10/29/11

Saturday the 29th--Update

Short update--continuing pressing

CEB Micro-controller Repair

Micro-controller repair of accidentally-broken solenoid on the CEB press
Solenoid repair

10/27/11

CEB Workflow

Short update on the brick laying process

Pressing Grates

Short update on the work site
realization that a grate modification is needed

10/24/11

Brick Pressing in Production

Shims

Brianna documents the importance of using 'shims' while welding

Remote Technical Documentation

Video documentation from Rebecca regarding her and Brianna's build
Brianna working on written documentation
Help with CAD documentation needed for clarification with computer modeling

Power Cube Power and Return

Power lines from Power Cubes explanation

Case Drain Returns on Tractor

Case drain return, a low fluid line connecting the 4 motors

Pressure Relief Instructional

Rebecca and Marcin show how to properly set the pressure relief PSI settings

Properly Installed Drawers

Brianna shows what the finished project should look like
Tips on how to fix any misalignment mistakes

How-To Install Drawers

Brianna's step-by-step how-to on the drawer installation
Tips on mounting to the rollers correctly, a rather tricky process

Progress on CEB Press

Bobcat to Lifetrac Conversion Video Instructions

10/20/11

Oct 20, 2011 UPDATE*

Have rollers for earth brick press
Rented a Bobcat for 1 month--will attach a conversion plate between Lifetrac and Bobcat to run sol pulzeriver, Power Cube and CEB Press
Need solution for couplers snapping under pressure

Bobcat meets Conversion Plate meets Pulverizer

Soil Pulverizer on Bobcat

Pulverizer mounts on Bobcat

Bobcat meets Pulverizer

10/18/11

Oct 18th Update

Update for True Fan supporters
6K for Kickstarter campaign with 30 days to go
Main focus currently is mounting the pulverizer onto the tractor--plan B should the 3 tractors not hold up is to rent bobcats and create conversion plate
New equipment protocols coming online, including cement mixer and sawmill

10/17/11

Shuttleworth Fellowship Brief

Marcin describes the ideology, current and on-going projects of GVCS and the future goals and plans for the Shuttelworth Fellowship committee.

10/15/11

Power Cube Tabs Connecting to Tractor

Tab-mounting instructions for mounting Power Cube to the frame of Lifeterac

Lifeterac Motor Coupler Failure

Keywheel on Lifeterac snaps coupler
Remedy to have new couplers made by shop on Monday
Instructions on how to remove difficult wheelshafts and coupler
Welding Lifeterac Mufflers
Welding Remaining Mufflers

Power Cube Wiring 2

Instructions on connecting wiring

Oct 15 Update

Tractor issues: snapped couplers on wheel motors by forgetting to adjust pressure on main hydraulic line
Reducing from 3,000 PSI to half that, for safety

Pouring Concrete Foundations

A panorama view of the concrete pouring

10/14/11

Moving Rebar to HabLab Site

Using OSE Tractor to move rebar to site

Foundation Pouring Series
Ready to pour HabLab foundations

Foundations for HabLab ready to pour
Overview of final foundation constructions
Floating
Pour Sock--first slab flattened, pouring second
Beginning to Pour--pouring concrete for first slab
Little Dry Quick Fix--"Little dry so were adding 5 gallons of water"
8 Cubic Yards--pour of 8 cubic yards, 7.5 for slab
Cool panorama shot of the Pour

10/14/11

HabLab rebar and embodied energy

10-man team pulls all-nighter to finish outside forms (average 6 people for 18 hours = 108 manhours)
view of completed layout with forms
retaining wall and forms completed and rebar layed
ready to pour concrete

10/13/11

Preparing the for HabLab Wall Foundations.

10/10/11

We are finally kicking off our Kickstarter to go The Last Mile on the construction part of the Global Village Construction Set:
- http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/622508883/global-village-construction-set

Construction Planning Meeting

10/09/11

Dear True Fans: October 9 Update

10/07/11

Soil Pulverizer Prototype 3

Cost: 1215 in labor, 25h at 50 dollars/h + 750 in materials.
Pulverizes and loads the soil in 1 step!
This device replaces a stationary pulverizer plus a conveyor (both about 20000 dollars).

Ted Mosher arrived today:

CEB Controller Wiring explanation - check the 6 parts.
Hydraulic Hack
4 CEB Presses, finishing - 2-3 of them for construction.

Documentation evolving
- Upload immediately to youtube from an iPhone
- People can access it and make instructionals, Ian Midgley will share how to do it.
- The more material we have, the more material people can choose.
- We write down the procedure in the Wiki
- Howard Agnew writes the actual scripts remotely.

OSE HabLab - 8 minutes to build a platform, Beginning to stack bales on platform

Temporary strawbale structure, stacking strawbales
- See Temporary Hay House, 1h to build.

Bailing results, On trailer to pick up bales, Picking up bales

10/05/11

Ergonomic analysis of excavation - 500 sqm with foundation pads
- For excavation 4000 dollars for 4 days of labor.
  - Day 1 - 4h bulldozing with CAT D7, 4h trackhoe.
  - Day 2 - 9,5h excavator (all 10 hours of labor), 3h skid loader
  - Day 3 - 11h excavator, 3h bulldozing, 6h skid steering with Bobcat
  - Day 4 - 1h excavator, 3h skid steer
  - Fuel: bulldozing 10gal/hour, excavator 4gal/hour, Bobcat 3gal/h

Baling and House construction ergonomics
- Baling ergonomics: 3h for 100-200 bales. Issues with the length of bales.
- House construction ergonomics - 3h to pour 40 pads, 7 cubic yards of concrete, 6 people working. 6x3 = 18 human hours.
- Ergonomics of preparing the forms - 0.5h per pad, 40 pads = 20 hours. Leveling them off. So about 1h for each pad = 40h for all pads. Work: lay the form out, do the rebar, put the rebar in, dig out a little bit, put some gravel and leveling.

Cement truck arrives and pours cement in the Foundation pads.
- Side comment: For the foundation pad construction: 20 minutes per pad, to put it in form and put in the metal. With 1-2 people.
Muffler design
- Parts: steel pipe and insert with about 40 holes, 7 inches long, 6 inches on the inside, 1 inch from the base. With modular pipe fittings.

Getting ready to bale , Baler adjustment, Engaging the baler
- We are not using LifeTrac because all of the wheel control valves are broken. Will get new one, but a new delay.
- Good news: Saw mill blade ordered, 1000 dollars.
- We need a Farmer!
- Baler Discussion
  - Big wheel and a fly wheel - we can replace it by hydraulics.
  - Auger, the pick up mechanism, and String tie mechanism.
- Straw quality assessment - dry, crispy,
- First bale!, Baling shakedown in progress

Baling day 1 summary
- 3 bales/minute, 180/hour, about 1500/day. 1 bale is sold for 3 dollars = about 5000 dollars per day.

10/03/11

OSE Certification
- Power Cube Producer - Tom Griffin from Texas, 1st replication, aiming for OSE Certification.
  - OSE provides Marketing assistance, publicize in our networks
  - He is contributing back to the community.
- OSE License relates to the OSE Specifications, features the OSE products embody.
- Certified people will comment and describe how their product meets each point of the OSE Specification. It will be transparent for the user if he gets a product from somebody else or us, so he know exactly what he is getting, particularly on a life-time design and modularity aspects of our equipment. The world benefits by knowing what they are getting into, and the certified producer benefits by the having access to our marketing channels.
- OSE License is for building a distributing economics. It is not for us building an empire, but for us distributing as much productive power to everybody out there as possible.
  - To support the open sourcing of civilization, the producers would contribute a reasonable amount back to the OSE project, like 3%, we will have to decide on that, we don't want to overtax them, but a little kickback to the project to continue further open source development.
  - We will custom design these agreements, it will on a case by case basis.
- With this OSE distributive economics license we focus on the fact that whoever is a producer is documenting the work completely, meaning the bills of materials and designs and they will pass our mark only when they are truly bringing about distributive economics for the whole world to benefit with. And that's a beautiful package that nobody can disagree with, that can get a lot of public support on many fronts.
- That's about the OSE License, we will keep developing it, as people get on line to produce it we hope to have people actually funding the project through donations back to the commons in terms of developing further open source goods.

Message to Jason Fields from the Urban Farming Guys
- Ian produced 7 minutes video for the entire procedure to build the frame of the LifeTrac.
- Start writing the script and preparing your Kickstarter materials asap.
- Create a simple jig and I am hoping that even you guys will complete the whole tractor frame within hours.

Dear True Fans and Supporters - Update
- about 42 days of construction. Foundation will be poured tomorrow. Excavation is done. Right now we are doing haying for the hay bales.
- Next week we will be full-time producing and laying CEB Bricks. SHonda is getting the CEB up. We go now to Sweiger to work on the Sawmill, hay cutter and pulverizers.
- Kauffman Foundation may would have 103,000 dollars for us, but I would like to see this money across the table, there are a lot of technical difficulties there.
- If we can show the straw bales and cut lumber from our own tree, that would be beautiful. We are finishing the Sawmill, we didn't get the blade till tonight, we will try to secure that.
- By the end of this week we aim to have 3 Tractors with 6 Power Cubes so we can start construction.
- Yoonseo Kang is coming this Thursday. And Ted Mosher anytime this week.
- Revenue streams from non-profit, real production, investors, loans.

Lifetrac Tracks design and jig comments - 3 links in-between, quality control - make sure the links are touching against the rebar.
Filling Tractor 2 with hydraulic fluid

10/02/11

Hay conditioner 101 - International 1086 Tractor - about 130HP, Hesston hay conditioner (a rotary cutter), 1 steel and 1 rubber roll. In Action.

1500 bales to be pressed - Meet the hay conditioner
Beginning to clear vegetation, Starting the dozing
Secondary cylinder mounting
Brianna explains 1) Squaring CEB Drawer, 2) Frame Jig, 3) Fitting Cylinder, 4) Frame and Roller Guide Holes, 5) Frame Jig Turning, 6) Frame Welding, 7) Making Bolts, 8) Shims Squaring Drawer, 9) Squaring Hyd Cylinder, 10) Squaring Hyd Cylinder, 11) Torching Sensor Holes.
Loading the Soil Pulverizer

10/01/11

9/30/11

Column foundation forms - a laser level would be useful that sense out an array of lines across the whole field so that we don't have to mess with the water level.