Practicalities on a hempcrete build - The Hempcrete Topic: Designing and Building with Hemp-lime - page 431

The remaining workers can be divided by their role into four teams:
The mixing team. This usually consists of two people, assigned to operate the mixer and
supply the ferrying team with Gorilla Tubs of hempcrete. At least one of these needs to be
a person skilled in mixing hempcrete (see Chapter 15 ). Extra people are needed from time
to time to supply materials to the mixer, and it is not uncommon to swap people on and off
the mixer to give them a break, as this can be hot and unpleasant work.
The ferrying team. This comprises a number of people employed in ferrying tubs of
hempcrete from the mixer to where it is needed by the placing team. On smaller builds,
where smaller amounts of hempcrete are being mixed at one time, this role might be carried
out, as required, by members of the placing team.
On larger builds this work is usually carried out by the unskilled members of the team. This
is the main lifting and carrying work, so people on the ferrying team need to be strong;
that said, hempcrete is a lot lighter than freshly mixed plaster, mortar or concrete, and is
certainly not heavy enough to make it worth moving in a wheelbarrow.
The placing team (also known as the 'tamping team' or 'tampers'). This team does the
work of actually placing the hempcrete mix into the shuttering, and ensuring it is evenly
distributed. It is essential that at least one person on this team is skilled in the placing
of hempcrete, and it should really include one skilled person for every three unskilled or
semi-skilled people. This enables the skilled one to effectively supervise the work of the
other three, and to be responsible for maintaining a consistent quality of work.