Charlton Flexi-Disc Factory

One of the local Charlton based blogs has been speculating about a flexi-disc factory in Charlton. See:



http://charltonchampion.co.uk/2011/08/30/did-charlton-have-a-flexi-disc-factory/



what do any industrial historians out there know?????



- soon to come on this site - pictures of a Greenock, Scotland, torpedo factory - moved there from Woolwich together with its workforce.

Kleiner Park: Install Day 1

We got off to a late start today, but got 2 sculptures up: will finish up in the morning...

It was a long, hot, dusty day: but I'm happy :)  The Labyrinth sculpture is complete with the wind turbine spinning & it looks amazing!

I am about to crash; got to the fab shop this morning at 8, didn't leave the park till about 8:30...so I am just going to share some highlight pics...

Me, mom & Steve from Parks & Rec chatting...lol

The view from about 40' feet up; yep, I went up in the bucket to help attach the wind turbine; scary, but cool...

About 50' feet up...

the Labyrinth sculpture complete with wind turbine...

The base of the lake sculpture; this is Jeff: my MVP of the day; thanks for all your help: could not have got it done without you & Montry!!

Steve (Waz) amazing crane skills this guy has....

Hugh: also amazing with the cranes; he ran the bucket today; I trusted him with my life & he didn't even scare me, lol :)

The top section going on the lake sculpture....

Joining the 2 pieces...

Almost sunset; still working...

We will be back at it tomorrow morning; to put the wind turbine on the lake sculpture & assemble the 3rd piece...  I am kinda sad the project is coming to an end, lol :)

 

More pics to come :)

Amber

Kleiner Park Sculptures: Installation Tomorow--wish me luck!!

Fabrication is complete; we will be installing all 3 sculptures in the park tomorrow...I will be meeting ISE Cranes at Blake Trailers (and steel artwork fabrication) at 8am to start loading up.  3 big flatbed crane-trucks & a trailer: hopefully we can get everything in 1 trip :)

Each sculpture will stand over 45' tall: they are in pieces right now: tomorrow we will assemble the 2 base pieces, place it on the foundation, then the top section (33 feet tall) will be craned into place & bolted down.  Last, the wind turbine will be placed, & the wiring will be hooked up: times 3...  it's going to take 2 big cranes, & some big bolts & wrenches & muscle...

After working on this project for over a year, I am both excited & a bit nervous....I believe everything will go together smoothly: it should--after all the pre-planning, templates, engineering, etc.  But, I also know that 45' tall steel structures don't always line up perfectly....I have a big sledge hammer, mag-drill, & crew of help on standby if there are any issues...

Thanks so much to the crew at Blake Trailers for all your hard work; everything looks amazing : )   I am so thankful to have had such a skilled & talented group working on my vision: could not have done it without you!  Thanks for putting up with my changes, random visits, & general artistic crazy-ness, lol : )

 Tomorrow is going to be a big day.  Look for the cranes, if you're driving by Eagle & Fairview: I am probably going to be up in the bucket hooking things up: honk if u see me, lol : )

Pics & video to come...wish me luck!

Amber







Kleiner Park: Fabrication Update

Next week, this wind turbine (the white part) will be spinning in the breeze, producing power.  Not to mention looking amazing: gracefully dancing in the breeze 45' up :)

Everything is coming together beautifully & I cant wait to get the pieces all in place....Fabrication is coming along beautifully at Blake Trailers in Star...they are doing an amazing job: & don't even complain when I decide to make last minute changes, lol :)

The final details & finishing touches will be added this week...

This is the base of one of the sculptures: the part with the wind turbine will be attached to the top of these 2 legs...

Welding the legs to the base-plates...

Pretty big, eh??   The final sculptures will be over 45' tall...

This is an areal view of the park from about a week ago; amazing; it looks just like the design renderings...

66 acres of trees, grass, lakes, & walking paths: the park is scheduled to open to the public in April of next year...

This is the Senior Center...the round bump-out in the lake is one of the locations for my sculptures; I think its going to match the architecture of the building perfectly; matching & contrasting at the same time :)

And this is the Labyrinth; another of my sculptures will go in the center....

The park is going to be a truly unbelievable gift to the city of Meridian, & I am so thankful to be involved with such an amazing project, & even more amazing group of people who have worked so hard to make it happen :)  I am sooooo excited to see the sculptures being completed, but sad at the same time that the project is coming to a close...I am going to miss it; from design team meetings, to weekly construction updates; its been such a privilege to be involved in a project like this... 

Anyway, tears aside (lol) we are still planning on an installation for all three sculptures on Monday: it's going to take 2 big cranes: courtesy of ISE Cranes, & a crew of helpers to get it done, but I am confident that we will make it happen: the turbines will be spinning by Monday night!

More to come....

Amber

Kleiner Park--Fabrication Update

One week to go, & things are looking good :)  Its very exciting to see everything starting to come together--after working on a project for so long---this is the best part!

The base-plates are being attached; 1 inch thick steel plate :)

This is just one leg of the base of one of the sculptures...

lots of welding....

And  lots of drilling holes for bolts....each sculpture features over 150 tension-control bolts, plus the big structural bolts on the base :)

This week will be a long one; tentatively the sculptures are to be installed on Monday the 29th.   I wonder how many trips it will take with a big truck & trailer to get them there....lol :)  It should be quite the production: each sculpture will be put up one leg at a time, then the top 1/2 will go on & be bolted in place,  then the wind turbine will go on (45' up), then the electrical will have to be hooked up....it should be interesting.

More updates to come....stay tuned

Amber

Speaker 20th September on Computer history

The speaker for Greenwich Industrial History Society on 20th September will now be Dan Hayton speaking about sites and remains of the early British computer industry



The Old Bakehouse,Bennett Park,SE3 7.30



Tell your friends.

Kleiner Park fabrication update

Starting to add in the details; these curving pipes are probably the most important element of the design; both aesthetically & symbolically...   I'm very excited to see it coming together!

The pipes will flow & twist up each sculpture & around the wind turbine at the top....

When its all done, it will look like a continuous curving line from the base to the top...

kinda like this...but not quite, lol; there have been a few design changes along the way :)

The other 2 structures are almost done; as soon as they are, they will be moved inside to start working on the curving pipes; each will have a similar feel, but will be different.

More pics later today :)

Amber

Kleiner Park Fabrication update

After some delays in the shop, fabrication of the big sculptures is back on track; yay!  About 2 weeks time, & they should be ready for installation at the park; so excited :)

Right now, they are welding on some gussets; these were added to the upper portion of the sculptures for structural support.  In the original design I had these pipe-like things that would have done the same thing, but I felt they were a distraction from the design of the white curves & wind turbines; instead, we created gussets with the same look/feel as the main structure...

I think keeping the focus on the white design elements is going to look/feel better when they are standing up in the park...

Its so exciting to be moving forward on the project again!  Construction on the park is moving along; buildings are going up, roads are in, & my foundations are ready & waiting : )

I will be updating with progress pics every day this week; so stay tuned to see things come together....tomorow we will be experimenting with the curved pipes: it's going to be a process to get the look just right...

More to come tomorrow : )

Amber

Greening the Grove--a work in progress....

This is an initial concept for the greening the grove project; another public art piece to be installed in downtown Boise....  I have been working on this project for a long time now; there have been lots of changes in location, funding, scope, etc.  But, this design is proposed to serve as a (green) gateway into Grove Plaza; just off 8th & Main.

This one will be steel, with a stainless steel overlay; bright & shiny to contrast against the trees & the buildings....it will also have recycled glass leaves, kinetic mini wind turbine lights, and will collect solar energy to power leds that will light the glass leaves & the Grove Plaza lettering.  And maybe a wifi tower... lol

I will be updating with more info about the project as it comes together; finalizing the design for the approvals process is the order of the week....wish me luck!

Amber

Alone in the Woods....

Earlier this week, I decided to go spend the night at the cabin all by myself....was hoping the silence & solitude would help me think....  The decision was made at about 6:30 in the eve & by 7 I had my cooler packed with supplies, a book, & was in the truck on the road...

It was so nice to get out of the heat... I pulled in at about 8; just as it was starting to cool down a bit. (My familiy has a cabin near Idaho City that we built & all share)

As the sun was starting to go down, I had a lovely dinner cooking on the fire outside...a bit of pasta with fresh herbs from the garden...

I raised my glass jar of wine in a toast to the setting sun...

And as I waited for the stars to come out, I enjoyed the smell of pine trees & the sound of nothing but birds & chipmunks--there is a rather spunky little one that hangs out near the cabin; he chattered at me from the tree about 10 feet away :)

As usual, the sunset was lovely...

The moon was so bright...

Almost like you could pluck it out of the sky & make a necklace out of it :)

Although it didn't result in any grand ideas or revelations, the trip was well worth it all the same.... I enjoyed coffee in the morning (with the chattery chipmunk) & then packed up & headed back to Boise--in a much calmer & happier state of mind---I think a bit of solitude is good for us once in a while...

Amber