Me: Tom - What encouraged you to turn your digital experience into real space construction experience?
Tomôs : My introduction to construction happened slowly, almost by osmosis throughout my childhood, without the expectation of following in my father's footsteps. However when I was about 14, my father wrote a course for his company on how to use certain types of software which helped project managers with their job. The course included an introductory module on construction planning. He tested this training section using Project Commander on me and my younger brother, before he rolled it out with a national company. The course was completed from home over our half term holiday, [ see video clip below] and we theoretically built a small shed.
I think I sat my first CSCS exam at 16, for a summer of work on construction sites, then later when we moved to Highclere we built a small external living room where all the scheduling, purchasing and construction plans were written out on a piece of A4 paper! Eight years later we use various types of industry standard scheduling software in our day to day work.
I worked on my degree dividing my time between the lectures and training at Winchester University and my Dad's Newbury office. The result of this co-operation, was that Start 2 Finish Project Planning Ltd, Winchester University and the Mayor of Malmesbury worked on the rather magnificent Abbey together. The Start 2 Finish Matterport equipment was deployed for their use during the COVID period when access to the site was restricted, according to our analytics software, the resulting 3D model was very popular. Links to the 3D tour are still "live" on the Discover Malmesbury and Start 2 Finish websites. This opportunity allowed me to see how diverse and interesting his job was. When I graduated from Winchester University I worked with him on several projects and quickly came to the conclusion that I would like to join him on the cutting edge of the construction industry.
I have completed progress reports, assisted with scheduling, attended and contributed to, meetings to discuss workflow using new technologies; we have utilised the 3D camera & drone technology all in a bid to digitise various jobs for our clients. I am competent in the construction technologies that we use, but I did feel deficient in construction knowledge. The company has a good library but when Dad suggested further studies in construction with LSBU starting in October 2023, I was delighted. I feel privileged to be able to work alongside my Dad who is obviously respected by the clients who use his services.