
105
7
Understanding Potroom Processes
Rob looked again at the smelter owsheet he had sketched in the course,
which seemed a long time ago now. The owsheet had the entire smelter on
it, and that was good. But, because of that, it didn’t identify what was really
happening inside the potrooms. It looked like a black box. Rob smiled. Yes,
that was how his boss described the potroom, a black box, full of things that
would trip you up and run you over before you knew it.
Being inside the black box didn’t feel so bad, actually. People there were
self-reliant and cheerful, whatever was happening. But, that didn’t help Rob
much because what was happe