A sixteen man crew, eight working hours, four wheels, three support ropes, two lightbulbs, and one, installed horizontal cylinder for the new Pinhalense SRE-150 mechanical dryer.
There were moments of laughter, amidst others of waiting, measuring, and brainstorming, with reggaeton to fill the patient and often fraught silence, as the crew at Beneficio El Manzano worked into late Tuesday night, in order to install the first of many pieces for the new dryer.
Work began in the afternoon, with two freestanding base supports, and the two ton cylinder in the back of a truck, which needed to go from the latter, into and onto the former.
Using sawhorses to support long pieces of lumber, a makeshift bridge was assembled between the truck and foundation, and wheels were attached to both front and end of the dryer, which they then, rather then lifting, patiently pushed into its suspended position.
Hour by hour, the dryer edged nearer and nearer, until reaching it’s far end brace, where it was then hoisted with a jack, and clamped into position, leaving only the second base to be lifted and bolted into place. As the night set in, a truck was pulled near to cast light on the project, while other crew carried extension cords attached to sockets, and lightbulbs, which shone into the tight spaces where headlights could not reach.
Since the dryer had been suspended in place by sawhorses and lumber, it had to be hoisted again with a jack, allowing the lumber to be sawed in half and removed by hand, making for some tense minutes as the dryer held, suspended, supported only by the first base and a narrow, orange circular jack, which, once both foundations were secured in place, was released, allowing the dryer to rest in its now permanent home.
Ropes were removed, handshakes were extended, congratulations were said, and deep breaths again filled lungs as the day’s work was called and approved, and the feeling of deferred hunger suddenly emerged to everyone’s senses.
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