Galley Interviews/ Research

Today during our studio period my group (Kelly and Sam) and I went to the Galley to observe the function of the space while it was in between meal times and we could look clearly. We also went to interview workers and fellow students. To see more in depth notes on the interviews and to see what our group is doing as a whole our group blog is http://art347galleyefficiencypproject.blogspot.com/ .

At first we observed the space and seating arrangements. We addressed which spaces were being used to the best of their ability and which were not and what could be done. We looked at the seating at both levels and noticed that they have been attempting to improve the flow of the dining area.
Below is an image from the second level of the main seating area. This shows how they broke up the space between the long tables. We thought that if extra seats were just stacked to the side this would allow students to create more sitting for themselves; similar to what happens in the buffet style dining halls.

After observing the area we went to interview the workers. We were able to interview an adult cashier, two adults who worked in different food areas, and a student worker. They all gave us their options of what the Galley is like during peak times, what they feel the problems are and what they feel should be done. Most of them mentioned the confusion between the lunch and dinner combos, when meals start and meal allotment. They all brought different thoughts and problems to our attention, like how the handicap have to enter. This allowed us to see how all of these different ideas influence the problem of efficiency. 

We attempted to talk to a manager that was on shift but she did not at all seem interested in speaking with us. It seemed like she felt threatened even after we explained that we just wanted feedback for a class project. It reminded me of the CEO story in our Theory U book because it seemed like she did not want to acknowledge change or that anything was wrong.

After looking over all of the different aspects of problems we decided to focus on the communication between the student and the workers. Students often ask the workers questions about the meal plan when the screens are not working or if they are confused. The workers, having no signage facing them have trouble if they are able to answer the question at all. This leads to further confusion and a hold up in line. We hope to help the students and workers understand the meal plan system better. This may lead to an overall better experience in the Galley with faster moving lines.