7.00 AM

Although I don’t start work until 9:00, I like to get up early to run along the New Plymouth walkway. The views are outstanding, and it helps me clear my mind for the day ahead. After a quick 30-minute jog it’s time to go home and finish my morning routine. I would usually use this time to pack my lunch as well, but today we have a team lunch, so I can skip this step!

8.50 AM

After a short drive into the city, I arrive at work 10 minutes early. This extra time allows me to make a coffee in the office kitchen and get settled at my desk. Once I am ready, I always start my day by checking my calendar, emails, and Microsoft Teams notifications. This helps me prioritise my tasks and I am able to schedule any extra meetings/catchups with colleagues as needed.

9.30 AM

On Thursdays is our weekly project management catchup with our client. This meeting is held both in person and on Teams. My co-workers and I make our way into the meeting room and display the agenda on the big screen. This meeting is crucial for aligning on project milestones, addressing any issues, and ensuring that we are on track with our deliverables. Each team member provides updates on their respective areas, and we discuss any new developments or changes in project scope. It's a great chance to collaborate closely with the client and make sure everyone is on the same page.

10.30 AM

After my meeting, it is time to get started on what I need to complete for the day. As an intern with RCP, I have a range of weekly responsibilities, ongoing projects, and impromptu tasks to work on each day. My weekly responsibilities include documenting meeting minutes, conducting site walk through observations, logging Request for Information (RFIs), and many more. These activities help structure my week. Some examples of ongoing projects I have been working on include creating excel templates for my office branch, coordinating smaller aspects of a larger project between consultants, and drafting an architect scope document. These long-term projects encourage me to refine both my communication, and time management skills. Impromptu tasks are opportunities to assist my co-workers with their projects. This can be anything from invoice filing to creating a stakeholder engagement plan. This aspect of my job excites me the most, as I feel I am providing direct value to my team.

Today I am prioritising creating an alternate Microsoft Project programme for a project I am involved in which is currently in the Preliminary Design (PD) phase. Additionally, I am organising an appendix of closeout documentation required to receive a Code Compliance Certificate (CCC) for another project which is reaching the end of the construction phase. These tasks can be challenging, pushing me to learn, and develop my skills. However, if I ever get stuck an activity, I can ask the appropriate person if my office for assistance. RCP has a buddy system for their interns, which is a specific colleague allocated to guide their intern. My buddy has been extremely helpful in transitioning me into the office environment, organising a series of first month learning activities and offering support and guidance throughout my time at RCP.

12.00 PM

Every fortnight our office has a team lunch! At 12:00 we head to the local food trucks to each grab food from a cuisine of our liking. Team lunch is a great time to update each other on our projects, set goals for the next 2 weeks, and catchup on our personal lives. It's also an excellent opportunity to share ideas and brainstorm solutions in a more relaxed environment. 

1.00 PM

After lunch I gather my things from the office and head to site at Yarrow Stadium. I visit Yarrow once a week to complete an OpenSpace capture of the construction site. OpenSpace is a 360° camera technology that uses AI to link onsite captures to drawing plans. My role is to select the drawing plan of the floor I’m capturing, walk around site with the camera attached to my hard hat, and upload the recording.

Doing these captures pushes me to familiarise myself with advancing technology and the progression of AI benefits within construction. While wearing the camera can feel a bit unusual, recording the site weekly provides a unique opportunity to observe the project's evolution from a different perspective. The project is nearing completion now and has advanced so much over the short time I’ve been here. It is so cool to see how rapidly a project can progress in its final stages.

As well as completing captures with OpenSpace, I write and submit a couple of site observations each week. The purpose of this is to maintain a comprehensive record of health and safety conditions over the duration of a project. These observations help identify potential hazards, ensure compliance with safety regulations, and reward safe construction practises. Acknowledging safe practise is a crucial element of developing a culture of safety on site. This process has been incredibly beneficial for my learning, enhancing my attention to detail, improving my understanding of safety standards and building codes, and providing me with practical experience of navigating a construction site.

2.30 PM

Now it is time to drive back to the office to finish off my day. The drive itself is a nice transition, allowing me to reflect on the site visit and mentally prepare for the tasks ahead. I spend the next two and a half hours completing my prioritised tasks I mentioned earlier. I enjoy having the opportunity to break up my day by going to site. The change in scenery is refreshing and now I feel reenergised for my final hours of the day.

During this time, I was able to complete the appendix of closeout documentation and send it off to the main contractor. This document provides the contractor an extensive list of all the PS4s, PS3s, and As-builts required from the various sub-contractors to receive a CCC. This is important for the handover stage of the project to certify that building work carried out under a building consent, complies entirely with that building consent. This process involves coordinating with multiple teams and verifying that all the necessary information is gathered and correctly formatted, which can be quite detailed and time-consuming but ultimately rewarding when everything comes together smoothly.

5.00 PM

Done for the day! I always make sure to review my calendar for the following day so I can plan my morning accordingly, for example getting to the office early for a meeting or going straight to site. Then I pack up my desk and head home. When I get home, I make dinner and catchup with my flat mates. I like to spend my time after work exploring the New Plymouth scenery. Today I went to Back Beach to climb up Paritutu rock. Then its back home to get ready for bed and read for a little while before falling asleep after a huge day

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