Hokuryu Town, Hokkaido, Japan Interns 2024 Construction industry: Working together to remove dilapidated playground equipment by human power!

Friday, August 16, 2024

On Thursday, August 15, in the construction industry section, the aging playground equipment (slide) at a park in Wa Danchi was dismantled for civil engineering work by interns accepted by members of the Hokuryu Construction Industry Association and NPO Himawari.

Removing outdated playground equipment with the help of manpower

This time, the demolition work was done by hand using shovels and crowbars, assuming restoration work in areas where machinery could not be used due to disasters, etc. Heavy machinery was used in some cases.

（Kiyohiko Fujinobu, Managing Director, Hokko Construction Co.

When a disaster strikes, there are times when machinery cannot be used. In such cases, restoration work must be done by hand. This time, instead of relying on machines, the participants will have the opportunity to experience manual labor using shovels and other tools. In fact, removing earth and sand during a disaster is really hard work.

In civil engineering work, we always consider the situation around us as we work. We work while grasping and discerning the overall situation to determine how we can work efficiently and in a short period of time. Instantaneous judgment is extremely important. The workers are always thinking, and there is never a moment when they are idle," says Executive Director Fujinobu.

Mayor Yasuhiro Sasaki & Construction Division Manager Masahiro Kawada paid a visit of encouragement.

During the visit, Mayor Yasuhiro Sasaki and Masahiro Kawada, Manager of the Construction Division, paid a pep talk.

Dismantling process

1. digging up the base (concrete) at the root of the central pole that supports the slide

2. removal of the sliding plate (bottom plate) and removal of the base using a disk grinder (handled by a professional)

3. lifting and digging up with a wheel loader

4. excavation of concrete pedestal

1. Using a shovel to dig out the soil around it, and using the principle of leverage, a crowbar is clamped in the bottom of the concrete and moved around a little bit.
2. A shovel is used to remove soil from the surrounding area, but the concrete is unyielding.
3. I can't. I can't! I can't do it!" Don't give up until the end! Keep your wits about you! and words of encouragement!
4. The students are desperate to take on the challenge!
5. Professionals from the Hokuryu Town Construction Association give advice on how to use shovels and crowbars!
6. Little by little, patiently, it moved delicately as I dug up the soil around it!
7. Fit the crowbar into the bottom of the concreton, tilt it at an angle on one side, put gravel in the bottom, and raise the bottom one side at a time.
8. Working together, they lift the concrete with their arms and roll it sideways! Complete!

5. gravel brought in by wheel loader is embedded in the hole

6. Level the surface with a shovel.

7. dismantled parts are placed on a light truck and transported (handled by professionals)

8. wheel loader loading of excavated concrete (handled by professionals)

9. wheel loader to complete the ground preparation!

Time for a short break

I miss it..." "It's too low to ride..." "I remember this feeling!" I remember this feeling!

and the students enjoyed the sensation of a nostalgic moment in the past as they swayed on rusty iron bars and swings.

Impressions after the work

• It was very hard work, even though it was just digging. It might be easy if done by machine, but considering that it is sometimes done by hand in case of disasters and cost, I realized how hard the people on site had to work!
• I was feeling heat stroke. I thought it was amazing that people were working under this scorching sun.
  The current work is dismantling, but it is hard work both to build and to dismantle. I realized once again that it is only with the support of the people working on it that we are able to enjoy using it. It was a great learning experience.
• I did not usually think much about the fact that the playground equipment I used as a child is being installed and removed in this way, so I realized that it is indeed a very difficult task.
  I usually only hear the sounds of construction sites, so it was a good experience for me to realize the hard work that goes on inside.
  There were many things I did not know, even simple things such as how to use a shovel. I was really impressed when I learned that the work was being done using the principles of physics and that the craftsmen were able to do in 30 minutes what would take a lot of hard work if we did it ourselves.
• The hardest part was digging the hole. I realized through first-hand experience that it is not just about digging, but about understanding and grasping the condition of the concrete stones in which they are placed, and then working with the knowledge and wisdom to dig them out, to complete the work.

These are the students who gave us their honest feedback.

A momentary lapse of attention can lead to an accident, so civil engineering work is faced with the full force of one's body and mind!

With boundless love, gratitude and prayers for the construction work that the students experienced firsthand the hardships, difficulties and importance of the construction industry that they had never experienced before.

Youtube Video

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Hokuryu Town Portal

Notice of recruitment of interns for the town [Hokuryu Town HP].

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◇ Reporting and writing by Ikuko Terauchi (Photography and editorial assistance by Noboru Terauchi)