The contract was awarded to me in the month of February by a friend whom I met during my national diploma (ND) in 2018. (Lol. I called it a contract like it's one big job 🤣). This friend of mine lives here in Warri, Delta state, which is also his hometown. He had just rented a shop space in a quite popular plaza and he needed the electrical installation/services to be done. He remembered I gave him a call that I was posted to serve in his state when I initially arrived here, and he knows I studied electrical/electronic engineering in school.
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Arrival at the shop
So he reached out to me and he made his request known, and also asked about my availability. We finally met and he took me to the shop space for an inspection in which helped me to draft the quotation (i.e. list, quantity, and prices of the materials I'll be needing to carry out the installation.) The following day, I went along with him to get the materials for the job and the work began later that same day.
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Work done on the first day of the job
On the first day, I worked for about four (4) hours, and I was able to setup the mains supply board which also housed the change over switch, and then carry out the cable layouts from the mains supply to the wall socket fittings in the main shop space. The shop is divided into three. There's a main shop shop space (i.e. where the goods to be sold will be displayed), an office (i.e. where the management activities will be carried out), and thirdly, a store room (i.e. where the extra goods will be kept).
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On the second day of the job, which wasn't the following day, I arrived the site early because it was an holiday and I didn't have to report to my primary place of assignment (PPA) i.e. the school I teach. I was able to work for eight (8) hours that day. I completed the cable layouts for the lightnings of all the three spaces, and wall sockets for the office space and store room. I also completed the fittings mains switch, change over switch, the wall sockets and lights. The only thing left was to fix the light and the wall sockets fittings for the office space and store room, the light switches for all spaces, and to carry out the connections of all points together at the junction box. So I concluded within me that I would just rush down to finish up with that after school the following day.
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What was meant to be the conclusion of the job
On getting there the third day which was meant to be the final day to round up the job, my friend told me he had new plans for the shop. He said he didn't see the need for a POP (i.e. plaster of paris) ceiling before, but now he would like do one in order for the shop's aesthetic to look more appealing. I told him it is a good plan but that means I'll have to start the entire work almost afresh again, some extra materials will be needed (because what was initially planned was a surface wiring system, but now that the plan is changing, the wiring system also has to change), and also an extra service charge. He said he was fine with that, so I left that day without doing anything.
On my arrival back home, I reached out to a friend/colleague of mine Toheeb, who I met during my National diploma (ND) program in Electrical/Electronic Engineering. He his an expert when it comes to electrical installation and services. He taught me mostly all the real-life practicals experience I know about electrical installation. I got to know him during a practical class back then where he taught the group he headed, which I was a member, how to carry out electrical house service wiring, and our friendship grew from there. As fate will have it, we met again in the school I went to undergo my Higer national diploma (HND) program. Since then, I see him as a boss and a supervisor. He has been on site with me to assist and supervise with jobs I was contracted some couple of time. But it's quite unfortunate that I'm still yet to visit and assist him on his own contracted job. I'm still lokking forward to doing so some day.
So I reach out to him in order for him to guide me on how to carry out the installation now that it would be involving a POP ceiling which I haven't worked with before. He was prmopt to respond to me and he explained in details and listed all materials I'll be needing to me, and I was able to immediately draft out a new quotation in which I sent to my friend before the end of the following day. I sent it to him and asked him to call me whenever he has gotten the materials because I won't be chanced to go along with him because of school activities.
About two (2) days later, he reached out to me that he has gotten the materials, so I went to the site after school to resume the work. On that day, I firstly unlaid all the cables I've laid and clipped to the walls and decked ceiling, and also the light holders hanging on the decked ceiling. Then I laid the trunking where the cable for the wall sockets will be placed. I was able to work for just three (3) hours.
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The following day, it was a weekend, so I was there on time, and I was able to lay the cables for the wall socket into the trunking and and I also hanged the cables for the lighting points from their switches to their respective positions on the ceiling for all spaces.
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The electrical wiring setup for a POP ceiling/trunking system
The next time I visited the shop, the POP work had began, so I only carried out the connections of the junction box and then supervised the POP workmen to ensure that the cables for lighting were not trapped by the plastering and that they are released from their hanging positions to gently lay on the POP from within. This is because there could be a need for a repair or maintenance and if the cables aren't dropped from their hanging positions to move freely, it will be difficult to trace the particular cable that needs to be repair or replaced.
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Cutting process of the POP for the diameter of the recessed light
After about a week, the POP workmen were done with their job and it was time for me to carry on with my job. It was a week day so i didn't arrive there on time. When I got there that day, the only task I carried out was to make a diameter cut-out for the recessed light fitting. It was a very stressful and tiring task. I used a saw blade and my bare hands to make the cuttings, and it was quite difficult because the POP wasn't completely dried up.
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I and Samuel
The following day, I went with a friend Samuel, to finish up the work. What was remaining was basically the connections and fittings of the recessed light, the fittings of the office/store room light switches, and laying the cable that will bring in the supply from the generator to mains supply board, and that concluded the job. So we arrived there at about 3pm and in less than two (2) hours we were done.
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view of the completed job
I was glad the overall work came out nice and there were no difficulties faced. I also love the fact that I was still able to practice what is related to my field while serving as a a teacher. What I'm mostly grateful for is that the job got several compliments from other engineers that came to work also in the plaza and one of the engineers got my contact and reached out to me that he would love to have me on his team of workmen. I also got other jobs right there in the plaza as a result of the first job I did for my friend.
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