Continuing the discussion from New Automotive Rule for Major Work:
I’m kicking off this expansion thread. Ideas? 
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More automotive bays - assuming we get the expansion space - yes.
More lifts - no.
They’re handy, but the one we have is in the way a lot too.
And unless the rules have changed, an arbitrary weight limit ( well below the rated capability ) was selected. That limit makes the lift useless for me. So nope. Not in favor. ( revisit the limit and we can talk… )
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The expansion request includes 4- bays. The concept is next to each bay will be a work table. I would guess eventually a second lift will be obtained but it will be a scissor type so no lateral obstruction.
Tentative floor plan would have bays at an angle as you pull in making it easier to get in and out. There would also be dedicated Auto work tables and space for three engine stands for rebuilds.
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Requested floor plan …
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Tentative - if the basic new grant of real estate is 150% then we are Tentative! 
Appears that pronouncement is being retracted.
Note: Image already had Marlow’s initial on shirt.
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One of the key challenges of expansion will be determining what is equitable - resources consumed vs. number of members serviced. For instance, one additional auto bay would be about 250 square feet (I wouldn’t arm wrestle if you said it’s 200 sf, or 300 sf, vs. my hypothetical 250 sf). So we could allocate 250 sf to one auto bay, that will serve one member at a time, or we could double the size of 3D Fab and serve many members at one time.
I’m not saying either of those is a better answer than the other. The challenge is going to be that most committees can’t substantiate their space request with member usage data.
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Laser would like to be moved to an interior clean room, which is better for the machines.
If that happens, would our current area be useful to Automotive? For shelving, tool chests, and worktables perhaps? We’ve got power supplied to that wall and compressed air.
I would put before @Team_Laser that we leave it “make ready” for you (or any committee) by painting over the walls.
Just thinking out loud here.
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And we still wouldn’t know if the auto bays have 10% utilization or 90% utilization … hence the quandry.
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That’s a good idea. Are you willing to tabulate the data? That would help out.
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Is someone unloading a project for Woodshop considered Automotive activity?
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With the physical arrangement in our present location and the presumed similarity in the unit to the north, it’s entirely possible for Automotive to share space with open workshop. Lifts, shelves, toolboxes, and tables too heavy to move would be part of their hard boundary; a part of our open work areas otherwise populated by our easy-to-move work tables could temporarily be used by Automotive.
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Not by my definition.
If we can make it work in the new space (assuming we get it), then in my perfect world I would not use Automotive as the unloading bay. I think, unencumbered by fact, that would be safer for the automotive users.
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If it blocks the bay then they are using it.
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That is my point. A camera cannot determine utilization.
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Not the space that would be occupied by a vehicle, unless I’m missing something here. All I counted in my sf estimate was the footprint of a passenger car (not truck/SUV) with a 3’ clearance around each side. I didn’t include space for toolboxes, tables, etc.
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Might need to be split off to a new topic. A bit of background, lasers used to be inside the office area at the old location but it was extremely loud and sucked all the air conditioned air out in a matter of seconds. It was pretty bad. Cleaner would be nice for sure but I would be reluctant to put them in an office like area.
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A camera cannot determine usage, but could determine the upper limit. If the camera says it’s xx% usage and that includes unloading, then we know that automotive alone is less than that xx%.
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This is great information. I’ll start a private thread, invite Laser’s expansion team and we’ll take the conversation there.
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I plead ignorance to the specifics of the arrangements being plotted other than having seen a drawing conspicuously marked NOT TO SCALE a week plus ago thus it’s entirely possible that my idea is bunk.
But with the present open workshop adjacent to automotive, it’s conceivable to move a few tables and park a car outside of the automotive boundary in order to work on it. Once complete, remove the vehicle, clean up, move any displaced tables back, and it’s open workshop again.
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There’s also no small amount of money sunk into those roofing penetrations for the exhaust.
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