Tower and Town, June 2021 (view the full edition)Jason Franklin - BuilderCan you tell me a bit about your firm Bond Construction? We are a family firm with 18 employed full time. Some of our men I have known since I was a child and have worked with me all my working life. Everyone is willing to help each other out and do different things. Although I spend most of my time meeting clients and in management I am extremely happy to pick up the tools and help out on site if ever I get the chance. We are general builders and work on projects big and small but are fortunate to work on many very significant historic buildings, for example we have just finished work on the Merchant's House in Marlborough. When did you first become interested in building? I am a fourth generation builder. My great grandfather and father ran a firm in Newbury and so I was around building from a child. As soon as I could hold a brick I would practise building walls. I still have and use many of my grandfather Bond's woodworking tools. So it's in my blood. I had a place at university to study fine art but decided to join the family firm instead as I knew I would enjoy it more. How did you learn your trade and profession? I did an apprenticeship in carpentry and also learnt bricklaying, roofing, groundwork etc. working alongside very experienced tradesmen. Later I went to college to learn surveying and estimating so I had a very broad education in building. What do you enjoy about working on historic buildings? The feeling that you are working on something that was maybe constructed 200 or 300 years ago and making a contribution that could be revealed by someone in the future, who might say 'they did a good job'. What is the most satisfying thing about your job? For me it's about the people, so when we finish a job with a happy client who then goes on to recommend us to friends and family then that gives me great satisfaction. As such almost all our work comes through word of mouth. What do you think could be done to ensure traditional craft skills are not lost? I do think traditional trades are undervalued possibly because they are not understood by those outside the industry. We always have at least one apprentice and the majority of them stay with us when they finish their training, which helps to prevent traditional skills from being lost. Jason Franklin |