1Farmer, I have the same things happening to me. This goes back to what I said before, the fast dollar is what rules here. The MSO wants the job done now. Yes on paper there are quality standards and the good skilled tradesmen know and follow them. These standards are relevant to how far behind the job is, how many QC positions have been eliminated, and who is on the take. My company spliced a node in between 2 different companies over this last summer. I guarantee my splicing is good on its own, but these 2 other companies give my work almost a God like look. My problem with that is those other two companies got paid just like I did. So what do you do? I know that I will not hire any splicers from these other companies, but other than that there is nothing that can be done. Hell on the last 2 nodes the company wanted them done so fast they waived input bends. This came directly from the MSO. Quality cannot stand up to the pressure of sales, and getting new services to market.
>What happened to pride in your own work, as I drive down the hiway and see poles that I was on 15 years ago or more they still look pretty good considering the amount of time it has been. The linemen that I see building the systems of today just don't care what it looks like when they put up the cable or what it is going to look like in the future. When I see an amp station that I spliced in years ago and see what has been done to it by someone just collecting a paycheck, it just pisses me off. Maybe we shouldn't care, but it's hard to do when you've spent so much time figuring out how to build a device (work of art) and some bozo screws it up!
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>>1Farmer and sprdave have said a mouthful about the cable business. The fall from good quality work happened in the mid nineties when the "mom and pop" systems as well as every other system became just a property to sell. The investment types decided that it was time to sell, along with the MSO's trying to cluster their properties. The nineties up through last year has seen an unprecedented amout of construction and upgrades. The push to be done first and collect on the unGodly dollars per passing is what drove the specs down. Or I should say drove the amount of poor quality of work up. I have 16 years in the business and run into splicers with less than two years in the business. It used to be to break into splicing you first had to do your time on a line crew and learn how it it supposed to be done. Think about this, most of us are on 20 plus year old systems that were done right. Will these upgrades or rebuilds last as long? I doubt it.
>>How many of you have been QC'd by a cable company QC guy that did not know what he was looking at? I have seen that on every job I have been on for the last 10 years. There is a lot more to it, but these are some of the major reasons why quality is way down and hacks are allowed to make a living in our great business.
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Re:A hopefully inspiring, and perhaps indirectly related, thought for all in 2002!
Member #: 7709
Registered: 1996-2001
Posted:
43
Name:
Bill
Company:
InsideOut Communications
Occupation:
project manager
There is 1 reply to this message
Re:A hopefully inspiring, and perhaps indirectly related, thought for all in 2002!
1FARMER
2/4/2002 12:57:00 PM
