) take care of it. He belongs to the club of Facility Directors who have a degree in cluelessness.


----------



## Sayen (Mar 8, 2009)

Sealed concrete would have been nice, we just have bare cement. I'll try to snap a few photos next week, we're out here for spring break right now.

I've never worried about paint on the floor. I'm fairly certain that my previous shop floor was only held together through drops of paint, on both the floors and walls. It never made things slippery, and we only use latex paint so I only worry about cleaning up spills.


----------



## willbb123 (Mar 8, 2009)

Here is a few pics of one of the community theaters shop. Its in a condemned building in the middle of nowhere. Its a real mess so it might not be the best example. They got really lucky during the floods last year, they are right next to the river but high enough on a hill that they stayed safe.


----------



## Chris Chapman (Mar 10, 2009)

Will, what is the name of the Venue and the City?


----------



## Oldschool (Mar 10, 2009)

Chris Chapman said:


> The issue, literally, is paint. Not tool storage, or where our chop saw is. It's paint. He wants a clean shop floor. He has no clue about scenic painting, what happens when you use a hudson sprayer for texture, what happens when you use flogging as a texturing process, no clue about scenic art and it's application in general.
> 
> I'm the first person to be concerned about shop safety, but come on, paint on the floor?



Chris,

Why don't you simply educate your ignorant Facility Manager? He is probably not any of the things you think he is - he simply doesn't understand. Bring him into the shop on a busy work day when there is a lot of painting and set building going on so he can experience why there is paint on the floor. Since he is a business guy make an argument from a productivity perspective as to why it would be inefficient to worry about getting paint on the floor. Instead of fighting him, you could educate him and create an ally. My 2cents.........


----------



## Chris Chapman (Mar 10, 2009)

I would love to try that approach, Richard. But with the guy in question it just doesn't work. He and I are at odds, and he doesn't understand our operations and makes no attempt to find out about them. He has no desire to come over when we have a scenic shift in progress. He likes to skulk around after hours when no one is working, (Seriously) and give you lists of what you're doing wrong.

This is someone who prefers that the manlift stay stored at the other end of the building (1/4 mile away), up a ramp, and on the other side of 2 sets of fire doors. The manlift is used primarily onstage and in the gym (also on our end of the building). The manlift is "just" the right size to fit through the fire doors, and if you aren't paying attention it can hang up on the center stop. We did that once, and maintenance has done it one, and he feels we are abusing the lift.

Speaking of lifts, he is also the one who mandates we wear a fall arrest harness (out of date) on an unrated point on the lift. When you point out why this isn't good, he doesn't care. And insists that you do it, cause you have to wear a harness when you go up. (sigh) Or so he insists.

See why there is a sigh in the Topic Line.  

BTW- The pictures collection is up and representing about 10-15 facilities. I'll post a link later this week to the document. It truly is the adage "a picture says a thousand words" kind of thing. When you look at our shop floor compared to others, you get the point really quickly.


----------



## Oldschool (Mar 10, 2009)

Chris Chapman said:


> I would love to try that approach, Richard. But with the guy in question it just doesn't work.
> See why there is a sigh in the Topic Line.



I hear ya brother. I looked at your profile to get a sense of how many times you have been around the block before I responded. Having been a TD for over a decade tells me this is not your first battle with the micro-managers of the world. All you can do with a guy like that is suck it up if you work for him, or tell him to step off if you don’t. If you are a government or corporate facility get your HR staff involved to mediate a compromise between his way and the highway. It sounds like you are trying to be reasonable but he wants to play Hitler. Use the “it is costing the facility money” gambit. It these lean times the almighty $$ is hard argue against if you can back it up to his boss. Good luck!


----------



## fredthe (Mar 10, 2009)

Chris Chapman said:


> Speaking of lifts, he is also the one who mandates we wear a fall arrest harness (out of date) on an unrated point on the lift.


You could always refuse to go up until they provide a proper harness and attachment point

> And insists that you do it, cause you have to wear a harness when you go up.


I've seen indications that OSHA insists, so you may not have a choice in this one.

-Fred


----------



## cdub260 (Mar 10, 2009)

fredthe said:


> I've seen indications that OSHA insists, so you may not have a choice in this one.



Here's what I found as far as relevant OSHA Standards.

There's a lot to read there, so take your time.


----------



## fredthe (Mar 10, 2009)

cdub260 said:


> Here's what I found as far as relevant OSHA Standards.


That's what I was looking at, but to me, it's unclear if it applies, as it is part of the regulation titled _Powered platforms for building maintenance_. The section seems to apply to things like window washing platforms, but it's not really clear. I thought there was something very clear from OSHA on this, but I can't find it at the moment. This could be what your facilities manager was thinking about when he came up with the requirement.

Of course, none of this conjecture should be taken as specific advice on anyone's working conditions or safety practices, IANAL, YMMV, etc.

-Fred


----------



## avkid (Mar 10, 2009)

fredthe said:


> You could always refuse to go up until they provide a proper harness and attachment point


For work positioning only.


----------



## jwl868 (Mar 10, 2009)

fredthe said:


> I thought there was something very clear from OSHA on this, but I can't find it at the moment. This could be what your facilities manager was thinking about when he came up with the requirement.
> 
> 
> -Fred



If you search the OSHA website for scissors lift, you'll find their interpretation. I'd have to go through my notes, but I think scissors lifts are under the scaffold regulations. (But I'm not sure what you mean by "manlift".) [See below]

02/23/2000 - Fall protection, training, inspection and design requirements of aerial lifts and scissor lifts/scaffolds.

and
07/21/1998 - Aerial lift regulations; fall protection for scissor lifts.


Joe


----------



## Van (Mar 11, 2009)

I believe the OSHA requirements are pretty clear. If you are more than 6 ft off of the ground you must be tied off or have a railing. If you are in a manlift / scissor lift you must be tied off to an approved point, which is provided in all manlifts. 
The point of tying off in a man-lift is not because of the risk of you falling, it is to keep you with the basket on lift in case of a tip-over accident. < this makes it much easier to find your body >

There are several other threads dealing with the Scissor lift Man lift safety issues, and we have strayed from the OP.


----------



## chris325 (Mar 19, 2009)

After almost 8 years, nobody really knows the color of the floor of the set shop at my high school. In a lot of cases I can match certian paint outlines/spills/splashes to particular shows. Heck, the floor even has some signitures courtesy of the set builders.


----------



## lieperjp (Mar 20, 2009)

In our storage room (which used to be the painting room) there are small murals painted on the floor mixed in with all the splatters. Call it art, and tell him you can't paint over art!

There is also a mirror hanging from the ceiling for a blind tennis game, which is pretty cool. There's too much junk in there now to play it .


----------



## gafftapegreenia (Mar 20, 2009)

I wish people would worry more about sweeping up all the sawdust, a slip hazard, that what the shop floor looks like.


----------



## Van (Mar 20, 2009)

gafftapegreenia said:


> I wish people would worry more about sweeping up all the sawdust, a slip hazard, that what the shop floor looks like.


 Oddly enough I had that same issue with my set-up room floor. There was somekind of slick high gloss paint on it. The slightest amount of sawdust and you'd slip and slide like being on ice, even in good boots. 
Now that there are several layers of flat paint, no more slippage issues.


----------

