The Mechanical Era

5th of Sunt, 5018.

It was a bright, beautiful morning that day. Ezekiel had made sure to get up earlier than usual to leave for work, as today was a very special day for him, and his coworkers. It was the day when he is going to be presenting his blueprint of the cylinder to the draftsman, to construct a larger blueprint of the Steam Engine Locomotive.

Just the day before yesterday, the last few Mechanical Engineers finally completed the blueprints for their assigned components by the project manager. They have all been working closely together, communicating and ensuring that there are no design flaws within each component.

The project managers, upon hearing the news, decided that the Engineers should present their blueprints today. They were informed about that decision yesterday. Ezekiel quickly arrived at the building and climbed up the stairs to the room they had used to draw up the blueprint last time. There were a few people around, all waiting for the others.

"Where is everyone?" Ezekiel asked.

"They will be here in a minute." One of the engineers replied. True to his words,  the entire room soon got crowded with mechanical engineers and draftsmen. Once the project manager counted and confirmed everyone else was there, they got to work on making the larger blueprint.

The Mechanical engineers, one by one, gave the blueprints to the draftsman. Using their exquisite drawing skills, they drew up a blueprint of the whole steam engine locomotive. They first drew the framework, before moving on to the firebox, which was connected to the boiler.

The cylinders were soon drawn up in the blueprint, just before the wheels and axles. After all the main components were drawn in, the other additional components, like the fire door, were added to the blueprint as well. Once they were finished, they double-checked the blueprint to see if there were any flaws.

"You guys see any problems?" One of the draftsmen asked. One mechanical engineer points his finger at the blueprint.

"There is one minor mistake here. It is supposed to be 25 inches in diameter, not 2.5," he pointed out.  After about 25 minutes of staring at the detailed blueprint, fixing up and mistakes they found, it was declared that the larger blueprint has been completed.

"All right everyone, can you all please turn your attention to me?" the project manager instructed. Once they were all looking at him, he continued.

"Alright. Thank you. Now, as the blueprint has finally been finished, we can move on to the next step.

Using the blueprints you have as a guide, I need you all to build a 1:4 scale of the components. It is required you use wood as the main material to build this model. You will understand why in a few seconds.

Once you have all constructed the model parts, we can move on to using them in the construction of a smaller model train with all the components. This way, we can identify any more mistakes within the blueprint, or the components themselves, before moving on to making a larger model of the train.

I need to have all these wooden model components ready by the 19th of this month, 2 weeks from now. It should give you all plenty of time to make the proper component. If you believe that you had managed to complete it beforehand, please let me know, because we might be able to conduct the build quicker."

"So... do you all have any questions?" the project manager asks. Quite a few of them raised their hands. The project manager, after scanning the room, picks one of them to ask their question.

"Will we be provided with the wood, or do we have to buy one ourselves?" he asked.

"No. We will provide you with the necessary materials and tools for the job. It is best if the company chooses the materials and tools themselves in order to minimize any inconsistencies within each part," the manager answered.

"Any more questions?" Again, some people raised their hands once again.

"I only know how to model well with clay, as well as a few others! What are we supposed to do?" another questioned.

"If that is the case, then I will need to you fill out a form so that we can assign you a trusted worker to help you all out with the modeling.

If you want the form, you should ask James, the other project manager, about it. He will happily hand you a form, which you need to fill in.

Once you have finished filling it in, you should give the form back to me. You will then receive a helping hand in 1 to 3 days. Is that answer satisfactory?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Is there anything else I need to clear up?" One had his hand raised in response. The manger pointed to him.

"Yes?"

"Where do we need to go to get the wood, and when will we receive it?"

"That has already been arranged. You shall receive the material you will work with, today."

"So, any more questions? Anyone?" he asked. However, none seem to be raising their hand.

"No? Alright then. Get to work." the project manager announced.

With that, the engineers and draftsman walked out of the room and back to their desks. Ezekiel went back to his desk, sat on his chair, and waited. A few minutes pass, and he receives a large chunk of wood to work with.

"Welp, I guess I should start now," Ezekiel muttered to himself.

Ezekiel placed the blueprint on his free desk and took a look at them closely. He thought of the way he will approach it first. Once he had an idea, he opened up his drawer and grabbed a ruler, and a pencil.

He starts to draw on the block of wood, forming a sort of outline. Once he is finished, he takes out a small saw and starts removing the unnecessary parts from the block. As he commits to his task, the others start to do the same. The room start to get filled with the sounds of the former artisans, working and cutting wood, to build a small model of the train.

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