Neighbor to Neighbor — A Quality for Life Story

Completed wheelchair ramp is consistent with home’s architecture and aesthetics.

Robert Smith, software QA specialist for Bechtel BWXT Idaho, Idaho Falls, ID, and ASQ Senior member, didn’t have to travel far to demonstrate his commitment to Quality for Life. In fact, his volunteer work led him to his own neighborhood.  

A few years ago, a gentleman in his neighborhood—a veteran of the Korean War—was stricken with cancer in his vocal cords and shortly afterwards had a mild stroke. This left the man unable to speak and requiring a wheelchair. His wife was worried that this restriction meant he could no longer get out of the house. They knew that a wheelchair ramp would help his mobility, but they were worried about what adding one would do to the appearance of their home.  

They contacted Smith and asked if something could be done that would meet their needs and not detract from the looks of the home. They decided that a ramp made of a new plastic and wood composition material, which could be obtained in a color comparable to the bricks of the house, would present an ideal solution. 

Using his years of quality experience and project planning, Smith and a small team of volunteers set to work. The best route for the ramp in relation to the existing steps required the addition of a sizable porch, which had to be set at a level matching the front door. The ramp was built as a unit and bolted to the porch for easy removal. The only difficulty was a lamppost that needed to be moved toward the house in order to avoid the ramp and extended upwards to match the height of the porch. 

To ensure efficiency, basic project planning techniques were implemented. This included: moving the lamp before the framework goes in; calling an electrician when they started to dig up the lamp so he can redo the wires; squaring the base; using spacers and pre-drilling the flooring while laying it down; figuring out where to cut the materials to minimize the number of cuts and leftovers; and deciding when to ask neighbors for help to get the maximum value from their efforts. 

Smith’s passion and commitment to quality—and using them to make the world a better place—is evident in the scope of this project, which lasted several weeks and included more than 70 hours of labor. More than a dozen people volunteered to help, including students of a local high school welding class who worked on the extension pipe for the lamp.  

Every so often as they worked, the wife of the war veteran would ask Smith, “How do you know how to do all this?”  He would just shrug, since it would be hard to explain how years of planning a variety of things had resulted in an overall background that is useful in doing just about anything—even building attractive wheelchair ramps. Robert Smith used his quality skills to help a neighbor—he is truly committed to quality for life.

If you have a story about how you used your passion for quality to make a difference in people’s lives, we’d like to hear from you as part of our Quality for Life initiative. Please submit stories to qualityforlife@asq.org. Also, be sure to visit our blog at www4.asq.org/blogs/quality-life/.