We are having a meeting to elect a new chair of automotive. I will not be running.
I will be proposing a new rule for the area - the re-institution of automotive 101 as an online class to gain access to the area, with the potential of requiring passing it once a year to maintain access.
We have historically had low attendence for automotive meetings, and even fewer volunteers have been found to help upkeep the area. If a chair cannot be found, and if less than 5 people attend ongoing meetings, the process to dissolve the committee will be started. Rules and Policies - Dallas Makerspace
Was brought to my attention the above seems a bitā¦ harsh. We are not actively planning to do anything with automotive, but I wanted to be sure that we all understand that committees cannot exist without everyoneās support.
I didnāt think to include anything for the lift - weāve tended to believe itās important for members to have the experience of lifting their own cars. We could certainly include some of the pre-reqs, but not sure I would personally be comfortable letting people loose with just online training on the lift.
I guess I thought initial orientation/training for folks would be in person in a small group. Thereās value in being shown around a committee (any committee) and have someone say āHereās the [this], and this is where we keep the [those things], and spills are cleaned up with [this stuff over here]. Lookā¦a full garbage containerā¦letās take it out to the dumpster and empty it! And always leave this place at least as neat and clean and organized as you found it. Any questions?ā
Hard to do all that just with an online whateverā¦
Thereās some interesting dynamics when it comes to things like this. I personally donāt want to gatekeep areas, but we also have folks violating rules, being unsafe, or abusing tools because they just donāt know any better. So, itās an interesting setup to make sure they understand our (existing user) expectations, while also allowing them access to learn and grow.
I will always expect breakages, messes, etc to happen - weāre all only human and itās true that some may just feel entitled. But I donāt want to keep people away, nor punish honest mistakes, just because there might be a jerk in there somewhere.
The online quick-quiz seems like an easy way to get people to understand the expectations of them, while laying groundwork for more personal instruction. Iām completely open to more ideas as well - from nothing to locking up the ācool toysā to signage, etc.
since this is clearly not a problem thatās isolated to the auto bays, Iād suggest starting earlier. the tours and language in them should be looked at, trying to avoid selling the space as a service and more like a shared space where members are needed to clean up.
the new member orientation should be started back up, focusing on getting members to give back as much as they take from the space. going to use the lasers to stock your Etsy shop? learn to clean and maintain them. etc.
consider that we have ~26 committees. if each one had an annual 101 class that had to be taken to āuse the areaā everyone would have to take 1 of those classes every 2 weeks to maintain full use of the space. thatās an extreme case, but you get the idea. itās more of a hassle than a benefit.
punishment for using an area without the 101 class?
we hardly punish members for being shitty as it is, does the board really want to have to field bans and temp bans because someone kept using the air tools to fill their tires and didnāt bother to take the 101? or because they left 10mm sockets attached to the lift?
those pesky crescent wrenches really need training required signs all over them. could be dangerous.
Overlooking the snark, the guides for tour-guides actually does have this language in it. Including some āgotchasā for different areas.
I also was performing the new member orientations, but unfortunately stopped due to lack of participation, and a bit of burnout on my part (being at the space every Saturday 8am-5pm got old fast). I would be happy to help others get into doing some orientations.
As someone whoās spends a decent amount of time in the area, hereās what I think we need to become a really successful and useable committee:
A core group of invested and knowledgeable volunteers who help maintain the tools, teach and mentor new folks, enforce the rules, and communicate issues
A culture among all users of automotive where people understand what the rules, expectations, and standards are, and are willing to contribute to the cleanliness of the area
Ideally people would be fine with occasionally cleaning up someone elseās mess, dumping old oil etc, because it wouldnāt happen all the time
Additionally weād want to make it as easy as possible for people to clean up after themselves and put things back where they belong by being organized and well-stocked
Someone(s) to order needed tools and repair parts
Someone(s) to provide lift trainings and area orientations
A vibrant community of folks willing to help out with knowledge and with labor when people get over their heads or repairs get out of hand
I think we already have this! Maybe we could even teach some classes? (Stretch goal).
Current proposed plan for the woodshop is to give members a 30 day grace period to take the test and then tool privileges will be automatically revoked until the members take the test. No punishment needed, as the tools themselves automatically lock out. This is somewhat unique to woodshop though. Much harder to enforce in glass works for example.
Also- while your point about every 2weeks is acknowledged, how many members actually use every area in the space? I imagine most members use less than 5, a few less than 10, and very few all 26.
Last point- small crimes punishment, how do. Itās a good question. Right now anyone I catch or who gets reported to me for small crimes I have a discussion with. Almost all of them have been receptive, paid up for their mistake as needed, and understood their mistake. I think being called out by āauthorityā has been enough for many of these members to fix up their actions. Some of them Iāve remanded to woodshop basics classes. One Iāve passed onto the board with a suggestion to suspend until the members gets in contact. Two or three Iāve given area suspensions for repeat problems after having conversations with them.
All of the above does require an active committee management and regular members to report infractions to the management. Woodshop is lucky to have trusted individuals watching the shop almost 24/7. Most other committees are probably not so lucky.
If you have suggestions on other ways to treat misdemeanors, I think weāre all ears.
while I somewhat agree, I believe this is related to automotive, since I donāt think each committee should be making these 101 classes to allow someone to be in an area
Why not? The space is full of tools that unknowing users could hurt themselves or others on. Even if members do know, every area has rules and quirks that users should know. How do you accomplish this without an area specific training?
thatās why I took them out of glassworks as much as possible.
I did say it was an extreme.
I think you are correct that conversations need to be had, and they work. but I donāt believe that making EVERYONE in the area have to deal with the retesting issue is the solution for the few people who canāt clean up after themselves, or didnāt report a tool.
I donāt have other solutions to this issue. I know itās not anger passive aggressive posts filling the talk forums.
find the people being problems, try to talk to them and ask them to try to do better, but let the people who arent being issues go about their business without hassling them āpapers pleaseā style.
how do you accomplish this enforcement in auto? red velvet rope that unlocks when you badge in? do you have a person who can ask you if you are trained whenever they want? what does this 101 enforcement look like for stuff in the auto area that isnāt the lift? we have that RFID interlocked, but how do you do that with the hand tools etc?
I fear youāre falling into the policy making trap of designing for the least capable user: If you posted a sign that says training required before using this area, most members follow through. While that only catches 80-90% of the members, it does reduce the issue load overall. And if done correctly, those members themselves become enforcers. Trying to design a solution that perfectly red-ropes all users is not possible unless you lockout tools; as you pointed out, a useless endeavor. But taking steps to reduce damage does help overall.