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Mobile Field Office Up-fit Project

42K views 29 replies 17 participants last post by  VanTastic! 
#1 ·
Our objective was to keep one of our Salesmen/Project Managers on a construction site all day and avoid having to run back and forth to the office. This would save fuel, vehicle wear and tear, and most importantly valuable time. We would need to give him his entire office in the field. This is what we did.

We purchased a 2014 Promaster 1500, high roof, 136 wheelbase in black.



We first installed a solid, flat sub-floor by fitting and gluing 5/8” AC Plywood to the ribbed floor with Liquid Nails. (For once I was glad my son has a pile of dumbbells in the garage.)



Since we’d be installing some electronics and a network, I ran 1” chases to each corner for wiring and future expansion. All chases would run to the underside of the desk area where I’d eventually build a false panel to hide the wiring and power supplies.



Being in Florida when the sun is shining (quite often) you can barely stand to be in this black vehicle. In order to not kill off salesmen I decided to put in as much insulation as I possibly could. We fit 2 full layers of ¾” foil-faced Polyiso insulation, a 3rd layer of ½ fiberglass board and then a layer of ¼” fabric wrapped plywood. This created a barrier of almost R15 in the walls. The ceiling would only take a single layer of ¾” foam so it’s closer to R11. The foil face greatly helped reduce the infared heat from the sun. Each layer was glued in place with Liquid nails and then braced overnight.



More to follow shortly...
 
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#2 ·
Insulating Continued..I used spray foam and filled all of the ribs in between the insulated panels. In areas where I needed access later on for service I used fiberglass batting so it could be removed (Doors and rear pillars).



This is the vehicle fully insulated with the desk/monitor wall backing installed. Its ready for fabric panels.



I used cardboard sheets to cut out templates for each of the panel pieces. I transferred these to ¼” plywood, cut them out and then wrapped each one with upholstery fabric. Each panel was glued in place using Liquid Nails and braced overnight. I made panels for the doors, but reused the lower plastic panels and just painted them to match the fabric. This provides for easy access to the interiors for servicing. These cavities were just filled with fiberglass batting.



Close-up of the wall panels and LED lighting wiring.



The flooring is all vinyl. Its looks very much like wood if you didn’t know. It’s also super durable and waterproof (and cheap!) If I had a chance to redo it I’d go with something lighter like maple. Note the 3000 Watt power inverter installed under the driver seat. Its feeds power to the desk for the computer, printer, dual monitors, Apple TV and other office devices. Since the battery is under the drivers feet, it made hook-up really easy.



To be continued....
 
#3 ·
Next was the installation of the upper desk hutch. I built it so the top would contour the roof and the bottom would slope back to keep things in place during driving.



Finished flooring and original lower door panels painted to match.



Rear door panels installed and upper ceiling finished.



The office includes a 4G Cellular modem feeding a standard ASUS home router. This provides a complete network for the laptop dock, printer and Apple TV. You can print directly from an iPad or iPhone to the printer, do a full presentation using Airplay to the apple TV which is displayed on one of the 24” monitors and hear it through the Sony Stereo system. A fabric wrapped false panel hides and protects the wiring under the desk.



I used 3 doors with double, heavy duty magnetic latches to keep books and things in place. The control panel houses the router, a Sony 7” touch-panel head-unit and switches for auxiliary radio power, main ceiling LED lights, read ceiling LED lights and under cabinet LED work lights.

 
#7 ·
Really nice setup. I assume you are going to idle the engine most or part of the day to keep that battery charged? Not to mention run the AC?

Did you buy PM's with the 220 amp optional alternator?
 
#9 ·
This time of year its quite nice, but most of the summer we'll just idle the engine when its 90 outside. I did some testing and once the interior is cool, and if you put a sunshade in the windshield, it stays cool for 20 minutes with the engine off. I did get the 220A alternator in this one. My goal was to insulate it well enough to not have to add the roof mounted AC unit. I'll let you know how its working in July.
 
#19 · (Edited)
Here are a few more pics now that its in use. This is the work area.



This was a piece of furniture I picked up at a local store. I just cut out the back to contour the wheelwell. I attached 2 'L' brackets to the wheelwell and it holds the bench in nicely.



Someone asked about painting the OEM panels. I used them all and just painted them with a good spray paint to match the panels I wrapped. (Be sure to prep them well to remove any oils and a decent spray paint will stick fine) Note the corner panels here. I put fiberglass insulation in the corners and it was visible through the vents. I was able to hide it using some black cloth behind the panel.

 
#26 · (Edited)
I upholstered a 3/4" x 2" piece of wood as wide as the area where you sit. I also covered the underside of the desk area where your legs would go to prevent the arms from getting scratched up. The wood was then screwed to the front edge of the desk where the chair fits under. When you need to drive you simply push the chair under the desk, pull the pneumatic lever to raise it up and the arms catch behind the fabric covered trim. Its nice and tight and its never come out yet.



One more thing. You'll want to park on the flat. It a little tricky if there is some slope to the road where you park and you need to type.
 
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