How do we soften this monstrosity?

sidste år

sidst ændret:11 måneder siden

Last time I posted about this , we got sidetracked sorry , and talked about boats and cars and names and feelings and interesting stuff , and I gather thats not allowed as it got deleted haha . So this time I'll try and stick to the knitting .

Even though we haven't settled , we've gotten the keys -- we're not allowed to change locks or security codes etc until the end of next week .

This gives you an idea of how big it is , compared to mere mortals . That stud is approx 11 metres ! Our other ( main ) shop has various walls and rooms and stuff ( we have an engine building room ; a machine room with our CNC lathes etc ; our dynomometer that needs lots of noise suppression ; and a spray booth , for example ) . Here , we will be a lot more open -- we won't do major fabrication or panel and paint here , for example -- this is where we strip and check and replace stuff . Anyway , whereas our main shop is nearly twice as long , but a bit narrower , we only get about 25 cars max in there -- here we should get about 40 and still be able to work on them .

Basically , it gives us the potential to double our throughput .

So theres a large super-quiet compressor and airlines going in this week and next , as well as standard and 3 phase power , more lights , and 2 and 4 post hoists . The hoists are a bit of a hassle -- we want to do them all in yellow , but we can't get the ones we want in yellow , so we are getting 6 blue ones , then each one gets stripped and painted and powdercoated yellow , reassembled , then installed , then the safety inspectors sign each one off . Basically , it'll be close on a month before we have the first one fully operational , and then 1 or 2 every couple of weeks .

Back to the exterior though , and thanks to everyone for your ideas .

Our thinking at this stage --

5 Corten panels in that 'frame' right at the front , with orange backlighting at night .

A bright orange sail cloth over that upstairs decking area , in a trapezoidal shape . The idea is it will bring in some colour , but probably most importantly something that isn't square -- when you look , everything is square and regimented and imposing .

Change those beige alloy handrails around the deck to cedar or similar , again just to soften the look .

And maybe the riskiest --

Paint the fence in a bright orange too .

Any thoughts ? Thanks heaps .

Oh , and just one more thing -- all those exterior panels on the building -- they are manufactured or coated in this slightly weird pearlescent almost translucent coating that looks reasonably dark at night , but if you look at the pictures , you see they look almost beige in places , almost grey in other , and look at theat sloping bit around the top of the 3rd floor , and they look almost a different colour .

So yeah , it is what it is -- it is very big and pretty ugly , I don't think it'll ever be a thing of beauty , but we can do a few tricks and tweaks . Again , thanks for your thoughts and ideas .

Fremhævet svar

PRO

Dr Retro House Calls

sidste år

I'd be finding out if those exterior panels are flammable. After the Grenfell Tower fire they stopped using them for residential development but they are commonly used for commercial development where there is less risk of people dying. This may influence your choice of vegetation, BBQ location, smokers' area, and other heat sources....

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User
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Haha -- a bit hard to dig the hangi pit through the concrete !

For anyone that doesn't know , a hangi is 'made' by digging a hole , heating rocks til they glow , putting food in flax baskets and layered with sacking that has been soaked in water between each layer , then the soil put back over the top , and everything is left sealed for several hours . Everything comes out with a beautiful smoked taste ( if done right ) and basically steamed -- meat falls to peices , vegies soft as !
siriuskey
sidste år
I did see a program recently where they were experimenting with a Hangi fire pit to work in a Restaurant, can't remember the NZ Chef, it is super delicious
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Anyway , work is progressing 'out the back' -- we have several 3 phase outlets working , and 4 of our staff are based here now making benches and the like . Our Press Brake ( a thing for folding metal ) is at the other shop , so we cut and measure here and take over there to bend , then back here to assemble and weld .

We now have established an International Design Division ( formerly known as my girlfriend and my business partners wife , as well as a couple of bottles of inspiration haha ) .

5 of these pots have been ordered from Europe , they are about a metre tall and if they turn out to be like these look like , they should look pretty good and stand out .

One of the ladies is getting quotes for the orange sailcloth .

The concensus seems to be that the front fence will get painted black , rather than orange .

There is a bit of discussion about the corten panels inside that front frame -- the girls seem to think it won't stand out enough , and theres the risk it will still look too square and symetrical like the rest of the building . I'd be interested in everyones thoughts . Thanks
User
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Well , I assume our bank now owns this property haha , and lets us stay there ( as long as we pay $30k a month haha ) .

Having said that , I have been actively looking for suitable premises to expand , for the last 3 years . This ticks 80% of the boxes , most others lucky to tick 50% . There are lots of places under 200 sq mtrs , a few that were 5000 sq mtr or more , not much around this size in this configuration . The only other option was appearing to be doing a new build on a greenfield site , presumably move our entire business , and do 2 or 3 buildings , which would have been in the $10's of millions .

The other unexpected bonus was Roses interest -- as soon as I saw this , I knew it was the building for our business , and would have happily done the deal on my own . The size , the location , the layout , even the price were all favourable -- Rosie coming on board was the surprise icing on top .

Just as far as the yellow hoists and axle stands and hydrauklic jacks are concerned @siriuskey , I thought about why we do this , and basically it comes to to creating a professional image , and even attention to detail . We have built our business on being professional and maybe even being a bit OCD . We build and maintain high-end race and road cars , and our customers expect the highest level of detail in everything we do . One customer ( probably one of our most picky ) wanted a very , very specific dash panel made -- admittedly iit was for a $300,000 historic car , but to get it to the level of detail he wanted , it took over 200 hours , at $90 an hour . Yes , around $20,000 including materials for a dash panel , and he happily paid it !

Basically , if you drove into a service department or mechanics , and they had 3 older rusty brown trolley jacks , 2 that have pieces of paper attached outlining faults ; a pile of mismatched axle stands in 8 or 10 faded rusty colours ; and an old hoist -- would you have much faith in them ?

At our main shop , all our desktop computers have white Asus screens -- they are about 27 or 28 inch , so quite large , and look 'designer' , all up we bought 10 of them 4 or 5 years ago . Probably not the greatest colour for what is a glorified mechanics / engineers , but they look the part and look professional and all match , and get regular cleaning with spray and wipe and a sponge and old tooth brush .

Similarly , all our office 'wheelie' chairs look a bit like race car seats

They fit our theme , they are colourful , but they are made somewhere in Asia and are only okay quality . Over the last 10 years , we've fixed numerous castors , welded broken frames , and bouight at least 20 of these but thrown 8 or 10 away over the years -- ripped or torn or just plain stuffed .

So arguably we'd be better buying standard office chairs , but then again , the overall cost versus the result works out okay .

So does that explain a bit more as to why we get a bit OCD , and try and look and act professional -- the cost is only 1 factor ?
Kate
sidste år
Out my gym on the facade they painted it orange then added timber battens in front. I think it lightens the look but stops you seeing white through.
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siriuskey
sidste år
I would never suggest that you use old hoists with chipped paint, I thought they were new and that you didn't like the colour, you certainly have an image to maintain.

We are into Hangers and such and wondered why you didn't go the property with a couple of large Hangers and a Strip, your clients could fly in and stay.
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Are you talking about this place ( our Motorsport business ) , or my country place @siriuskey ?

With this place , people drop off their vehicles -- they either drive them here , or bring them on or in a trailer or transporter . An airstrip or even helicopter pad would be a waste , and I understand the paperwork is hell ( in an urban area ) and costs $1000's a year .

We do have 1 motorsport client ( well he's actually a really good friend , who is also a client ) who is a Kiwi , but has been US based for 15 or more years . He'll often fly into NZ on a Friday , we have his 2 NZ based cars so take 1 or both to the track for him -- he'll get a rental car or occassionally a helicopter to the track , race over the weekend , then fly out Sunday night or Monday morning . Just a side note -- we email him a monthly invoice normally 1st or 2nd of the following month , he pays within a few days -- we are talking anything from $10k to occassionally $100k if theres major work . One month he called very , very apologetic , apologising because someone new at his business didn't pay until the 15th of the month ! I wish everyone was like that -- occassionally we have customers that haven't paid for 3 months or so , then when you call they want to pay it off over 4 or 5 months !
User
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At my new place ( 'The Farm' as us rural folk refer to it haha ) , what the pilots do @siriuskey is they land along the fram tracks , tilting the plane slightly so that the wings clear the fences . . . . .

I haven't done that myself , preferring to just land my copter on the lawn after dropping Rosie at work and Zack at school . . . . . . .

( that is a genuine photo by the way , but its my mates helicopter -- he was doing some fiddly lifting work a few kms away that day , so I couldn't resist the chance to get him to call over when he finished . . . . . . ) .
gaye50
sidste år
Put up a green garden walls on the side panels & lots of solar on the roof.
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I'm not 100% sure about solar there ( i assume you are talking the commercial building @gaye50 -- not the house ? ) -- I guess we can 'split' the lighting in the front , and go solar there -- I know all the lighting is LED , but the big lights out the back would probably be too draining on a solar system , and welders and the like would really chew through it . On the one hand , it all helps , and arguably even offsets the fact we are working on cars ; but if it only supplies 10% of our needs and costs $10's of thousands or evens $100's of thousands , it gets harder to justify .

As far as a green wall ( I assume you mean living plants planted vertically ? ) theres lots of windows and big doors . Until you stand there and realise you can actually get 2 normal sized vehicles side by side through each of those doors , you don't realise how big they really are ! The wall above that front terrace ( where it backs onto the next door neighbours ) may work for a garden or vine thanks , but the rest I suspect would look weird ?
kbodman14
sidste år
The new industrial 3rd phase solar could be a goal. Double density solar cell panels and 3 phase inverters should provide all the power the workshop needs. The best are Canadian, made for their climate, so should work well on the Canterbury Plains.
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We'll wait a year or so , and see . Just looking on-line , it appears a 3 phase system with storage suitable for our estimated usage would be around $1/2 mil , while our main shop has a machine room ( 7 axis CNC mills etc , computers , etc ) , a dyno room etc , so could be double that as continuous power is critical . That is about 20-30 years of our current power bills .

In fact , even at $500k @7% interest , the interest per year is more than our power bills , and I suspect it would be double that . Too expensive , but also too risky to take a punt at this stage , and looking around , that seems to be why most businesses have none or a token amount .
gaye50
sidste år
You could buy the solar panels in stages, as well as setting up your 3 phase inverter & eventually battery system. There would be back up from the grid in the initial stages.
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It's funny -- I just started to type that its outside my comfort zone , which it is , but then realised -- it's actually not solely my decision anyway . I own 50% of the company that owns the building , and 50% of a different company with different shareholders , that leases the building , so I don't even know who pays !

My mobile home has solar but I haven't even taken too much notice of that -- I'm pretty sure there are 2 'house' batteries , it charges from the sun but also when driving it , the lights and TV and microwave have never run out of power , but its never just sat there for more than 2 days , when in use . A week ago it did a 400km trip , if I went out now everything would work , but is that because of the solar or because the motor topped it all up -- the starter battery will still start it in 3 months , so possibly these ones are similar ?

A $5k system or whatever to run showroom lights and some external ones would probably be a good idea , but I have over 20 ( and a half haha ) commercial properties so where do you start , who pays , etc . In fact , I'm probably better to install solar on other smaller buildings first , and then monitor the results ?
siriuskey
sidste år
Sorry I Thought you had considered buying into a new Green belt are/ Aviation Park just for the business. And I wouldn't suggest applying for permission to build a Heli Pad in a built up area that's like pulling Hens teeth and you can end up throwing good money after bad.

My thought was to build a couple of Hangers with an actual airstrip that most pilots would want to use and not a track suitable for emergency landings and Crop Dusters, I hope they remember the other wing when dipping to avoid the fence. I have experience of Choppers and float planes arriving. Who took the photo, must have been a second machine. Did I mention that I used to drive a Red Austin Healey that would be of more interest to you

Anyway it looks like you will be having a lot of yellow features in the new Property. cheers and good luck with it all.
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The photo was from a drone -- I'm not sure if he always has one on the chopper , but I assume he sends it into tricky areas to check and take photos first ? Wreck a $500 drone rather than a $500,000 chopper !

Any sports car is cool -- the Healeys didn't seem as well known as the MGs , but seemed more solid . I won't get too far off track though -- the last couple of times I did that they locked the thread , which is fairish enough , although I like all design . I can't say too much , but my new car is absolutely stunning -- I personally think its a work of art .

When i said 'greenfield site' , I meant our main 2500 sq mtr shop is bursting at the seams , and there's nothing else suitable had come up in 2 years , so we were actually seriously looking at buying at the edge of town ( part of a former farm basically ) and doing a 5000 sq mtr or bigger complex , but to buy 1.2 hectares of bare land ( a green field haha ) is $5 million upwards just for the land -- this 'Number 2 shop' was around that money , and its obviously already built , and we don't have to move our main shop -- this makes more sense !
User
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Oh , and in the workshop , yes we have lots of yelow ( and some grey and some charcoal ) but in the offices thats likely to be orange --

These ones ( below ) I absolutely love , particularly the orange ones
siriuskey
sidste år
Whatever happened to racing car red
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Basically , this new building is gold in most lights . Our other shop is mostly off-white render with black doors , the other interior is off-white and silver and charcoal , with yellow and red highlights , and mostly black and silver chrome furniture .

But we didn't think the red goes with the gold , so at the new place we thought lets go with orange

With me so far ?

So then the girls said why not buy new furniture for our main shop , where 98% of people go to , and shift the old stuff to the new building , where almost no-one will see it ? Sounds logical . But then they thought they don't want red here at the new place , so at this stage everything that is red ( in the offices , parts , reception , etc ) is going to be replaced with orange .

So suddenly the furniture budget has blown out from a few thousand $$$ , to $20k plus !
User
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sidste år
Holy Heck ! This chair is called a Stuhl Bold , and they are 940 Euros plus freight ! Each ! So at least $2000 each landed here .

Yeah nah , looks great but I'm not even going to try and justify that !

Being a big kid though , this battery powered Bentley @ $349 may be on the shopping list . . . . . . .
siriuskey
sidste år

Sing A Rainbow Song by Peggy Lee

Red and yellow and pink and green
Purple and orange and blue
I can sing a rainbow
Sing a rainbow
Sing a rainbow too Listen with your eyes
Listen with your ears
And sing everything you see
I can sing a rainbow
Sing a rainbow
Sing along with me Red and yellow and pink and green
Purple and orange and blue
I can sing a rainbow
Sing a rainbow
Sing a rainbow too

And Buddhist colours are red and gold so I don't agree
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Song sung blue , everybody knows one . . . . . . .

We all live in a yellow submarine , a yellow submarine , a yellow submarine . . . . . . . .

Orange Blossom Special . . . . . . .

Purple Rain . . . . . . . . . .

None of them need you to shave your head and chant .
siriuskey
sidste år
I was trying to show that red yellow and gold work. And did you know that Neil Diamond has Parkinson's
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Like most things in life , it gets a bit complicated , and we have to compromise .

My business partner has been with his wife for around 45 years . She is a really nice person , but even in the 17 years we have been in business together , she has been reserved , calls in maybe once a week and is friendly , but has no real interest in motorsport .

My girlfriend is almost the opposite -- she loves motorsport , loves cars , wants to get her own race car . Over the last 2 or 3 months the 2 ladies have struck up a friendship , and they started making decor suggestions . They came up with the large pot plant planter things , for example . I like orange , but will also accept most colours , but the 2 ladies seem to be steering towards orange , and now seem to want to change both shops towards orange external and internal furniture , and we already have yellow as our hoist etc colour . Make sense ?

Basically , if they said purple and pink , we'd probably politely steer them towrds other colours , but orange and yellow work , and at this stage that looks like what we'll get . Are Larry and myself wimps , or quite smart guys ? We'll check with the ladies and get back to you okay .. . . . . .
siriuskey
sidste år
Sounds like a plan, It would be a good idea to get a local Designer Architect to work with and help guide the Ladies ideas,
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sidste år
You're not quite with the programme @siriuskey haha .

Larry's wife Sonia doesn't really like motorsport . In the early 80's , before they married , Larry went to Europe and got a job with Mercedes Formula One . A year later , Sonia went over to Germany , and was going to give it a year or so . She came back within 6 weeks . Somehow , they still got married and are still together .

When Larry got Life Membership conferred on him by Motorsport NZ , Sonia didn't go to the awards ceremony in Wellington , just him and I . She felt she didn't want any limelight , and hadn't contributed .

So after 45 years or so , up steps our little 5 ft 10 and a half miracle worker Rosie , they now talk most days , go out for a coffee or wine once a week or so , now Sonia is ringing sailcloth places for quotes , and looking at ideas on-line . She comes to either shop with colour samples and design ideas . She is taking an interest .

Sunday night we are having a 'housewarming' at the new shop . Rosie has sweetly told her she wants to see her there , and in fact Rose is coming to Taupo during the day , but she has already gotten Sonia to head around in the afternoon and make sure everything is coming along fine . Little steps .

So with all due respect , the actual design isn't overly important .
siriuskey
sidste år
I thought that this post was about design help with your new building, a parting idea to go with your other ideas. I leave the other stuff to you.
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Sorry about that -- I tried to add some info that explained our requirements clearer , but got too off-track .

The external ideas seem similar to what was originally suggested , but the interior has certainly changed due to everyones input thanks
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sidste år
Well , what a crazy couple of weeks !

The 'housewarming' on Sunday we had around 600 people through , which was about double what we expected , really good PR , good contacts , seems like we made really good contacts .

BUT talking things through yesterday as we were cleaning up , pretty sure we stuffed up . In a nutshell , we should have had the whole event at our main shop , it would have shown off what we do , better . Buit hey -- new building and all the associated excitement , we got caught up in it . At least we're learning I suppose haha !

DESIGN FAIL ! Yes , I'll put up my hand , this was my stuff-up . The front showroom at the new building is off-white tiles and beige walls . No redeeming features really .

We're a motorsport business , so the answer is obvious . Put some race cars in there . Except the doors are narrow , and about 900mm wide . In theory 1.8 metres when open , but with the hinges etc , they open about 1650mm wide . So we borrowed some small cars .

A Mini Racecar

A Formula Ford

And a Toy type thats about 1.2 meters long

Good idea . But look at the outside again . The glass has a mirror treatment . So during the daytime , you can see out but can't see in . Like tinted windows . But unlike tinted windows , at night when we turned the interior lights on , all you see looking in , is a mirror with a slight glow behind it !

We had all those sets of front doors locked , the lift turned off , stairs had a rope and sign , etc . But yeah , went to a bit of effort to get cars that could fit through the doors , basically couldn't be seen !
siriuskey
sidste år
Sidst ændret: {last_modified_time}sidste år
Sounds like you might need to replace the PR Dept. It would have been great see photos with the cars in the showroom.

Just a quick thought what about replacing the first set of double doors with a glass Garage Panel lift door and have them and ground floor windows done as artistically etched glass, perhaps your Company Name etc
siriuskey
sidste år
This will attract business

Large simple see through Logos of the cars you work with
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To give a full answer would take several pages haha , and it isn't about design or housing , but yes , you are on the right track -- we have assumed some things , and we have overlooked some obvious things . Its not just PR , or more info on a website , or starting to tweet , but it all helps .

I know you'll roll your eyes @siriuskey , but my girlfriend/partner has built a multimillion dollar business in a difficult industry through hard work and good communication and right location etc , BUT she is also skilled on the various social networks , so thats one area we can look at , particularly for younger clients .

Even on the design and decor side of things , we started out thinking we'd put a bit of furniture and a couple of computers into this new shop . Our main shop is 5 1/2 years since we moved in , and was brand new , and basically if it ain't broke , don't fix it . Ironically , a couple of weeks ago the girls suggested putting new furniture and a redecorate there , then move some of the old stuff to this new shop . There is a certain amount of logic -- the main shop is where we want everyone to go , and a refresh would get noticed by some people . But its still pretty new , most things are black or charcoal or alloy or chrome or off-white -- with bits of red . And theres 4 times the furniture to replace .

IF we had stopped and thought logically , that is where we would have held Sundays thing , and is obviously what we will do next function -- probably late this year . Out of the 600 or so people Sunday , at least a quarter had not visited our existing shop , some even assumed we were 4 or 5 staff and a few ring-ins at race meetings -- they didn't realise everything we can do . At one stage Larry had a can each hand , one each pocket , and he set off with 30 or 40 people , they walked the 4 blocks to the main shop where he gave them an escorted tour . Things like that made us realise our message isn't totally getting through .

And yeah , where do we stop ? Do people notice quirky things ? Do people who see lights at night buy more during the day ? I even wonder if the type of people we cater to would be attracted to a frosted glass or moving logo ? The day you stop learning is when you give up , or should give up !
siriuskey
sidste år
Not to get off topic again, I was having a lend of you re the PR Dept. 600 people showing up to your event is pretty good, I was just adding more ideas to your Mood board., handing over.
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siriuskey
sidste år
You've shown them the before, blow them away with the after, looking forward to seeing what you do
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sidste år
I'd better not post a pic of the PR department haha -- she spent most of the day at Taupo walking around and talking and inviting people ( we printed up a flyer too that we all gave away but she seemed to get a better response than the rest of us for some reason ) . Houzz would not doubt delete the pic of a 5 ft 10 1/2" girl in hot pants and our team shirt !

Both our places are at least on par with any other business in our industry ( okay , the new place needs a bit of bling , but we'll get there ) , and about 75-80% of our parts sales are via phone and e-mail . I know that sounds lazy AND cheap , we will probably go more orange at both places , but we won't be spending $100k , and 'hopefully' not even $20k . I put the hopefully in commas because it does get a bit political , and I'm learning that sometimes happy partners is better value than buying something I think is good value haha -- see , I am learning !

I wonder if I should post this bit as a seperate post , but here's what we found ( presumably applies in Aus too ) --

I'll use this as an example . Apparently it's called a Tolix replica chair . We bought 11 of these from a furniture wholesaler ( because they only had 11 in orange ) , and they were $45 each . Ones that look the same , but admittedly may be better quality , but according to the 2 people who went up to Auckland and compared , looked the same , were $240 plus GST ( which is 15% here , or $36 ) at an office furniture supplier .

I may be wrong , but it seems like people in businesses just ring an office furniture supplier , and the person ordering often just assumes that must be the price , so pays it .

Another example is a 2 metre by 1200 dark glass topped and alloy legged table -- $350 if you buy it as a dining table , $800 as a boardroom table !
siriuskey
sidste år
Off topic again

Re furniture, quality over quantity, employ a designer to find the best deals when purchasing for your fit out.
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This thread has just about died a natural death , so thanks everyone .

The interiors of the 2 shops will stay as they are in the short term , with 1 exception -- anything red will be changed to orange . Chairs , clocks , maybe rugs , etc . So the beige walls will stay in the new shop , the silver and charcoal in the main shop likewise .

Our logo has its origins 17 years ago , but was updated about 14 years ago -- it is basically 2 stylised flags , one the NZ flag , the other a chequered flag . They look like they are 'silk' etc , blowing in the wind . The NZ flag , of coure , is very similar to the Aussie one , so red and white on blue . And the chequered one is black and white . And our name has always been in block letters across the flags , with a white surround around black letters . Easy to read .

But we've just realised it would stand out even more and look great if the wording was done in hot orange block letters against the stylised flags !

In the main shop , we have 15 workbenchs 'out the back' , they are powdercoated in quite a rich almost burgundy red . In the new shop , the guys have welded up 10 the same , and 2 have come back from the powdercoaters , and we've dropped 2 more workbenches off . Anyway , the first 2 are brand shiny new , in the red . But the next 2 we are getting done in a bright orange , and probably the next 6 too .

If the orange looks good , we will most likely get another 15 or even 20 benchs made , and sell off the reddish ones . THey are solid and in good condition , so actually sell for good $$$ . In case you are wondering , its difficult and costly to strip already made benches of their powdercoating , and change the colour . Likewise , spray painting them from red to orange doesn't last well in our enviroment -- looks horrid in 12 months !

Cheers
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sidste år
These 2 pictures sort of belong here -- it is a building in Tauranga , that had the uual run-of-the-mill flat walls . What the owners have done is build boxes around each window , I actually think it is made of orange ACP panels . They've added orange LED spotlights too .

You can see the result for yourself
siriuskey
sidste år
Good lighting is important day and night, internal and external, good luck
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Just a quick update , and maybe some tips that we;ve discovered !

The first of the new yellow hoists has gone in , and it looks great ! This shop will almost certainly be for work on race cars , and hoists aren't all that critical here -- everything is very high-tech ( and expensive ) on most cars we work on . So you put a car on a hoist , strip the wheels off , take suspension out or take gearbox out , then find the parts you need , which takes 6 to 8 weeks out of Europe or America . The vehicle can't be reassembled as we are missing parts , so you've just tied up a hoist for 2 months .

So what we do is jack a car up , put 4 solid axle stands ( again , in bright yellow ) under the car , then it doesn't really matter if it sits there for a few weeks . We now have the space to do lots of thios type of work now too .

Second thing -- we have 2 of the new work benchs in bright orange . We had the first 2 done in red , which matches the 15 approx that we have at the other shop ( they are all red ) . We did a quick survey , and out of 30 staff , around 20 prefer the orange , 3 or 4 like the red better , 3 or 4 suggested black , and 3 or 4 said to go yellow , the same as the hoists and hydraulic jacks and axle stands . 95% of workshops have either red or black , so we couldn't see the point in changing from red to black , and more people liked orange than red . So that left yellow , which would look okay , but then it looks funny if we did yellow chairs in the front area , and we didn'rt like yellow in our logo etc . So 'out the back' at both shops will become a mix of orange and yellow . We are now making another 20 benchs , but due to their size , the powdercoater crowd takes about 2 weeks to do 2 benchs . As we replace the benches at the main shop though , the old red ones will be sold off .

A couple of tips here -- firstly , our big sign at our main shop has our company name in black letters about 40cm tall -- the overall sign has a stylised NZ flag and a stylised chequered flag , so theres colour there , but the letters are in black on white . The sign all up is about 4 metres by 1.5 metres . I talked to the signwriter about doing orange letters that stick over the black ones , or make a new sign ? He said 'neither' -- he's cutting some letters out of orange solid board ( ACP ) that are about 45cm tall -- we'll then attach them on spacers over the top of the existing black letters -- basically make the sign 3D . He showed us some orange LED lights that are about the sie of thos old glow sticks or a small candle etc -- install them behind each of these new , face-forward letters , and it will give a neat glow at night !

The other tip -- down the back right hand corner of the shop we are getting 12 old 40' containers , they are not watertight but they are under $2000 each . Theres a trucking company just around the corner ( thats who is supplying the containers ) and they have a huge lifter , sort of a big tractor , They are goind to stack the containers , 6 on the bottom , then 6 above them . So for under $25k ( and a couple of ladders haha ) we have heaps of lockable storage , the fact they aren't watertight doesn't matter as they are inside . To get that much storage built there would be at least $100k , possibly even double that -- 12 x 40' containers is heaps of space !

Most of the focus lately has been on our main shop , all the customer-facing chairs etc have been changed to orange ( or black and grey and orange , etc ) , we got several trendy looking 40cm clocks that are orange face , wood around the edge , white hands . Think they wer $20 each , so we have them in the showroom , off to the side of the parts counter , by reception , in the smoko room , and several in the workshop .

Slowly but surely getting there .
Kay Bodman
sidste år
Progress pics please? We all have stakeholder interest in this workshop and want to ride with the progress.
User thanked Kay Bodman
User
Forfatter
sidste år
The outside isn't all that different yet -- we are awaiting the orange pots , and I don't think the sun shade thing has even been ordered ? The front fence looks better -- painted black now . Thats about the only noticable thing .

The workshop area now generally has 6 guys working there now , but its very much a work in progress . There are probably 20 plus cars there , theres completed 'bare' benchs waiting to go to the powdercoaters , and partially made ones , theres 4 trailers we've started making , theres one row of nicely set out cars then others that are at weird angles haha -- once we get more benches and more hoists and more organisation , it'll look way better IMO . And things like the containers will hide a multitude of sins !
User
Forfatter
12 måneder siden
Ummm -- I have just bought this orange dog seat haha .

I'm guessing it will end up at one of our two shops . I haven't shown Rosie it yet , but I have a sneaking suspicion it won't be going to our house , although if I want to be sneaky , I think I can get Zack to fall for thr dog , then it will be allowed . . . . . . . . . .

This is the actual one I bought for $175 --

And this is the 'original' Scandinavian design -- not as good as mine IMO , and its $1900 when converted to $NZ !
Kay Bodman
12 måneder siden
Great bargain, love to see about great shopping, especially picking up replicas, and/or 'akins' that will fill the bill. Love great designs, one of my career stints was in industrial design, now the credit card cannot afford such luxury: and now many pieces are out of copyright,
User thanked Kay Bodman
B.
11 måneder siden
I have not read the all thread, so sorry if someone already mentionned that, but...Nothing better to soften a place than greenery: Transform that huge balcony into a garden, add trees and living walls, green fences etc
User
11 måneder siden
I really like that thanks B . We have added just a bit of strong orange so far -- big pots downstairs , market umbrellas upstairs . Green and orange works well together too , and its living ! We're currently in Europe for another few days , so not much has been done ( that's my excuse anyway haha ) , but yeah , it just needs more details like this . Cheers
Rebecca Joy
10 måneder siden
There is so much potential here! Adding heaps of greenery and colour elements will work in your favour, translating the inside to outside and vice versa for design so it becomes a cohesive space.
Michelle Forest
10 måneder siden
What did you go with in the end? Seeing as it's been a few months.
User
10 måneder siden
Externally , the front fence and gate is now black . Visually , thats about it . That sounds pretty slack , and it sort of is . We have 3 orange market umbrellas for upstairs , but even right now they are inside -- tey were outside until the rain came !

Inside we have a second yellow hoist up and running and certified , lots of workbenchs , lots of axle stands -- in fact lots of cars , and more than a dozen guys and girls working there . Oh , and 4 'old' ( decommissioned ) 40ft containers -- 2 of them are painted yellow , the other 2 will be soon . A 3rd hoist is in parts and at the powdercoaters . Slowly but surely its being transformed -- by this summer , we'll have around 18 working in this premises .

Over summer , we will get the sailcloth done 'upstairs' , and I'm keen to do a vertical garden , and those Corten panels out the front , and the big orange pots .

Our main shop ( and our logo etc ) has gotten more orange furniture and accessories , and this front area has some desks and chairs and orange accessories , but theres no fulltime office or reception people here .

Like a lot of people with good intentions , I'll revert to that well-known saying -- good things take time haha !
Michelle Forest
10 måneder siden
Good things do take time! I agree 100%. It's a big space to convert. Rome wasn't built in a day!