diary

CONTENTS
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THE TEAM ... 3
DAY ONE ... 4
DAY TWO ... 7
DAY THREE ... 8
DAY FOUR ... 11
DAY FIVE ... 12
SKETCHUP MODEL ... 14
MODEL COSTS ... 16
DAY SIX ... 19
DAY SEVEN ... 20
GALLERY ... 22-27
FINAL THOUGHTS ... 28
2

THE TEAM
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Our first task was to choose a group. This was a great opportunity to work with people in our class
who we felt we could work well with, but also people who we had not worked with before. The first
thing we did was create a Facebook chat group, so we were able to contact each other.
SAM BRITTAIN HARRY SILCOCK KIRSTY HOWARTH
ABI BAINES
ROBERTO ALICO
3

DAY ONE
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In our first meeting we wanted to come up with a simple plan that would not only
create a beautiful model, but a process that would challenge us. Our initial idea
was to use cardboard and foam board; however, it was very clear this was an easy
option and we should think of another method. Kirsty, who had already used the
laser printing facilities at university, advised this would be a good idea, she was
happy with how her previous model had turned out and recommended this is the
road we took.
We all agreed this would be a great idea as it would take most of us outside our
comfort zone, we knew it would be a challenge, but we looked forward to
starting. The same day, we went to the laser printing desk, booked a date and
began prepping the files we needed.
Kirsty was happy to take the lead and put together multiple files which would
build up contour lines, to show different levels and gradients in our site. The
whole team really appreciate the efforts of Kirsty at this point, she worked
extremely hard researching different sources of data she could use for the
contour’s. Kirsty used Google Maps, Digimaps and other data sources available on
the internet.
This process was certainly trial and error, learning that our idea to use Photoshop
wouldn’t be sufficient, as the lines are built up of pixels. We learned our files
would need to be made on AutoCAD or Illustrator, thanks to a bit of patience and
perseverance Kirsty was able to create enough files to take into our laser printing
session.
Our decision to use the laser printers was certainly starting to test us at this
point, but we were all confident we would be able to make it work, creating a
beautiful model in the process.
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6

DAY TWO
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Now that our files were ready, the day had come for our first session in the laser
printing lab. On 14th February, Kirsty and Harry attended the session to ensure
everything was going to plan. Being valentine’s day, I’m sure it was very
romantic, but on the serious side, the whole team would like to thank them for
giving us their time to oversee the session.
Because our experience with this method was limited it was unavertable snags
would happen; however, both Harry and Kirsty soldiered on and we had printed
our base and a few layers for our contours. The problems were, some of our
layers seeped outside of the cutting zone, we were not aware this would be an
issue; however, it did mean Harry and Kirsty had to trim a lot of information,
which did take some time. But they were able to achieve a lot more than we
initially thought and they should be proud of their achievements on this occasion.
Having completed nearly all our model, we found a locker in the university to
store what we had done, because of the size, we were not able to take it home.
Having completed what, we thought to be the hardest part at such an early stage,
we were now ready to start thinking about buildings and vegetation.
Whilst the laser cutting process was happening; Abi, who took charge of
‘greenery’ went into the woods and gathered some raw material to construct tiny
trees. She also found some wire and moulded them into trees also. She found
some acrylic sheets which she had used previously for water, as she thought this
would be a great effect for the canal.
It was very clear we had the right person for the job, Abi created some wonderful
trees, which looked shop bought. This is a great example of where we ensured
the right people were doing the right jobs in our team. We would like to thank Abi
for her hard work and can’t wait to see what they look like on our model!
7

DAY THREE
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Things were looking good, when we were all at university, we decided to go take
a look at the layers we were able to print. It became clear very quickly after
looking at another team’s model, the scale was slightly out. Our concern was ours
was incorrect and not theirs, so we gathered together as a team and began
working out what had happened.
After looking at a scaled Digimap, compared to what we had printed, we all
decided what we had printed was not to scale. As a team we tried very hard to
ensure Kirsty and Harry did not feel responsible, things like this were always
going to happen and it was important they knew no one was to blame for what
happened.
Unexpectedly, we all decided to stay after university to try and fix the issue. We
worked very well as a team to try and diagnose what had happened and edit the
files to ensure they were correct. Having spoken with the laser printing team, we
worked out it was a scale issue and how we could fix it. The fact everyone was
prepared to stay showed great teamwork and great care for what we were doing.
Using the information Kirsty had previously created, Roberto lead us in amending
the documents in AutoCAD, ensuring they were correct for our next printing
session. Having experience in engineering, Rob is more familiar with AutoCAD
then most of us, so his help at this point was much appreciated.
It is important for Kirsty to remember the information she had previously
collected was essential and without it, our job would have been much harder.
Naturally we knew she felt responsible for the issues we had, but as a team we
are so proud of the work she did for us, and we hope she remembers without her
groundwork the job would have taken much longer! We booked another session
with the laser printing office and looked forward to our second attempt.
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DAY FOUR
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It was now time to visit the laser printing workshop with edited files, we hoped
would be correct. We realised very quickly that we had made the same mistake
again, but after having a conversation with each other we decided to quickly edit
them again to ensure we could get some layers printed. After yet another evening
at university, we were getting closer to having completed layers. Again, this
showed amazing teamwork, as we were working hard for one another to ensure
the model’s progress was on track.
After the first layer had been completed, it was the moment of truth. Luckily,
we were confident this time we had the correct scale and moving forward were
poised to print the rest of the layers. After the whole team spending a gruelling
number of hours in the laser printing room, we now had the layers we needed.
We were not able to print all the layers in this session, but we did go back the
next day to get the rest completed.
We knew from the start it was not going to be easy using a method we had not
used before, but we are all very happy with the quality of the model and we are
now very excited to putting together buildings and adding the greenery.
We reflected on our experience so far, and in a weird way the up’s and downs
were a positive part of our journey. It tested us as a team and challenged our
patience, rarely do things go exactly how you think they will go, so this was all
constructive experience for us, both dealing with problems and using the laser
printing facilities.
Due to bad weather and because I feel we deserved it, we decided to take a few
days away from the model to clear our heads before finishing it. In the
meantime, Abi sourced some foam board and a craft knife from Hobbycraft and
Roberto brought in a mini projector for an idea we had to present our model!
11

DAY FIVE
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After a break from our model, it was now time to begin putting the buildings
together. We decided to create buildings that were inside our A1 area, as it
remains the focus on that space. We used foam board and got the building heights
from google maps then built up layers of board in the shape of the building taken
from Digimaps.
At this stage our model was really starting to come to shape and we were
starting to see some rewards from our hard work. At this stage it is important to
realise we created a cut out for the space which in the future we would need to
insert our own personal model. Because of how we decided to create our model,
it did create a bit of a headache when it came to build up the layers; however, like
previous occasions we grouped together and worked as a team to ensure the
jigsaw pieces were in the correct place.
As a team we needed to start thinking about how we wanted to present our
model, not only is it important to show buildings and green space, we wanted to
take it further and show sounds, cars and people. Building on an idea we had
early on in the process we concluded it would be a great idea to project
downwards onto our model an animation, which would bring our model to live.
Our idea would include moving cars, place shadows, birds and people. This would
not be as easy as we thought, but because we had this idea early on, it gave us
time to go away and have a think about how we would achieve it.
We also all agreed it would be a great idea to create a document, showing what
we had done, problems we had, pictures and how we each believed the process
went. This was the start of our diary, an idea we were all please with as it shows
that we did work well as a team.
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14

SKETCHUP MODEL
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As we felt sufficient progress had been made on our physical, we discussed the
idea of having a virtual model to support what we had created. As we all had the
same site location we thought we would help each other out in the long run and
utilise skills within our team to create this. Roberto, who already had a high level
of knowledge of Sketchup took responsibility for this.
Because of unexpected hitches we had along the way we were not able to utilise
the model in the way we wanted to do, our original plan was to create a virtual
reality walk through. Whilst this did not happen on this occasion, I still
acknowledge it was a great idea and moving forward I’m sure we can do this in
another module.
The quality of the Sketchup model is fantastic and the whole team were
extremely thankful for Roberto and the hard work he had put in. Whilst at this
stage, it’s about sketches to help generate ideas members of the team have
found it useful to play around with the Sketchup model prior to that, to see if
things work. Abi, for example, wanted to dig out the area under the roundabout
but because it’s a large scale change it would have been very difficult to draw;
therefore, having the Sketchup model was extremely useful to her at this stage.
To create the model, which is on a 1:1 scale Roberto gathered information from
Digimaps, Google maps and his own knowledge of the site having walked around
it. A great amount of detail was used to create a bespoke Belmont factory, which
is a fantastic addition. Roberto has even added in a site boundary, meaning when
it comes to our own model, we can simply turn off the layers we done require.
The model is a great addition to a greater bundle our team plan to put together,
again, this demonstrates great team spirit but more importantly using the skills
we have in the team to our advantage. On behalf of the whole team, thank you
Roberto, for your hard work.
15

MODEL COSTS
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Being responsible for different aspects of the model meant we did need to spend
money to ensure we were creating the model we could. We did however try to
save as much money as possible, by using our wood allowance in the laser
printing room for example. Abi also did a create job at creating trees out of
materials she already had mixed with vegetation she found in the woods; a very
creative and effective solution as these can be expensive!
We all decided from the start that costs should be split, even if it was for train
journeys if the sole reason was to focus on the model. We did not want people to
feel out of pocket as this can disturb team spirit and we did not want this to
happen. Please see below the costs we had for the model and who was
responsible for purchasing the item. This information will also be used to help us
divide the total spend between us.
FOAM BOARD £6.40 ABI
GLUE GUN & GLUE £7.25 ABI
VEGETATION MOSS £4.20 ABI
GRASS SCATTER £3.00 ABI
1x TRAIN TICKET FROM CREWE £12.00 KIRSTY
WATER ACRYLIC £3.50 ABI
For those who did have to pay out for materials and travel costs, a huge thank you
from the whole team. We will ensure all funds are replenished, if anyone has paid
for anything which is not listed above; please let me know and it will be included.
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DAY SIX
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As the base of our model had now been completed, this was a huge milestone for
our team. After all the ups and downs we had trying to get to this stage, it was
a real sense of relief and excitement to now get back into our comfort zone and
add some much-needed decoration. We knew from the start we wanted to have
lots of greenery on our model, as we feel it would be not only look amazing, but
also help our model come to life.
Abi, from the start was going to take the lead at this stage, we knew this was a
great role for Abi as she enjoys being crafty and we knew we could trust her to
come up with some great ideas. Unfortunately, she did have to purchase a few
much-needed items that we knew would eventually be worth it. Of course, these
costs are shared with the whole team. Again, after our university day we stayed
behind to put everything together, because we were confident at this stage many
things happened as we wanted and not too much challenged us. We did however;
underestimate the number of trees that we needed, Abi was extremely creative
when making these and we all would like to thank her for doing so.
The end result after we had completed the greenery was very much as we
expected, probably a lot better! The green grass really helps bring out the white
buildings and helps the model have more of an experience, rather than all
being one colour. To get all locations for where the trees are, we had google
maps open and used the information to plot where to place trees and green
areas. This demonstrated at this stage great team work, whilst Abi took the lead,
we all got involved in helping her when we had to.
After it had been completed, we now had a few loose ends to tie up and then we
can say our model has been completed. At this stage the model is on track to be
completed by our deadline which is credit to everyone’s hard work.
19

DAY SEVEN
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An exciting idea we had very early on was using projection to really bring our
model to life. We wanted to use projection to add moving cars, people, planes,
weather changes and possibly display information about buildings on the model.
I feel along the way we have always been out of our comfort zone, so why stop
now! It really was going to be a huge challenge, but we were certain we could
make it work.
Our first challenge was did we actually have a projector? Surprisingly we had a
few options, our first was Sam has a contact who works in a school, who have
portable projectors, we also thought it may be possible to borrow one from the
university but thankfully Roberto has a mini projector at home, which was
incredibly light meaning we could try and hang it from the ceiling.
In our first session we wanted to make sure the template Sam would be working
on over the weekend would fit the model, we worked out that if we were able
to hang the projector about two meters above it would fit perfectly. Because we
were confident we had done this correctly Sam was happy to go away and put
together the animation.
The method Sam decided to go for was frame-by-frame animation using a
timeline feature in Photoshop. It was something Sam was aware of in Photoshop,
but he knew it was going to be a challenge. We feel that even the idea we had
was great, but the fact our idea could become a reality was starting to get really
exciting. Every aspect of our model so far has been perfection, and we hope this
is the cherry on the top of what is a huge achievement for every one of us.
We are all so excited to now work on the model on Tuesday 13th in the morning,
before showing our lecturer for our formative assessment. We hope everything
goes to plan and the model is enjoyed by our whole class.
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FINAL THOUGHTS
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Harry - Whilst working in the group i think we’ve had some positive experiences for example learning off each other’s strengths and developing on our
weaknesses. One of the crucial things that I’ve learnt about a group work is how important communication is and that if that aspect of the group isn’t
strong it’s going to be a very tough experience. However, in this group I feel we’ve communicated a good amount and we’ve being rewarded eventually
with a really impressive model. One of the hardest challenges we have had to overcome is scale and contours on AutoCAD and converting a Digimap to the
correct scale on the programme. Coupling that with the fact that not everyone in the group including myself isn’t comfortable on the laser cutters led to us
having to redo the final model 2 times, which was a testing experience. However, I believe it has made us stronger as a group, but I probably won’t use the
laser cutter for my own proposal as I am still not comfortable to do an entire model on that particular software yet. Overall, I have enjoyed working in the
group and I am thoroughly satisfied with the work we have created.
Abi - I have loved being a part of this team – learning to understand people’s perspective and their way of doing things and finding a balance. It’s been
great to understand others way of thinking and being able to compromise in decision making. We’ve had issues with AutoCAD and the laser cutting but as
this is something that is new to us all, it was trial and error, but we have come together to find a solution to create and improve the model. The best thing
about working in this team is everyone has creative ideas and is more than willing to put time and effort in to have something proud to put our names on!
Roberto - The team work shared in this module it was very interesting, everyone in the team had a different task which has been successfully
completed. All the members were very helpful each other and excellent team workers. This experience has been positive for everyone thanks to the
information and skills shared each other.
Kirsty – I have really enjoyed being part of this team, I’m happy with everyone’s contributions and I feel overall, we have worked really well together.
Whilst I have tried to help where I can, my main role was at the start with the laser printing, making sure the files were created. Whilst I did face a few
problems, I’m happy that we were able to come together as a team and resolve these issues.
Sam – What a fantastic team we had, everyone had a role, and everyone did their jobs without any issues. I feel we have created a stunning model with
some really innovative ideas to help bring the model to life. Being the final module for year one I feel it was really important to go out with a bang and
show each other how far we have come since September 2017. I feel what we have created really shows the progress we have all made. Whilst we did face
a few issues along the way, we were able to all group together an ensure these problems didn’t stay problems for long! Everyone has pulled their weight,
contributing and staying behind after university days, a huge thank you to everyone.
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FROM NOW ON, WE ARE WORKING AS INDIVIDUALS.
GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE.