Documenting designs with video

Whether you are involved with a food preparation facility as owner, operator or designer, sooner or later you will probably want to document what is there. Some type of record must be made in order to document your facility, and that record must almost always be made on-site. Your memory alone will not suffice, although it will be a valuable tool in rounding out your final record.

Traditionally, documentation has been done through handwritten notes; dictated notes that are transcribed, either verbatim or with detail filled in by the person who did the original dictation; field measurement and hand-drawn graphics; and photographs.

While each of these has value in certain circumstances, my experience is that a videotaped record provides most of the information the traditional methods capture, and does it faster. Although this does not replace the methods listed above, there are a number of advantages:

* Continuity. Individual still photographs show only a single view of an item, and even multiple exposures from different angles won't catch everything. Photographs are also sometimes difficult to relate to one another because of the physical gap between views. Videotape can provide a continuous record that seamlessly flows from one area to the next, and it is available instantly.

* Variation in detail. The zoom feature on video cameras allows you to go from a wide shot to a closer view in infinite increments, something a still camera cannot do. You can document a space by simply walking around the perimeter and stopping to zoom in where you want more detail.

* Narrative background. The built-in microphones on video cameras allow you to narrate what you are seeing, pointing out specific details or items of interest and concern as you go, combining the advantages of transcription and still photography with a single effort.

* Affordability. A full-feature, handheld video camera can be purchased for $400 to $500, not much more than a full-feature 35 mm camera. The kind I have uses the small cassettes that last about 30 minutes, and the whole thing isn't much bigger than a Cornish hen. I recommend the kind with the auxiliary flip-out screen. Pressing your eye against a traditional viewfinder is tiring; furthermore, the screen lets you hold the camera above your head to get a better angle, and to tilt the screen to see what you are taping. Perhaps more important, you will probably be walking as you document a space, sometimes backwards. With a screen, you will be able to glance away from time to time to see where you are going--you wouldn't want someone's lasting impression to be of you falling into a bin of flour.

For playback, I use a simple combination TV/VCR with a 9-inch screen that cost about $200. It doesn't take up much space in my office and it's fairly easy to take it along with me if needed.

* Ease of storage. You can do a pretty good job of documenting a kitchen in a total elapsed taping time of 10 minutes or less. When you buy the camera it should include everything you need to transfer the images to a conventional two-hour VCR tape, so you can fit about 12 documentations onto a single tape.

ON THE SCENE

When you actually get to the facility with your camcorder, there are a few things you will want to keep in mind:

* Be prepared for questions. People get a little funny around video cameras. You'll get the typical "Am I on Candid Camera?" type of stuff, and you'll want to be prepared with some sort of friendly comeback ("No problem, you already passed the audition."). However, some employees get very nervous about their jobs when they suspect (correctly or not) that some sort of change might be in the offing. Be aware of the concerns your presence may generate, and just let your personality work for you.

* Consider timing. Is it more important to see how the staff uses the equipment (as in a process study), or to see the equipment itself (as in a value assessment)? You will want to schedule your visit to ensure that the people you want to see in action are there, and conversely that people won't be in the way of the equipment you want to see. In addition to your own convenience, think about the disruptive effect your presence might have on the operation.

* Back-up protection. Take along extra tape cassettes and fully charged batteries. Your camera wont do you any good if you run out of one or the other.

* You can't get everything on tape. You will still need more than one type of record. Don't expect your video camera to pick up nameplate information such as model number, power requirements and so on. You can either write down this type of information or dictate it as you videotape. If dimensions are needed, do it the old-fashioned but effective way, with a tape measure. You will want to record the date; this, too, may be dictated or written down.

Documentation of facilities of all types is common, and there are a number of options available to you. Look at what your requirements are, acquire the level of recording technology you need and prepare a system that allows you to retrieve that information when it is needed. Someday, maybe not long from now, you'll be glad you did.

James H. Petersen, Jr., FCSI, is president of C.i.i. Food Service Design, Lapeer, Mich.

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