Practicalities on a hempcrete build - The Hempcrete Topic: Designing and Building with Hemp-lime - page 435

Ferrying team
Scenario: As the day has gone on, the part of the shuttering that was being filled in the
morning (10 metres or so from the mixer) has been finished, and work has moved to a part
of the building that is 35 metres from where the hempcrete is being mixed.
Problem: The extra time taken to ferry the mix to the shuttering might slow the placing
team down, as they have already placed what they have got, and are waiting for more to ar-
rive. It might also slow the mixing team down, since they are waiting for the tubs to come
back so that they can empty the mixer and begin the next batch.
Solution: A couple of people from the placing team, or one from the mixing team and one
from the placing team, are reassigned to help the ferrying team temporarily before return-
ing to their duties.
Placing team
Scenario: After finishing a long 'clear' run of wall, the tampers reach a section where
there are several windows close together, making it a fiddly business to place the hemp-
crete in, under and around the more complicated frame structure without leaving unfilled
gaps.
Problem: Slowing of the rate of placing may result in a queue forming of tubs full of mix
sitting on the scaffolding waiting to be placed. This can slow the mixing team down, as
empty tubs don't get sent back with the ferrying team, so the mixer takes longer to empty.
In bad weather it can also allow tubs to get rained on, meaning that extra, and very much
unwanted, water is introduced into the mix. Likewise, in hot, dry weather, the hempcrete
in tubs risks drying out too much before it is placed.
Solution: Either a couple of people from the ferrying team can be assigned to work with
the placing team, or the ferrying team, instead of just dropping full tubs and picking up the
empties, can begin pouring the mix into the shuttering ahead of the tampers, emptying the
tubs to return to the mixer. In the second case, it's important that the placing team retains
responsibility for which sections of shuttering have been tamped, so that well-meaning fer-
rying people don't put a layer of loose mix over another loose layer, which hasn't yet been
tamped.