Implementing the project plan that out team developed earlier in the term was perhaps the most important aspect of the entire project. It was essential that the team met all deadlines in order to be able to complete the design before the end of the term. With the project now concluding, it is necessary to now analyze the effectiveness of our project implementation plan.

The objective of our team was to develop a vertical garden design that Ray-Cam would be able to use to manufacture these gardens for families and individuals in the community. From this objective, our team developed a project implementation plan in order to be able to complete the project within the UBC academic term. The plan consisted of designing individual aspects of the garden at separate stages with consultation from Ray-Cam. By completing the design in stages, our team was able to finalize specific details of the gardens with which we could then develop the design further. Our team met weekly to discuss design ideas as well as to change any previous design aspects based on feedback we received from Ray-Cam.

The final design will be delivered to Ray-Cam later this week. Once they receive it, they will be able to manufacture the gardens and distribute them throughout the community. Based on the objectives that were outlined by our team at the beginning of the term, the outcomes of the project should be looked at as a success.

Drawing of each component of the final design with proper dimensions.

As with any design process, there have been some successes and some challenges within the team-based project dynamic. One of the best attributes our team was able to exhibit over the course of the term was our ability to work effectively as a team. We divided the work load fairly amongst one another so that no one felt overwhelmed by the project and that everyone was able to manage their individual responsibilities well. It was because of the team’s ability to work well with one another that the project was able to be completed on schedule.

Perhaps the biggest challenge our team faced during the course of the project was being able to communicate our ideas to Ray-Cam. Ray-Cam is actively involved in dozens of initiatives within their community and thus the Home Grown Wall project was not their only priority. Our team learned that we needed to give Ray-Cam much more notice to schedule meetings so that they would be able to find a time within their schedule that would allow them to meet with us. We often only asked to schedule a meeting 3 to 5 days in advance which was often not enough notice. From this experience, our team learned how to conduct ourselves when interacting with a client on a project.

With a basic design decided upon, our team is now focused on creating a final design which we will then be able to give to Ray Cam. From this design, Ray Cam will have everything they need to be able to manufacture the vertical gardens and distribute them throughout their community. In order for the final design to be completed our team will need to finalize several key details about the project. These details were discussed in the previous blog post and are summarized with their completion dates below:

March 14^th: Design the base of the garden (Including possible wheels attached to the base)

March 21^st: Design the connections that will be used to fasten the different sections of the garden in place

March 17^th-21^st: Meet with Ray Cam to finalize the design parameters listed above

March 31^st–April 4^th: Have a final design completed as well as setup instructions so that Ray Cam will be able to easily assemble the gardens (i.e. Project Completion)

*Notice that all of these tasks are being completed with consultation from every team member. As a result, no one person is in charge of completing any aspect of the design individually.

Up until this point, our team has visited the Ray Cam Community Centre twice. The first visit was to get an introduction to the project by being able to see firsthand what the vertical gardens would be used for. We saw the Food Wall Demonstration, a large scale vertical garden that our current project was created from. We were able to see some of the community that the gardens would be distributed in and some of the design parameters that would need to be considered as a result. From this site visit, we were able to begin the brainstorming stage of the project.

Once we created several different design options, we visited with Ray Cam again to get their input on our preliminary designs and to decide upon one design that we would move forward with. This meeting is what lead to the trapezoid design being picked as our final option. We are now currently working on some of the details of the design in the hopes of having the project be completed in the next couple of weeks.

The basic grid design and shape of the vertical garden.

Since our team’s involvement in the project will be concluding in the coming weeks, it is necessary to begin reflecting upon the success of our team and the effectiveness we had on the project. Our original goal was to complete a final design of the vertical garden that Ray Cam could use to manufacture and distribute to the community. If we are able to accomplish this task then the project as a whole would have to be looked at as a success. We are on pace to meeting this goal but there is still plenty of work that needs to be done. If our team continues to communicate well and work hard on the design then we will have no trouble finishing our design and completing the project.

Now that the team is well over a month into the project, progress has been made in the design of the vertical gardens. Our team has been meeting frequently to discuss and consider different design aspects in order to be able to finalize one idea. The first stage was to come up with a basic geometric shape for the exterior structure. Basic rectangles, cylindrical, and pyramidal shapes were all considered by our team. We narrowed down our choices to three main shapes that would optimize the performance of the vertical gardens without using excessive amounts of materials. These shapes were a rectangle, a triangle, and a slanted trapezoid.

A computer draft of what the three designs would look like.

The other important consideration was a proper irrigation system. Our team planned on using plastic pipes that would be inserted into the interior of the garden that would allow water to be poured down them. The pipes would have a series of holes in them that would allow the water to seep out of the pipes and into the surrounding soil, evenly distributing the water throughout the entire garden. We would implement this system in the rectangular and triangular designs however the trapezoid design did not need any irrigation system. The angular orientation of the sides of the trapezoid allow for water to be poured on the exterior of the garden without needing any piping system in its interior.

After brainstorming and drafting our different design options, out team scheduled a meeting with Ray Cam to finalize one design for our team to carry forward. We also used the time to discuss which materials will be used for the construction of the gardens and the design implications these materials will have on the project. After some discussion, it was decided that the trapezoid design would be the best option. This was decided based on the fact that the irrigation system would not be needed for this design. That reduces the material costs and eliminates some of the complications that would result from creating the irrigation system. Now that our team can focus on one design option, we are now able to set up a timeline in order to finish the project before the end of the term.

The goal for the team is to complete a final draft of the vertical garden design that Ray Cam can then use to manufacture a prototype and to eventually produce 100 units for the community. In order to achieve this, our team has set the following deadlines:

March 14^th: Design the base of the garden (Including possible wheels attached to the base)

March 21^st: Design the connections that will be used to fasten the different sections of the garden in place

March 17^th-21^st: Meet with Ray Cam to finalize the design parameters listed above

March 31^st–April 4^th: Have a final design completed as well as setup instructions so that Ray Cam will be able to easily assemble the gardens (i.e. Project Completion)