[Themaintainers] Utility workers come to the forefront

Thu Apr 2 10:53:22 EDT 2020

Thanks Ellen! Some might be interested in what Right to Repair campaigners
are doing related to this.

Right to Repair -- which was a topic at Maintainers III -- has been working
to both eliminate the barriers to repair to repairing ventilators,
pressuring manufacturers to provide access to repair tools (service
software, manuals, etc), and using this example as a way to highlight how
the system this crisis inherited is much more fragile that it needs to be
because manufacturers have tried to monopolize repair to seek rents or
drive a faster rate of replacement.

https://www.engadget.com/2020-03-19-medical-equipment-open-repair-call.html

Meanwhile, iFixit has compiled 150 some ventilator service manuals to help
technicians more easily service the vents that are coming in and out.

https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Ventilator

If you have access to ventilator manuals or know anyone in the biomedical
engineering or clinical engineering field, we are trying to build some
support for these efforts.

On Thu, Apr 2, 2020 at 10:40 AM E.F. Spero <efs8 at mit.edu> wrote:

> Many of you in the US have probably already seen this - but nevertheless I
> pass it along
> "A Ventilator Stockpile, With One Hitch: Thousands Do Not Work: While
> President Trump has assured states that thousands of ventilators remain at
> the ready, thousands more are in storage, unmaintained or otherwise
> unusable."
>
> https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/01/us/politics/coronavirus-ventilators.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_NN_p_20200402&instance_id=17271&nl=morning-briefing&regi_id=68011755&section=topNews&segment_id=23606&te=1&user_id=27f84bd98615861dacf04227a3e2567c
>
>
> ---
> Ellan F. Spero, Ph.D.
>
> Lecturer
> Massachusetts Institute of Technology
> efs8 at mit.edu
>
> Co-Founder and Chief Curriculum Officer
> Station1
> ellan at station1.org
> www.Station1.org
>
> Twitter (@ellanfei) <https://twitter.com/ellanfei> LinkedIn
> <https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellan-spero-b1126a18/> Skype: efspero
> (she, her, hers)
> <https://www.linkedin.com/company/27155006/>
>
>
>
>
>
> Il giorno mer 1 apr 2020 alle ore 13:52 Ishi Crew <mediaentropy at gmail.com>
> ha scritto:
>
>> My area is on semi-lockdown.    I do sort of wonder what would happen if
>> all electricity is lost, or there are major problems with water
>> infrastructure--pipes start bursting, or even   the local youth and drug
>> addicts get feeling so deprived , cooped up and  angry we get alot of
>> violent crime.
>>
>> (I live in an apt.---i worry about the maintenance people ---people who
>> clean and maintain this place, plant the beautiful flowers, empty the
>> dumpster, deal with the contiual problems with the plumbing system---its an
>> old building, so pipes fail.) Not to mention utlity crews who have to deal
>> with power lines every time a tree falls down. Most people in this area are
>> very considerate so there is not much to clean, but some are careless or
>> inconsiderate--leave their trash everywhere or worse.).
>>
>>
>> I could sort of see some sort of 'Darwinian evolution' in which different
>> classes of workers become different species.  You have the tech workers,
>> utility workers, people who empty the dumpsters, the landscapers, the
>> gorcery workers, police , fire dept etc all of whom self-segregate , create
>> ther own self-sufficient communites (in part) and become different species.
>>
>> On Wed, Apr 1, 2020 at 12:23 PM Piper Wilder <
>> piper.wilder at 60hertzenergy.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Thanks for sharing this, Jasmine.
>>>
>>> My software company, 60Hertz <http://www.60hertzenergy.com>  provides
>>> maintenance software for very remote utility workers who look after
>>> microgrids in villages, commercial/industrial sites, telecomm, mines  etc.
>>> We hadn’t considered the role of COVID-isolated, utility workers, but our
>>> platform could be well-suited to help. Thank you again for sharing this
>>> article.
>>>
>>> Is anyone on this listserve looking at the role of isolated maintenance
>>> workers and mental health? This is a strong thesis for 60Hertz and shapes
>>> our work; we would like to find likeminded researchers or colleagues with
>>> whom to engage on the topic.
>>>
>>> Best regards,
>>> Piper
>>>
>>> On Apr 1, 2020, at 9:34 AM, Jasmine McNealy <jmcnealy at ufl.edu> wrote:
>>>
>>> Hello All,
>>>
>>> Delurking to alert you to this really important NBCNews.com story
>>> <https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1173171> on utility workers -
>>> particularly electrical grid workers – during the pandemic. This part is
>>> particularly compelling
>>>
>>> “Some utilities have started to lay in beds, ready-to-eat meals, all of
>>> those kinds of things so their workers can stay on site and not have to mix
>>> in society,” Robb said. “Utilities in other parts of the country that
>>> aren’t quite at that level of severity are getting prepped for moving into
>>> that mode right now.” ~https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1173171
>>>
>>>
>>> Take care,
>>>
>>>
>>> Jasmine McNealy, JD, Ph.D
>>> Associate Professor | University of Florida, College of Journalism
>>> and Communications
>>> Associate Director | Marion B. Brechner First Amendment Project
>>>
>>> Faculty Associate | Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society
>>> Chair | ICA Communication Law & Policy Division
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Themaintainers mailing list
>>> Themaintainers at lists.stevens.edu
>>> https://lists.stevens.edu/mailman/listinfo/themaintainers
>>>
>>>
>>> Piper Foster Wilder | Founder/ CEO | 1300 W 7th #406 | Anchorage AK |
>>> 99501 | 970-355-9221
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
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>>> https://lists.stevens.edu/mailman/listinfo/themaintainers
>>>
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-- 
Nathan Proctor
Director, U.S. PIRG Campaign for the Right to Repair
(203) 522-3860
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