Saturday, January 31, 2015

New! And Improved?

After over two years of construction/retrofitting, we have new! classroom! buildings! Actually, the buildings are old, but they were completely gutted. They look much nicer, and are reportedly much safer. But there are issues...

Because Grit City is located in a (mostly) warm clime, these buildings are constructed with doors leading directly to the outside, rather than to an interior hallway. To protect expensive equipment inside, the doors are equipped with key-card locks. Once doors close, they can only be opened from the inside; one needs a key card to get in from the outside. Propping them open is impractical because they open onto public outdoor spaces. And, we have been assured, this "causes aesthetic damage to the doors."

The problems with late-arriving students are likely something you're all imagining, and you wouldn't be wrong. But then there's this:

"A report circulated this week that a faculty member was unable to exit a classroom due to a malfunctioning door lock.  The problem was unrelated to the lock; rather, the door in question was found to swell when in direct sunlight such that it wedged against the door frame.  Construction Management was notified of the condition and resolved it with the contractor... In the unlikely event that this problem recurs, turn the door handle and apply sufficient force to open the door."

I believe that I'll start bringing a portable battering ram to class.

It may cause some aesthetic damage.

7 comments:

Contingent Cassandra said...

Well, that, or forward the email to the local fire marshal (then again, I suspect the administration is already doing damage control with him/her). I hope you have windows which can be used as alternative exits in a pinch (and something to break them with).

Fie upon this quiet life! said...

FFS - that is ridiculous. Fire hazard, anyone? Lawsuit pending?

Anonymous said...

What a litigious culture we live in! The door was stuck but a bit of 'shoulder' would have resolved the immediate issue. The contractor, however, should have installed doors and frames with limited expansion (or contraction) potential. Not knowing the details of the situation, I will leave it at that.

Notorious Ph.D. said...

Details are that the faculty member and three students each tried getting out by brute force. Hence the battering ram.

No, no one's suing. But it does make me glad that I'm teaching in one of the "unimproved" classrooms.

Susan said...

Well I would be surprised if the contractor didn't come back to fix the doors... Odd things always happen at the end of a big project, and something doesn't work right. I am pretty sure the contract will require the contractor to fix this! But still it's kind of funny.

Historiann said...

HAHAHAhahahaha. Except for the potential of death by Triangle Shirtwaist Factory-style fire that CC and Fie point out.

Hmmmm.

Notorious Ph.D. said...

It'll never go down that way, H'ann: the windows don't open.