Using the container number, I got the history, found it was 30yrs old and the value (in the condition I started fitting it out) was £50! I was also advised not to buy it as it wasn't likely to last much longer - learnt the hard way ;)

Ouch. Well fortunately, I won't incur any cost for the container itself. Guess I can just use it for now and figure something else out later. Where do you find the container id?

We have a 'surplus paint' store nearby which takes excess commercial paint and strains/mixes it....this is about 1/10th the price of new paint and saves waste.

That's a great idea, I'm certain there's a local one here.

re: inside layout - have a look at the videos here and here....if more info's useful, let me know what I can share

Wow, your operation has really high production values. I'm not nearly as handy, so mine will be considerably lower-tech.

I also appreciate your thinking on capitalism and how it "otherizes" people.

re: economic model - we run on a gift economy (essentially 'pay what you can'). We're located next to some of the most expensive real estate in London yet in one of the four adjoining boroughs here there's the 2nd highest rate of homelessness in the UK.

Similar to here. Park is in an affluent part of the city, with lower income pockets nearby.

I also meant to ask if you have any links to how-to videos handy for making stuff out of bike parts.

Thanks again.

Sent: Thursday, February 11, 2021 at 5:43 AM
From: "Lawrence Mohammed" <law@probikeservice.co.uk>
To: "Cory W. W" <cory.ww@mail.com>, thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] Thethinktank Digest, Vol 173, Issue 4

Ah, if storage only, you'll have loads of room for that in a secure place!

Re: container siting, I mention as the first (pilot) workshop I built by fitting out an empty container which was a little beaten up and rusty but otherwise looked okay, sited on gravel/soil. It was part of another project which split and the project lead asked me to pay £1000 if I wanted the container I'd fitted out, which I thought was a little steep. Using the container number, I got the history, found it was 30yrs old and the value (in the condition I started fitting it out) was £50! I was also advised not to buy it as it wasn't likely to last much longer - learnt the hard way ;)

re: litres/gallons of paint...I recall about ten 5l tins of paint being used and two 5l tins of bitumen paint. This is usually really expensive. We have a 'surplus paint' store nearby which takes excess commercial paint and strains/mixes it....this is about 1/10th the price of new paint and saves waste. Maybe something like that near you? I generally over-engineer things - you can get probably away with a couple coats

re: inside layout - have a look at the videos here and here....if more info's useful, let me know what I can share

re: economic model - we run on a gift economy (essentially 'pay what you can'). We're located next to some of the most expensive real estate in London yet in one of the four adjoining boroughs here there's the 2nd highest rate of homelessness in the UK. We also have the highest rate of bike theft in the UK in another adjoining borough...we're on the same page with the financial barrier to entry ;)

In service,

Lawrence Mohammed
CEO and Founder
Pro Bike Service C.I.C.
+44 (0)77 222 58587
probikeservice.co.uk

::Olympic Park Site::
Pro Bike Service C.I.C.
Multi-Storey Car Park, Lesney Avenue
Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
London E20 3BS
map location

On 11/02/2021 00:29, Cory W. W wrote:

Hey Lawrence,

Thanks for the wealth of information you provided.

each shipping container has a unique ID - much like a car registration plate - use this to find the year and history - if the container is very old and/or damaged/too rusty, you may be better off with another.

This is good to know.

space is the main concern, then temperature, then functionality....

8ft 6" is difficult - you can setup workstands here but with internal insulation and fitouts it will be a squeeze...unless...you have wall mounted stands and access one side only

Stands will only be stored inside, they will be used outside. At first, I will use the Feedback and Park Tool portable stands, down the road I have an idea for making repair stands out of old bikes which will be ratcheted to dollies so they can be easily moved in and out of the container. Tool boards will likewise be portable. This is to say that I won't be having clients working on their bikes inside the container, it's just there to store bikes, parts and tools.

I think as long as I maintain a reasonable number of bikes and parts and make good use of the space, I should be OK for storage. (I can donate excess to upcyclers, other co-ops, etc).

NEVER place the container on soil where the bottom of the container touches the ground - containers can rust and rot easily.

Just asked my friends who offered the container... it is on soil unfortunately. I'll have to assess the condition and see if anything can be done.

Also, for this reason, I coated ours with 4 coats of Hammerite and the roof with an additional 2 coats of bitumen paint

How many litres/gallons did you need?

I built all the racking and timber fitout on both containers - advice....use std size containers and build the racking around this (or just buy custom heavy duty racking if you have budget). If using a std 20ft x 8'6" container you can get 2 stands in, if a std 40ft, 4 stands

conventional container fitouts in the UK use 6mm ply and 44mm timber. I used what I could access (18mm ply and 2" x 4" timber) and was so glad I had these! the walls are strong enough (especially with battens) for hanging shelving and bikes etc...though the overall weight is high

I was thinking of building some simple racks for bike storage, or welding some hooks to the wall. Do you have any pics of your setup?
depends where you are but where I am this is not a money-earner - servicing is where the income is

I'm concerned about making a service oriented model for a number of reasons. The first and most important is I don't want money to be a barrier for people. I mean, yes, I'll be financing this myself and it would be nice to break even, but also, I would expect that working in a BMX park, my client base will skew young and may not have a lot of disposeable income and I don't want to be the asshole that tells some poor kid they can't fix their bike because they don't have three dollars or whatever.

I'd rather have a no pressure environment that fosters growth and empowerment. I was leaning towards a sell refurbished bikes model because with the bike shortage and being in a large city (Toronto) I figured I could generate decent sales in the summer. Although if you're right, I will have to figure something else out.

good idea - ensure everything is tested first where possible or offer on the basis of 'sold as seen'

Definitely.

the current container has walls and ceiling insulated with 50mm recycled glass-bottle fibre insulation behind 18mm ply. (With a 2kw oil radiator, this is okay to work inside, down to around 0 degrees C)

Good to know, but I'm keeping this a seasonal operation for the time being. My city has an initiative called ActiveTO which closes of parts of high traffic roads during weekends for part of the year to encourage safe and healthy ways of getting around.

It was a huge success and my original idea was to simply promote cycling by piggybacking on it with an outdoor DIY setup on one of those routes. It was when I brought that up to friends that I was offered the container and am now looking at the logistics of that. But the point is I'm just looking to capitalize on the seasonal surge of cyclists to promote cycling. I have other plans for winter.

Thanks again for your help.
Sent: Wednesday, February 10, 2021 at 5:04 PM
From: "Lawrence Mohammed" <law@probikeservice.co.uk>
To: thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] Thethinktank Digest, Vol 173, Issue 4
Hey Cory!

I currently run a bicycle workshop out of a 30ft x 10ft container (3 workstations), previously ran a pilot from a 20ft x 8ft6" container (2 workstations, minimal storage)......answering your questions...

I've been offered a shipping container in a BMX park to use for a fledgling co-op.

each shipping container has a unique ID - much like a car registration plate - use this to find the year and history - if the container is very old and/or damaged/too rusty, you may be better off with another.

I want to hear from others who operate out of containers. What has your experience been like? What challenges does operating out of a container present that a traditional retail/warehouse space does not? How do you address those challenges?

space is the main concern, then temperature, then functionality....

8ft 6" is difficult - you can setup workstands here but with internal insulation and fitouts it will be a squeeze...unless...you have wall mounted stands and access one side only

w.r.t temperature you have two options - totally sealed with spray insulation (about £2500 for a small container in London UK, though highly toxic and bad for the environment) or glass-fibre insulation and allowing the unit to 'breathe' through vents - I chose the latter

whatever you do, avoid cutting holes in the roof or walls - the strength of the container is due to the corrugation - also you'd avoid leaks and potential security weaknesses

another thing? NEVER place the container on soil where the bottom of the container touches the ground - containers can rust and rot easily. Also, for this reason, I coated ours with 4 coats of Hammerite and the roof with an additional 2 coats of bitumen paint

My plan is to provide tools and two or three stands (spaced very generously apart) for DIY service as well as a small selection of new consumables (cables, housing, ferrules, etc) on a PWYC basis.

I built all the racking and timber fitout on both containers - advice....use std size containers and build the racking around this (or just buy custom heavy duty racking if you have budget). If using a std 20ft x 8'6" container you can get 2 stands in, if a std 40ft, 4 stands

conventional container fitouts in the UK use 6mm ply and 44mm timber. I used what I could access (18mm ply and 2" x 4" timber) and was so glad I had these! the walls are strong enough (especially with battens) for hanging shelving and bikes etc...though the overall weight is high

Partially finance the above by selling refurbished donated bikes.

depends where you are but where I am this is not a money-earner - servicing is where the income is

Provide a small selection of used parts (taken from donated bikes that aren't safe/worth refurbishing) on a PWYC basis.

good idea - ensure everything is tested first where possible or offer on the basis of 'sold as seen'

All of this will be on a seasonal basis. May-Oct. If it lasts longer than this season, I'll grow it as I'm able in the future.

the current container has walls and ceiling insulated with 50mm recycled glass-bottle fibre insulation behind 18mm ply. (With a 2kw oil radiator, this is okay to work inside, down to around 0 degrees C)

Right now my primary goal is to take advantage of the surge of interest in cycling to get more people on bikes.

brilliant!!

I'm also interested in diverting as much waste from landfills as possible, and would love to hear any ideas about converting frames/parts to useable objects (repair stands, tables, clocks, whatever).

we're also moving to zero waste...some of the things we've created (and sold) have been....

Coffee Table

Light Stand

Belts (most common)

Bottle openers

Clocks

Keyrings

we've also supplied 'waste streams' (such as old inner tubes) to local artists for upcycling

Let me know if I can be of more assistance Cory and all the best with this!

In service,

Lawrence Mohammed
CEO and Founder
Pro Bike Service C.I.C.
+44 (0)77 222 58587
probikeservice.co.uk

::Olympic Park Site::
Pro Bike Service C.I.C.
Multi-Storey Car Park, Lesney Avenue
Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
London E20 3BS
map location

On 10/02/2021 21:04, thethinktank-request@lists.bikecollectives.org wrote:
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Today's Topics:

   1. How Many Of Y'all Run/Volunteer At A Shipping Container Based
      Co-op? (Cory W. W)
   2. Re: How Many Of Y'all Run/Volunteer At A Shipping Container
      Based Co-op? (BikeConcord)
   3. Re: How Many Of Y'all Run/Volunteer At A Shipping Container
      Based Co-op? (Cory W. W)
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