Nice File

My job is in 'Quality'. As part of my job I am attempting to find all the paperwork, manuals, drawing, purchase orders, specifications, etcetera etcetera for various pieces of equipment in the plant. In my previous job, where it was known to be part of the process that paperwork was important, this was not a problem. In fact, it was more of a problem to weed out unnecessary paperwork like random emails people would supply me with that would be correspondence of inanity: "Did you get the tank?" "Yeah, we got it. Thanks." "Good, we were pleased to provide you with a tank! Do you like your tank?" "Yes, it is shiny." "Good! We liked making it for you!"

Here, lack of any documentation is a problem. In some ways, this is understandable. The plant is fifty years old and no one ever thought saving things like drawings was important. A bigger problem is that no one ever thought LABELING things like drawings was important, so I get handed a file of 20 drawings that may or may not apply to my current project.

I sorted the twenty drawings into six different pieces of equipment by the serial numbers the manufacturer put on the drawings. Where those serial numbers might be on the equipment? No freaking clue.

But my favorite drawing? Is the one some engineer made on a piece of corrugated cardboard ripped off a box. Which he dutifully filed in the random drawing file folder. I can't throw it away now!