The Darth Vader Chute in its last hour. Modifications had been welded on over the years making this look somewhat like the Darth Vader helmet.

When I was invited to check out the “Darth Vader Chute,” I wasn’t sure what to expect.

A routine site visit quickly turned into a real adventure when I found myself in the maintenance manager’s pickup, heading for the quarry. Worried about the prospects of another shutdown, he griped about all the things wrong with this junction. I’d been trying to visit with him for about five months, and finally, on this day, I got my chance to listen and learn. (more…)

It was 50 years ago when I first experienced what happens when machinery is not well designed or properly maintained.  My father was master mechanic at a plywood mill and caught his finger in a V-belt drive on a gearbox.  Although he was hurt and bleeding, he just wrapped a rag from his back pocket around his hand and I saw him drive himself to the local doctor in our small town.  But that image of his hand in a blood soaked rag burned deeply into my consciousness.  I still carry that moment with me to every project I work on, always asking myself, “What would it be like if this problem could be fixed?” (more…)