“Improvements must be protected by… their beneficiaries”

Interview with mr. Gheroghe Degeratu, Manager of the Exploitation and Maintenance Department of CFR Palace.(EMD)

 

Railway Journal: In the last interview that you took for our publication, you talked among other issues, about the CFR Palace consolidation program and about creating services that will improve working conditions for employees. Could you up date us as to the status of these projects?
Gheorghe Degeratu: I will begin by saying that the Exploitation and Maintenance Department (EMD) considers as most important problems consolidating the CFR Palace and rebuilding the electrical system for the building. The first project reached a stage where we have to obtain city-planning certificates for us to be able to start an auction for the work execution. The second project has already taken its first step. The National Railway Company CFR-Sa and CONEL entered into an agreement for coupling the consumer (the CFR Palace) to the power grid. In parallel we made an offer analysis for the setting at Gate A, a temporary power adapter that will be able to take over for all consumers coupled to the current adapter for the entire period needed for works. Aside from these two important projects that will misfortunately take a long time to be completed, we also tried to start a series of current projects aimed at improving working conditions for employees. Our accomplishments so far refer to:

I will also mention the actions we took to improve the information and registry offices at Gate G, to resolve requests from the buildings’ beneficiaries or clients. Another work (particularly demanding, but at the same time of the utmost importance) is cable structuring for spaces owned by all companies that broke from the old SNCFR. The aim of this action is building a standard cabling system including telephony, data and video transmission, conceived as a system opened for future technologies. The structured cabling system must include the following features:

  1. Adaptability – must permit the introduction of technologies and future development for greater transfer speed;
  2. Flexibility – must act as a sole distribution network; the same cabling for all applications in order to facilitate moving, transferring and installing additional terminals;
  3. Transparency – the system must accept all standards for telephony, data and video.

I must also mention that the works will allow IRIS program implementation.
Thus, owners of the respective spaces will have the advantage that all computers will be connected to a sole system and should the power grid fall, they will not be affected as the system will have its own power generator and feeding capabilities.
RJ: What could you tell us about the nocturnal illumination project if I might call it so, for CFR Palace?
GD: It gives me great pleasure to tell you that although we wanted to end this project by the end of the year, we managed to finish two months earlier. We take pride in this accomplishment that not only gives light and color to the facade of the building but also to the entire neighboring area.
RJ: The high temperatures that we had this summer were hard on the employees of some institutions; according to the way the management knew how to insure proper working conditions. How did CFR Palace employees cope with those days?
GD: We have taken special efforts to keep the employees from the summer’s heat. We obeyed the Government order that stated employees should be offered normal conditions for their work: some offices had air conditioning installed and wherever this was not possible, employees were given the necessary amount of mineral water. To insure that employees of the National Railway Company CFR-SA will not feel the lack of this facility, we decided to equip the passageways near the CFR SA offices with sources of fresh water (the first floor, the third floor and soon the forth floor).
RJ: In just a few months since the program meant to improve working conditions for employees got started, results are already felt. How pleased are you by this fact?
GD: I am pretty much pleased with what we accomplished so far. Regretfully, I am forced to say that not all employees understood that what we are doing is for their own good. Some of them proved to be uncivilized, unable to adapt to the new beautiful and modern. They manifested a visible lack of respect towards the conditions we created and even stole items like taps, toilet seats, toilet paper, doorknobs, marble tiles and empty water bottles.
No one would have thought that people would stoop so low as to steal objects meant to make their lives easier.
RJ: What, if any measures did you take to prevent such heinous acts?
GD: Both the management and the soldiers that insure security for the building will check up more closely the personnel activities for our employees and for those belonging to other institutions that occupy spaces in our building. We hope to gather sufficient funding to install cameras on passageways, toilets and basements in order to track down any criminal act. Aside from this, some employees will be used as informants to prevent “friendly” associations.
Other negative aspects exist beside theft: vandalism. We had to hire special personnel for elevators to prevent acts like braking the mirrors, scratching the canopy and others. I can only say that we took whatever steps we thought necessary and that we expect that tenants of the building to adopt a more rational and civilized attitude towards the building property.
RJ: Has the personnel been offered other facilities aside from improvements in working conditions?
GD: Yes, I forgot to mention other small advantages that our employees enjoy. We have cafeterias at the floors 1,3 and 7 where anyone can go to have lunch and various other services at the disposal of our workers: a pharmacy, a cabinet for family doctors, a library and a gym room. In the future we also intend to reconstruct the restaurant in the basement.
RJ: What about parking spaces….
GD: I didn’t forget about that; I was meaning to tell you as I suspected you would inquire about that subject. I can tell you that with help from the City Hall, in the near future works will begin for the construction of a subterranean parking lot in front of the CFR Palace that will take over all requests from the North Railway station area, an important nexus in Bucharest traffic. However, we were able to bring a small improvement to this chapter – we managed to implement remote control access for the current driveway.
RJ: Did you know that you are considered a very operative director?
GD: Although it is rather hard to be a director in a CF sub-unit, I tried to bring some speed into the equation. Probably this is how I got my “nickname.” The CFR Palace Exploitation and Maintenance Department is an institution that cannot afford to loose time. If electrical installations fail even for a minute, it is a grave thing – therefor a solution must be found immediately. If the water supply does not deliver, it has to be dealt with, with the utmost urgency. We are in a continuous alert mode. I always shave to find the most viable solution in the shortest time. I assure you though, that I am not tired yet.


Reporting Oana Bran

 

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