«c «? * o? /

Labor and Material

Requirements for Sewer

Works Construction

U.S. Department of Labor 

Bureau of Labor Statistics 

1979

Bulletin 2003
United States. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Labor and material requirements for sewer works

construction.

(Bulletin - U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics ; 2003)

Bibliography: p.

Supt. of Docs. no. L 2.3:2003

1. Labor costs— United States. 2. Sewage disposal

plants— United States--Costs. 3* Wages--Construction

workers— United States. I. Title. II. Series: United

States. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bulletin ; 2003.

HDJ+966.B89U623 338. ^ * 3 78-21^80

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Labor and Material

Requirements for Sewer

Works Construction

U.S. Department of Labor 

Ray Marshall, Secretary

Bureau of Labor Statistics 

Janet L. Norwood 

Acting Commissioner' 

January 1979

Bulletin 2003

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office

Washington, D.C. 20402

Stock Number 029-001-02263-8
<
Preface

This study of labor and material requirements for the construction of sewer facilities is 

one in a series of studies conducted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of various types of 

construction activity. The sample projects for this study were selected from among all 

sewer works construction projects built in the 48 contiguous States between January 1, 

1969, and August 31, 1973. All of the projects received Federal funds under programs 

administered by the Environmental Protection Agency or the Department of Housing and 

Urban Development. Other published studies in this series cover highways, hospitals, 

schools, private one-family houses, private multifamily housing, public housing, college 

housing, Federal office buildings, and civil works.

This study is the second one conducted on sewer works construction; the first (presented 

in BLS Bulletin 1490) covered projects completed during 1962-63. This study includes not 

only the presentation and analysis of the current survey data but also an analysis of changes 

in labor and materials usage since the initial survey. In addition, estimates of the employment impact of sewer works construction during calendar year 1976 are included.

The Bureau gratefully acknowledges the generous cooperation of the Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development 

(HUD). Mr. Robert L. Michel of the Municipal Construction Division of EPA provided 

invaluable assistance in the selection of the universe and sample projects from the EPA 

data bank. The Bureau also wishes to thank the 3,000 general and special trade contractors 

who provided data for the survey.

This study was prepared in the Bureau’s Office of Productivity and Technology by Joseph 

T. Finn, assisted by Maurice G. Wright, under the supervision of Robert Ball in the Division 

of Technological Studies, John J. Macut, Chief.

A summary of the results of this study was published in the November 1976 issue of the 

Monthly Labor Review (“Labor and materials requirements for sewer works construction,” 

by Robert Ball and Joseph T. Finn, pp. 38-41).

Material in this publication is in the public domain and may be reproduced without 

permission of the Federal Government. Please credit the Bureau of Labor Statistics and cite 

Labor and Material Requirements for Sewer Works Construction, Bulletin 2003.

iii

Contents

Page

Chapters:

I. Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ 1

Scope of survey ............................................................................................... 1

Survey methods ................................................................................................................................. 1

Nature of the industry ...................................................................................................................... 1

II. Highlights of the study ............................................................................................................................... 3

General findings ................................................................................................................................. 3

Employment estimates ...................................................................................................................... 3

Requirements by occupation ............................................................................................................ 4

Distribution of costs ......................................................................................................................... 5

Regional differences ......................................................................................................................... 6

III. Labor requirements and characteristics ................................................................................................. 8

Onsite .................................................................................................................................................. 8

Labor requirements by region .................................................................................................. 8

Labor requirements by occupation ......................................................................................... 8

Apprentice onsite employee-hours .......................................................................................... 9

Offsite ................................................................................................................................................. 9

Builders’ offsite employee-hours .............................................................................................. 9

Manufacturing ............................................................................................................................ 9

Wholesale trade, transportation, and services .......................................................................... 11

Mining and other industries ..................................................................................................... 11

IV. Distribution of costs and wages ............................................................................................................... 12

Distribution of construction contract costs ..................................................................................... 12

Wages as a percent of contract costs .............................................................................................. 13

Materials, equipment, and supplies ................................................................................................. 13

V. Comparison with previous surveys .......................................................................................................... 19

Comparison of cost components, all sewer works construction studies ..................................... 19

Comparison of all construction labor requirements studies ......................................................... 19

Tables:

1. Employee-hours per $1,000 of contest cost for sewer works construction, by industry,

1963 and 1971 ...................................................................................................................................... 4

2. Percent distribution and average annual rate of change of employee-hour requirements per $1,000

of contract cost for sewer works construction, by industry, 1963 and 1971 (1963 dollars) ....... 5

3. Onsite employee-hours per $1,000 of contract cost for sewer works construction, by occupation,

1963 and 1971 ...................................................................................................................................... 6

4. Range of onsite employee-hours per $1,000 of contract cost for sewer works construction, 1971 6

5. Operating engineers onsite employee-hours and percent distribution per $1,000 of contract cost,

United States and regions, 1971 ......................................................................................................... 10

6. Apprentice employee-hours as a percent of skilled onsite employment for sewer works construction,

by occupation and major construction type, 1963 and 1971 ........................................................... 11

v
Contents— continued Page

7. Percent distribution of contract costs for sewer works construction, United States, 1963 and 1971,

and regions, 1971 .................................................................................................................................. 12

8. Percent distribution of contract costs for sewer works construction by percent of contract cost

expended for wages, United States, 1963 and 1971, and regions, 1971 ........................................ 13

9. Materials, equipment, and supplies used in sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971 ................... 14

10. Percent distribution of materials, equipment, and supplies for sewer works construction, 1963 and

1971 ........................................................................................................................................................ 16

11. Employee-hour requirements per 1,000 current dollars of contract cost, by industry, all construction

studies, 1958-73 .................................................................................................................................... 20

12. Percent distribution of onsite employee-hour requirements per 1,000 current dollars of contract

cost, by occupation, all construction studies, 1958-73 .................................................................... 21

13. Percent distribution of contract costs, all construction studies, 1958-73 ........................................... 22

14. Percent distribution of cost of materials, supplies, and equipment, by product group, all construction

studies, 1958-73 .................................................................................................................................... 23

Charts:

1. Employee-hours per $1,000 of contract cost for sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971 ............ 5

2. Percent distribution of contract costs for sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971 ......................... 7

3. Employee-hours per $ 1,000 of contract cost for sewer line and plant construction, 1963 and 1971 ... 11

4. Percent distribution of contract costs for sewer line and plant construction, 1963 and 1971 ........... 12

Appendixes:

A. Survey scope and methods ......................................................................................................................... 24

B. Forms used for data collection .................................................................................................................. 27

C. Bibliography ................................................................................................................................................ 54

vi
Chapter I.

The BLS program of construction labor requirements studies was started in 1959 when Congress recognized the need for information on the possible employment-generating effects of various types of 

construction. Since then, the Bureau has conducted a 

series of studies presenting data on the total amount of 

employment and employee-hours, both onsite and offsite, per $ 1,000 of construction expenditures and, for 

some studies, per 100 square feet of space.

These studies provide occupational data which are 

important in planning for training requirements as well 

as in determining skill shortages or bottlenecks for 

various types of construction. Resurveys of a given type 

of construction over time can contribute information 

about changes in costs and productivity for onsite construction labor. Market research analysts and companies manufacturing equipment and supplies are interested especially in lists of m aterials used for 

construction.

Sewer works construction is a major component of 

construction and a prime source of employment. Jobs 

are created not only at the construction site but also in 

many manufacturing, trade, transportation, mining, 

and other industries which furnish the materials and 

services for construction.

The study shows for sewer lines and treatment plants 

(1) the amount of labor required to complete an average installation; (2) detailed characteristics by contractor and occupation; (3) ratios per $ 1,000 of construction contract cost; (4) materials used by type; (5) 

distribution of costs; and (6) total labor requirements 

generated by the manufacture, sale, and delivery of 

these materials.

The multiplier effect of jobs created by the respending of wages and salaries of workers and profits of 

contractors is not included in the present study, nor are 

the accelerator effects of capital expenditures.

Scope of survey

The current survey was designed to measure the 

number of employee-hours and the value of materials, 

supplies, and equipment required for each $1,000 of 

sewer works construction. Survey sample projects were 

selected from a universe of federally supported sewer 

works construction projects started in the 48 contigIntroduction

uous States during calendar year 1969 and completed 

by August 31, 1973. The survey covers an extended 

period because of the long-term nature of sewer construction. In general, the data refer primarily to construction during 1971.

A sampling frame of over 1,500 units was developed 

from lists of 907 projects supplied by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of 

Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The EPA list 

consisted of 874 projects. The HUD list consisted of 33 

projects. These lists were stratified by (a) the four 

broad economic regions, (b) type of construction: 

Sewer lines, treatment plants, pumping stations, etc., 

(c) location: Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas 

(SMSA) or nonmetropolitan areas, and (d) construction contract cost class.

Survey methods

Labor requirements for onsite construction were tabulated from payroll data supplied by contractors and 

HUD and HEW regional offices. Labor requirements 

other than for onsite construction were developed by 

translating the requirements for materials, equipment, 

and supplies produced in the various industries of the 

economy into the labor expended to mine, process, 

transport, and distribute them. Estimates were derived 

by first classifying and aggregating material values by 

type and then deflating by an appropriate wholesale 

price index to match the base year of the 1963 interindustry study of the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Department of Commerce. These deflated values were 

grouped in the appropriate industry sectors in inputoutput tables to generate estimates of final demand. 

Sector productivity factors then were applied to derive 

employee-hours by industry group. Further details on 

survey methods are given in appendix A.

Nature of the industry

The basic function of a wastewater treatment plant 

has been to speed up the process of purifying water. 

Generally, this function is divided into three levels of 

treatment (primary, secondary, and advanced) requiring different facilities to be constructed with different 

materials, built-in equipment, and labor requirements.

1
In primary treatment, large objects are screened out 

and remaining solids are allowed to settle from the 

water in tanks or ponds. In secondary treatment, wastewater is purified by aiding natural biological processes 

in the breakdown of organic material. Advanced treatment is a relatively new process which goes beyond the 

objectives of the first two forms of treatment.

Wastewater treatment in the past was aimed at cleaning up domestic and simple industrial wastes. Water 

pollution was then primarily a local matter, but this is 

no longer the case. Population and industrial growth 

coupled with the large-scale use of such products as 

chemical fertilizers, synthetic and organic pesticides, 

inorganic chemicals from mining, manufacturing, and 

agricultural sources, and other pollutants have required 

that wastewater in some areas be subjected to further 

treatment to remove or dilute these materials. Such 

processing is referred to as advanced wastewater treatment (AWT). Advanced wastewater treatment plants 

are more efficient than other types of plants and require more advanced equipment.1

The value-put-in-place (VPIP) for publicly constructed sewer systems during 1971 was $1.8 billion; 

the comparable figure for 1976 was $5.3 billion.2 The 

large increase in VPIP from 1971 to 1976 reflects, to a 

great extent, the impact of inflation. Therefore, a comparison of the VPIP for these two periods should be 

made on a constant-dollar basis. The VPIP in 1967

1 Advanced wastewater treatment ranges from extensions of biological treatment for removal of nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients to

physical-chemical separation techniques such as coagulation, adsorption, distillation, and reverse osmosis. For a detailed explanation of

sewer system facilities, refer to “A Primer on Wastewater Treatment” by the Federal Water Pollution Control Administration, U.S.

Department of the Interior, the forerunner of the current Environmental Protection Agency.

2 See table 1 of Report C30-74S and table 2 of Report C30-77-10,

Bureau of the Census.

dollars was $1.4 billion for 1971 compared with $2.2 

billion in 1976.3

An additional indication of the economic impact of 

sewer works construction on the local economies can 

be inferred from the following data on the funding level 

of the EPA grant program for the construction of sewer 

works by State and local authorities, authorized by the 

Federal Water Pollution Control Act (Public Law 

92-500). The figures reported by EPA as of February 

28, 1978, show 11,587 active projects: 6,369 in Step 1 

(planning) with grants of $518 million, 1,568 in Step 2 

(engineering) at $376 million, and 3,650 in Step 3 

(construction) at $16 billion. There were 3,731 projects completed under PL 92-500 (75-percent grant 

money), including 787 construction projects that took 

Federal grants of $811 million.4

According to a survey of 66 major sanitary districts 

in the United States which was reported in Engineering

News-Record, these districts planned to spend $1.9 

billion in fiscal year 1978, 73 percent more than they 

spent in fiscal year 1977. Almost 46 percent of the 

proposed expenditure was to be for new, upgraded or 

expanded treatment plants. When the survey was conducted, Congress had not passed the proposed amendments to the 1972 Water Pollution Control Act. Therefore, many sanitary districts were being very 

conservative when planning for fiscal 1979, and reported plans for $1.1 billion during 1979.5 During December 1977, the Congress approved a 5-year spending 

authority amounting to $24.5 billion for the grant program for municipal sewage treatment plants.6

3 See table 2 of Report C30-74S and table 3 of Report C30-77-4,

Bureau of the Census.

4 Activities of the Grants Assistance Programs, February 1978 (U.S.

Environmental Protection Agency), pp. 17-19.

5 Engineering News-Record, Oct. 6, 1977, p. 40.

6Engineering News-Record, Dec. 22, 1977, p. 39.

2
Chapter II. Highlights of the Study

General findings

Sewer works construction required 124 employeehours for each $ 1,000 expended on construction contracts in 1971. (See table 1.) Fifty-one of these hours 

were expended in the construction sector directly, 48 

of them at the site and 3 in offsite construction.* 7 This 

compares with 204 employee-hours total, 90 construction (85 onsite and 5 offsite) for a similar study conducted in 1963.8 (See chart 1.)

In addition to the direct hours, 73 employee-hours 

were created in industries which produce, transport, 

and sell the materials, equipment, and supplies used in 

sewer works construction. For 1963, 114 hours were 

created in the supporting industries. (Employee-hours 

by type of industry are shown in table 1.)

When adjusted for inflation (by applying the EPA’s 

cost indexes for sewer systems),9 the resulting employee-hours per $1,000 spent in 1971 totaled 183. 

The construction sector generated 75 hours, 71 onsite 

and 4 offsite, and the supporting industries generated 

108. The average annual rate of decline of onsite hours 

per $1,000 in constant dollars was 2.2 percent. (See 

table 2.) While this is not a pure measure of onsite 

labor productivity, the decline does point to some improvement in productivity between the two survey periods.

7 Not covered by the survey were construction inspection by

government employees and installations by public utility employees.

Excluded from other industry employee-hour requirements was labor

generated by money spent by builders or contractors for taxes (including payroll taxes) and other overhead items such as real estate

commissions, rent, bonds, financing, utilities, business services, and

legal and professional services. These payments probably generate

little direct employment. Employment created by the respending of

wages and profits of the workers and their employers—the multiplier

effect—was also outside the scope of the study.

8 See Roland V. Murray, “Labor and Material Requirements for

Sewer Works Construction,” Monthly Labor Review, March 1966,

pp. 288-90, and Labor and Materials Requirements for Sewer Works

Construction, Bulletin 1490 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 1966).

’ The EPA’s price indexes for sewer lines and treatment plants

were used to compare the change in total employee-hours per $ 1,000

of sewer works construction completed between 1963 and 1971

expressed in 1963 dollars. However, the change in the cost of the

materials used to construct projects was measured by comparison of

the wholesale price indexes for these construction materials, for the

years 1962 and 1970. The assumption was made that the materials

used to construct the survey projects were mostly purchased during

these years.

The employee-hours per $1,000 of contract costs 

varied very little between lines and plants, as shown in 

table 1. For example, in 1963 dollars, $1,000 in 1971 

generated 180 employee-hours for lines and 183 for 

plants, all industries included. The totals for the construction sector were 72 hours for lines and 75 hours 

for plants. The total for other industries, however, was 

108 for both lines and plants.

Employment estimates

The $1.8 billion spent on sewer works construction 

in 1971 generated 116,900 full-time jobs in construction and in other industries supplying materials and 

equipment to the job site: 51,500 in construction and 

65,400 in other industries. The employment distribution among the industry sectors was as follows:

Number of fulltime jobs in

1971

All industries 116,900

Construction ....................................... 51,500

Onsite .......................................... 48,800

Offsite ................... 2,700

Other industries ................................... 65,400

Manufacturing .............................. 44,300

Wholesale trade, transportation, and

services ...................................... 14,200

Mining and other .......................... 6,900

The number of full-time jobs generated by a given 

amount of expenditures for sewer construction has 

decreased in recent years because of inflation and imThe cost index used to express the employee-hours data for 1971

and 1976 in 1963 dollars is an unweighted average of the EPA price

indexes of lines and plants (1967 = 100). The index values and the

unweighted averages for the years 1963, 1971, and 1976 were:

Unweighted

Lines Plants average

1963 ............... 90.9 90.9 90.9

1971 ............... 134.3 133.8 134.0

1976 ............... 221.0 219.7 220.4

The productivity estimate used is the inverse of the change in

onsite employee-hours per $1,000, adjusted for price change, between 1963 and 1971. The average annual rate of change was 2.2

percent over the period.

3
Table 1. Employee-hours per $1,000 of contract cost for sewer works construction, by industry, 1963 and 1971

_______________________________________________________________________________

Industry

Current dollars 1963 dollars

1963 1971 1971

Total Sewer

lines

Sewer

plants

Total Sewer

lines

Sewer

plants

Total Sewer

lines

Sewer

plants

All industries ........................................... 204 204 203 124 123 125 183 180 183

Construction ....................................................... 90 91 88 51 49 51 75 72 75

Onsite ........................................................... 85 86 83 48 48 47 71 71 69

Offsite ............................................................ 5 5 5 3 1 4 4 1 6

Other industries .................................................. 114 113 115 73 74 74 108 108 108

Manufacturing ............................................. 78 76 80 50 49 52 74 72 76

Wholesale trade, 1 transportation, and

services .................... ................................ 23 23 23 15 16 15 22 23 22

Mining and o th er........................................ 13 14 12 8 9 7 12 13 10

1 1n the input-output tables used to generate the "other industries"

employment inpact, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), U.S. Department of Commerce, classifies lumberyards in the retail trade sector. Thus,

by excluding the labor impact of retail trade in these figures, the employment-generating effects of materials sold to contractors by lumberyards

were not counted. As a result, these figures are slightly understated. If all

retail trade were included, about 4.0 employee-hours would be added to

the 1963 figures and 3.0 to the 1971 data in current dollars. However, it

cannot be determined what portion of these hours should be included.

Lumber and wood products are used extensively in residential construction, but the impact for sewer works construction is less significant. For

the 1972 input-output tables, BEA is planning to reclassify lumberyards

proved productivity. Estimates of the number of jobs 

generated in 1971 and 1976 were based on employeeyears of 1,800 hours in onsite construction and 2,000 

hours in offsite construction. By these estimates, the 

$5.3 billion spent on sewer construction in 1976 generated 191,600 jobs—79,000 in construction and 

112,600 in other industries.10 This is only about one 

and one-half times the number of construction jobs 

generated by the $1.8 billion spent in 1971.

BLS surveys also indicate that, in 1975, funds spent 

on sewer plant construction created more jobs than the 

same amount of funds spent on school and Federal 

office building construction but fewer than those spent 

on residential construction, although the demand for 

workers in each occupation varies significantly with the 

type of construction.

Estimates for 1976|i developed from the survey data, 

indicate that each billion dollars spent on sewer plant 

construction generated the equivalent of about 36,600 

full-time jobs, compared with 36,500 (preliminary) for 

funds spent on elementary and secondary schools and j

10 More workers would be employed than indicated by the fulltime job estimates because of the seasonal nature of employment in

the construction industry. Furthermore, transients and part-time

workers tend to inflate actual employment figures. Because different

assumptions are used for the number of employee-hours in construction and in other industries, employee-hour ratios do not apply to

employee-year estimates. In other industries, in 1971, employee-year

estimates were 2,069 in manufacturing, 1,939 in wholesale trade,

transportation, and services, and 2,135 in mining and other. In 1976,

the figures were 2,053, 1,803, and 2,074, respectively. Retail trade is

excluded from these estimates because purchase transactions for

materials are assumed to be made at the wholesale level only. Some

retail transactions are made, but the extent of such purchases in

construction is not known.

selling mainly to contractors from retail trade to wholesale trade. When

these data become available, future studies will be adjusted to reflect the

labor-generating effects of purchases by contractors from such lumberyards.

NOTE: Detail may not add to totals because of rounding. Data for 1963

are based on the 1963 input-output table inverse matrix and the data for

1971 are based on the 1970 tables with adjustments for productivity

between 1970 and 1971. Revised data for other industries are shown for

1963.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

35,500 for Federal office buildings. In residential construction in 1976, the equivalent of about 35,500 fulltime jobs were created for each billion dollars spent on 

private single-family hpuses, 39,300 for private multifamily housing, and 39,200 for public housing."

Requirements by occupation

Over 62 percent of sewer works onsite labor requirements in 1971 were accounted for by only three occupational groups: Laborers, helpers, and tenders; operating engineers; and superintendents and blue-collar 

supervisors. These occupations provided about 74 percent of the onsite employee-hours used to construct 

sewer lines and 47 percent for treatment plants.

In 1963, these three groups accounted for an even 

larger share of all hours—over 66 percent for sewer 

works (see table 3). In both time periods, i.e., 1963 and 

1971, the percentages of total onsite employee-hours 

credited to operating engineers and to laborers, helpers, and tenders were greater in lines than in plants. 

The percentages of onsite employee-hours provided by 

superintendents and blue-collar supervisors were about 

the same for both lines and plants in both survey periods.

11 See John G. Olsen, “Decline Noted in Hours Required to Erect

Federal Office Buildings," Monthly Labor Review, October 1976, pp.

18-22; Joseph T. Finn, “Labor Requirements for School Construction,” Monthly Labor Review, August 1968, pp. 40-43; Robert Ball,

“Labor and Material Requirements for Apartment Construction,”

Monthly Labor Review, January (975, pp. 70-73; Robert Ball and

Larry Ludwig, “Labor Requirements for Construction of SingleFamily Houses,” Monthly Labor Review, September 1971, pp. 12-14;

and Joseph T. Finn, “Labor Requirements for Public Housing,”

Monthly Labor Review, April 1972, pp. 40-42.

4
Table 2. Percent distribution and average annual rate of change of employee-hour requirements per $1,000 of contract cost

for sewer works construction, by industry, 1963 and 1971

(1963 dollars)

Industry

1963 1971 Average annual rate of change,

1963-71

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

All industries ........................................... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 -1 .4 - 1.6 -1 .3

Construction ....................................................... 44.1 44.6 43.3 41.0 40.0 41.0 -2 .2 - 2.9 -2 .0

Onsite ............................................................ 41.7 42.2 40.9 38.8 39.4 37.7 -2 .2 - 2.3 -2 .2

Offsite ............................................................ 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.2 .6 3.3 -2 .7 -1 8.0 2.3

Other industries.................................................. 55.9 55.4 56.7 59.0 60.0 59.0 - .7 - .6 - .8

Manufacturing ............................................. 38.2 37.3 39.4 40.4 40.0 41.5 - .7 - .7 - .6

Wholesale trade, transportation, and

services ..................................................... 11.3 11.3 11.3 12.0 12.8 12.0 - .6 .0 - .6

Mining and o th er........................................ 6.4 6.9 5.9 6.6 7.2 5.5 -1 .0 - .9 -2 .2

NOTE: Percents and rates of change calculated on rounded data. Detail

may not add to 100.0 percent because of rounding.

Distribution of costs

Onsite labor costs accounted for about 25 percent of 

total contract construction costs in 1971. (See chart 2.) 

This was virtually the same percentage as in 1963. 

While onsite wages and salaries remained very stable as 

a percent of costs, other factors of production changed 

considerably in sewer works construction.

The survey indicates that the largest component of 

contract construction costs was for materials, built-in 

equipment, and supplies, excluding contractors’ equipment. Nearly 41 percent of costs in 1971 were accounted for by these factors. However, this represents 

a decline of about 6 percentage points since 1963. The 

most important types of materials including contractors’ equipment were stone, clay, glass, and concrete 

products; machinery except electrical; contractors’ 

equipment; primary metal products; and fabricated 

metal products. Together, these five groups of products 

made up 86 percent of the contract cost of all materials, equipment, and supplies used for sewer works construction in 1971. The same groups also accounted for

Chart 1. Employee-hours per $1,000 of contract cost for sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971

Construction

Manufacturing

Wholesale trade,

transportation,

and services

Mining and other

Employee-hours

0 20 40 60 80

---------------------------- !------------------------- 1-------- -------------------- 1-------------------------- T

100 

----1

5
about 86 percent of contract costs in 1963.

While contractors’ capital equipment costs increased 

slightly (about 1 1/2 percentage points), the overhead 

and profit segment increased substantially, from 18 

percent in 1963 to 23 percent in 1971. The overhead 

and profit segment contains numerous cost elements 

which were not collected separately, such as labor 

payroll costs for office and warehouse employees, supplemental wage benefits for onsite workers, cost of 

construction financing, other overhead expenses, and 

contractors’ profit.

Regional differences

Differences in construction characteristics of sewer 

works reflect regional conditions under which projects 

are erected.12 For example, average onsite hourly earnings were the lowest in the South ($3.97) and highest in 

the Northeast ($6.35) but onsite wages and salaries as 

a percent of total costs for these two regions were 

nearly identical. The reason for this apparent productivity difference is that the relatively cheaper labor in 

the South is utilised more extensively than the relaData from the study were provided for the continental United

States and four broad geographic regions: Northeast—Connecticut,

Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York,

Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont; North Central—Illinois,

Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska,

North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin; South—Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia,

Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia; and West—Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana,

Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

Table 3. Onsite employee-hours per $1,000 of contract cost for sewer works construction, by occupation, 1963 and 1971

O ccupation

1 9 6 3 1971

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

Em ployee

hours

Percent

distribution

Em ployee

hours

Percent

distribution

Em ployee

hours

Percent

distribution

Em ployee

hours

Percent

distribution

Em ployee

hours

Percent

distribution

Em ployee

hours

Percent

distribution

All occupations....... 8 4 .5 1 0 0 .0 8 5 .9 1 0 0 .0 8 2 .7 1 0 0 .0 4 8 .0 1 0 0 .0 4 8 .0 1 0 0 .0 4 7 .0 1 0 0 .0

Professional, technical. f.

and clerical ................... 1 .3 1 .5 1 .0 1 .2 1 .7 2 .0 .6 1 .2 .4 .8 .9 1 .9

Superintendents and

blue-collar supervisors .. 8 .2 9 .7 8 .9 1 0 .4 7 .4 9 .0 5 .6 1 1 .7 6 .1 1 2 .7 4 .9 1 0 .4

Skilled trades ................... 3 0 .5 36.1 2 1 .8 2 5 .4 4 0 .8 4 9 .3 2 0 .5 4 2 .7 1 5 .4 3 2 .0 2 6 .5 5 6 .3

Bricklayers ................ 1 .4 1 .7 1.1 1 .3 1 .7 2 .0 .5 1 .0 .1 .2 .9 1 .9

Carpenters................. 6 .5 7 .7 2.1 2 .4 1 1 .8 1 4 .3 3 .3 6 .9 .6 1.2 6 .7 1 4 .3

Cement finishers ..... 1.1 1 .3 .4 .5 1 .9 2 .3 .9 1 .9 .7 1.5 1 .3 2 .8

Electricians ............... 1.3 1 .5 .1 .1 2 .7 3 .3 1 .4 2 .9 .2 .4 2 .7 5 .7

Ironworkers ............... 1 .6 1 .9 .3 .4 3 .2 3 .9 .9 1.9 .1 .2 2.1 4 .5

Operating engineers .. 1 4 .7 1 7 .4 1 6 .8 1 9 .6 12.1 1 4 .6 9 .8 2 0 .4 1 3 .1 2 7 .3 5 .4 1 1 .4

Painters ...................... .6 .7 — — 1 .2 1 .5 .4 .8 — — .9 1 .9

Plumbers ................... 2.1 2 .5 .3 .4 4 .2 5.1 1 .6 3 .3 — — 3 .4 7 .2

Other skilled trades .. 1 .2 1 .4 .6 .7 1 .9 2 .3 1 .7 3 .5 .6 1 .2 3.1 6 .6

O ilers................................... 2 .4 2 .8 2 .7 3 .2 2.1 2 .5 .9 1 .9 .9 1 .9 1.1 2 .3

Pipelayers .......................... 5.1 6 .0 8 .2 9 .6 1 .3 1 .6 2 .0 4 .2 3 .0 6 .2 .4 .9

Power and handtool

operators........................ 1 .2 1 .4 1 .0 1 .2 1 .4 1 .7 2 .4 5 .0 4 .0 8 .3 .3 .6

Truckdrivers ...................... 2 .7 3 .2 3 .5 4.1 1 .7 2.1 1.6 3 .3 2 .0 4 .2 1 .0 2.1

Laborers, helpers, and

tenders ........................... 3 3 .0 3 9 .1 3 8 .6 4 4 .9 2 6 .3 3 1 .8 1 4 .4 3 0 .0 1 6 .2 3 3 .7 1 1 .8 25.1

NOTE: Detail may not add to totals because of rounding. Dash denotes no data reported.

Table 4. Range of onsite employee-hours per $1,000 of contract cost for sewer works construction, 1971

Principal type of contract United States Northeast South North Central West

Total sewer works .............................. 10 — 237 10 — 237 18 — 163 19 — 98 20 — 85

Total lines ............................................ 10 — 237 10 — 237 18 — 163 28 — 98 20 — 64

Sewer lines ................................... 10 — 237 10 — 237 18 — 163 28 — 70 20 — 64

Lift stations................................... 27 — 54 27 — 43 32 — 54 44 — 44

Sewer lines and other ............... 18 — 101 18 — 71 29 — 101 31 — 98 31 — 61

Total plants ........................................... 19 — 85 24 — 62 39 — 85 19 — 71 28 — 85

Primary treatment plants .......... 27 — 76 40 — 40 .41 — 76 27 — 34 39 — 50

Secondary treatment plants .... 19 — 84 27 — 62 39 — 84 19 — 71 28 — 41

Pumping stations ........................ 24 — 65 24 — 50 65 — 65 33 — 33 33 — 35

Waste stabilization p o nd s......... 28 — 85 — 85 — 85 — 28 — 85

6
Chart 2. Percent distribution of contract costs

for sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971

Percent

1963 1971

Materials,

built-in

equipment,

and supplies

Onsite wages

and salaries

Overhead

and profit

Construction

equipment

tively more expensive labor in the Northeast. That is, in 

the Northeast, machinery and equipment are substituted more freely for relatively more expensive labor. 

Consequently, there is a large differential in the number of onsite employee-hours required between the two 

regions—43 hours per $ 1,000 of cost in the Northeast 

as opposed to 67 hours in the South, as shown in the 

following tabulation:

Onsite employeehours per $ 1,000 of Average hourly

United States ...

contract cost

48

earnings

$5.35

Northeast .............. 43 6.35

North Central ........ 39 5.92

South .................... 67 3.97

West ...................... 39 5.77

The largest disparities among the cost factors were in 

construction equipment costs between the Western and 

the Southern regions, about 6 percent and 15 percent, 

respectively, materials, supplies, and built-in equipment costs of 51 percent and 37 percent for the Western and North Central regions, respectively, and in 

overhead and profit between the Southern and the 

North Central regions, about 16 and 29 percent, respectively. For further details, see “Distribution of 

construction contract costs” in chapter IV of this bulletin.

7
Chapter III. Labor Requirements and Characteristics

Onsite

Onsite labor requirements per 1,000 current dollars 

of contract value averaged 48 hours in 1971 for sewer 

works at the national level. The requirements were 

virtually identical for lines and plants—48 and 47 

hours, respectively. The comparable data for 1962-63 

were 86 hours for lines and 83 hours for plants. A 

major portion of the decline in onsite labor hours was 

the result of inflationary forces and the concomitant 

reduction in the purchasing power of construction 

capital. The tabulation below compares the onsite labor hours of the two studies on a constant-dollar basis.

Employee-hours per $1,000, Average

1963 dollars annual

percent

1962-63 1971 change

Total ....... 85 71 -2.2

Lines ................ 86 71 -2.3

Plants ............... 83 69 -2.2

After removing the effects of cost inflation, onsite 

labor hours declined over 2 percent a year for both 

lines and plants. However, this decline cannot be attributed solely to improved efficiency in the utilization of 

onsite labor. Other factors involved are shifts in the mix 

of materials, construction methods, and characteristics 

of the structure. Nevertheless, there is an indication of 

improved onsite worker productivity.

Labor requirements by region. Onsite employee-hours 

per $1,000 of construction cost for 1971 for each 

region are indicated below:

Total Lines Plants

United States ......... 48 48 47

Northeast ......................... 43 37 46

North Central .................. 39 42 36

South ............................... 67 67 66

West ................................ 39 41 38

The data demonstrate that on the national level there 

is no significant difference between the labor requirements for sewer lines compared with treatment plants. 

However, except in the South, the regional data show

significant variation in the onsite employee-hour requirements. These regional differences are largely the 

result of the regional variation in project mix, the available labor supply, and the local prevailing wage rates. 

The high labor requirements in the South reflect the 

existence of a large local pool of unskilled labor and 

low wage rates; hence, there is a preference for the use 

of labor rather than construction machinery.

The onsite labor hours for individual projects ranged 

nationally from 10 to 237 per $1,000 in sewer line 

construction, and for treatment plants, from 19 to 85 

hours per $1,000. (See table 4.) For the United States 

as a whole, the variation in hours was greater in the 

construction of sewer lines than for treatment plants 

but the range varied among the regions. In the Northeast the onsite employee-hour spread was the same as 

for the United States. However, the spread was narrower in the other regions.

Labor requirements by occupation. Forty-three percent 

of the onsite employee-hours required to construct 

sewer facilities were performed by operating engineers 

and other skilled tradesworkers, e.g., carpenters, electricians, etc. (See table 3.) Unskilled and semiskilled 

workers, i.e., laborers, helpers, tenders, truckdrivers, 

etc., accounted for 44 percent of onsite labor requirements. However, the occupational distribution of sewer 

line construction differs from that for treatment plants.

Operating engineers were credited with 27 percent 

of the onsite hours required to construct sewers, 

whereas they performed only 11 percent of the onsite 

hours used to erect the treatment plants. The other 

skilled trades accounted for only 5 percent of the onsite 

labor for sewer lines. On the other hand, these trades 

provided 45 percent of the onsite employee-hours required to build treatment plants. Unskilled and semiskilled workers performed a substantial portion of the 

onsite employee-hours required by both types of construction. They accounted for 54 percent of the onsite 

hours for sewer lines and 31 percent for treatment 

plants.

The occupational pattern for sewer lines is one that is 

naturally associated with construction that requires 

excavating, pipe handling, and backfilling. These activities call for operators of a large amount of heavy 

construction equipment—backhoes, cranes, trench -

8
ers—in addition to a substantial amount of semiskilled 

and unskilled labor. This is shown by the fact that 82 

percent of the onsite labor requirements for sewer line 

construction and only 42 percent of the onsite labor 

hours for the erection of treatment plants were performed by these occupations.

Regionally, the percentage distribution of onsite employee-hours among operating engineers, skilled 

tradesworkers, and semiskilled and unskilled workers 

generally resembled the national pattern. However, 

there were a few significant exceptions. In the construction of treatment plants, the South showed relatively greater use of operating engineers and semiskilled and unskilled workers, and less use of the other 

skilled tradesworkers. On the other hand, in the North 

Central region the relationship was reversed, as is 

shown in the following tabulation:

Percent distribution of onsite hours for

treatment plants

Operating

United States South North Central

engineers........

Other skilled

11.4 19.6 6.3

tradesworkers.. 

Semiskilled and 

unskilled

44.9 27.3 57.7

workers.......... 31.0 36.8 26.9

There are two other significant departures from the 

national averages. These occurred in regard to the use 

of skilled tradesworkers13 in sewer line construction. In 

the North Central region only 1.7 percent of onsite 

labor hours were attributable to these occupations, 

compared to 9.2 percent in the West. The national 

average was 4.7 percent. Regional differences in the 

distribution of employee-hours by occupation are difficult to interpret. They may be due largely to the chance 

occurrence of projects with unusual features or to local 

differences in job classification.

Since operating engineers made up such a large percentage of sewer works construction hours, a separate 

tabulation was made of labor requirements by type of 

operating engineer. (See table 5.) Five types of operating engineers—bulldozer, front-end loader, backhoe, 

crane-shovel dragline, and pump and compressor operators—made up over 80 percent of this occupational 

group at the national level. These types of operating 

engineers generally are dominant in each of the four 

regions.

Apprentice onsite employee-hours. The 1963 survey 

showed that employee-hours for apprentices as a percent of skilled onsite employee-hours were significant 

mainly in the plumbing and electrical trades. The 1971 

study found that, while apprentices continued to be 

utilized extensively in these two trades, their propor-

<3 Other than operating engineers.

tion of the total onsite employee-hours increased substantially in the carpentry, bricklaying, cement finishing, and ironworking trades. (See table 6.)

Offsite

Offsite employee-hours represent builders’ administrative office and warehousing activities, and the labor 

to produce and distribute the materials, equipment, 

and supplies required at the construction site. Major 

categories involved are: (1) Offsite construction, (2) 

manufacturing, (3) wholesale trade, transportation, 

and services, and (4) mining and other industries either 

directly or indirectly involved in the production and 

distribution process. (See chart 3.)

Offsite or indirect labor requirements are higher than 

onsite requirements as a percent of total labor demand 

and have grown larger since 1963. Offsite requirements, including offsite construction, went from 58 

percent of total requirements in 1963 to 61 percent in 

1971 for sewer works construction. This trend is expected to continue as the prefinishing of materials 

offsite and the use of more complex, expensive equipment shift jobs away from the construction site to 

industries such as manufacturing.

Builders' offsite employee-hours. Three employeehours per $1,000 of contract costs were expended in 

this category for sewer works in 1971.14 This includes 

contractors’ administrative, coordinating, estimating, 

scheduling, engineering (but not design work), maintenance, site protection, and warehousing activities. The 

figure for 1963 was 5 hours. Both of these figures 

represent slightly more than 2 percent, a relatively 

small portion, of total labor requirements for sewer 

works construction. This is so because general contractors often limit their major responsibilities to overall 

coordination, scheduling, control, and supervision of 

construction.

Manufacturing. Manufacturing was by far the largest 

and most important contributor of offsite employeehours because the bulk of materials, supplies, and 

equipment required for construction were produced in 

that sector. Manufacturing contributed 50 employeehours per $1,000 of contract cost in 1971 and 78 hours 

in 1963. This represents over 40 percent of total labor

14 Offsite construction employee-hours were estimated from the

ratio of nonconstruction workers to total workers for total contract

construction as shown in the March issues of Employment and Earnings (Bureau of Labor Statistics) for the years covered or Employment and Earnings, United States, 1909-72, Bulletin 1312-9 (Bureau

of Labor Statistics). The resulting ratio was applied to the onsite

hours obtained from the survey. An adjustment was made to remove

administrative and clerical hours already counted in the onsite figures.

9
Table 5. Operating engineers: Onsite employee-hours and percent distribution per $1,000 of contract cost, United States and

regions, 1971

Type of

operating engineer

United States Northeast

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

Em ployee

hours

Percent

of total

hours

Em ployee

hours

Percent

of total

hours

Em ployee

hours

Percent

o f total

hours

Em ployee

hours

Percent

of total

hours

Em ployee

hours

Percent

of total

hours

Em ployee

hours

Percent

of total

hours

Total .......................... 9 .8 2 0 .4 13.1 2 7 .3 5 .4 1 1 .4 7.1 1 6 .4 9 .5 2 5 .7 4 .7 1 0 .3

Bulldozer operator .......... 1 .7 3 .5 1 .9 4 .0 1 .2 2 .6 .6 1 .4 .7 1 .8 .6 1 .2

Roller operator................. .0 .0 .1 .2 .0 .0 .1 .2 .2 .4 .0 .0

Trencher operator ........... .4 .8 .7 1 .5 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0

Front-end loader operator . 1 .5 3 .2 2 .5 5 .0 .3 .7 1 .5 3 .5 2 .7 7 .5 .4 .8

Backhoe operator............ 1 .6 3 .3 2 .2 4 .5 .8 1 .6 1 .0 2 .3 1.1 3 .0 .9 2 .0

Crane-shovel dragline

operator ......................... 1 .8 3 .7 2.1 4 .4 1 .3 2 .7 1 .4 3 .3 1 .5 4 .0 1 .3 2 .9

Tractor operator .............. .1 .2 .1 .2 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0

Pump and compressor

operator ......................... 1 .3 2 .7 2.1 4 .3 .3 .7 .8 1 .8 .9 2 .5 .6 1 .3

Scraper operator ............. .1 .3 .2 .5 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0

Other operating

engineers ....................... 1 .3 2 .7 1 .2 2 .6 1 .5 3.1 1 .7 3 .9 2 .4 6 .5 .9 2.1

North Central South

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

Percent Percent Percent Percent Percent Percent

Em ployee of total Em ployee of total Em ployee o f total Em ployee of total Em ployee of total Em ployee of total

hours hours hours hours hours hours hours hours hours hours hours hours

Total .......................... 8 .0 2 0 .4 1 1 .2 2 6 .6 2 .3 6 .3 1 7 .6 2 6 .2 1 9 .2 2 8 .6 1 2 .9 1 9 .6

Bulldozer operator .......... 1 .5 3 .8 1 .9 4 .6 .7 1 .9 3 .5 5 .2 2 .9 4 .3 4 .7 7.1

Roller operator................. .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .1 .2 .0 .0

Trencher operator ........... .2 .6 .4 .9 .0 .0 1 .4 2.1 1 .9 2 .9 .1 .2

Front-end loader operator . 1 .4 3 .7 2 .2 5 .2 .1 .2 1.8 2 .7 2 .5 3 .7 .3 .4

Backhoe operator............ 1 .8 4 .6 2 .8 6 .5 .1 .2 2 .6 3 .8 2 .7 4 .0 1 .8 2 .7

Crane-shovel-dragline

operator ......................... 1.7 4 .3 2.1 5.1 .8 2 .2 2 .4 3 .6 2 .9 4 .3 .8 1.2

Tractor operator .............. .1 .2 .2 .4 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0

Pump and compressor

operator ......................... .1 .2 .0 .0 .2 .5 4 .0 5 .9 5 .3 7 .9 .3 .4

Scraper operator ............. .1 .2 .1 .3 .0 .0 .4 .6 .6 .9 .0 .0

Other operating

engineers ....................... 1.1 2 .8 1 .5 3 .6 .4 1 .3 1.5 2 .3 .3 .4 4 .9 7 .6

W est

Total Lines Plants

Percent Percent Percent

Employee of total Em ployee of total Em ployee o f total

hours hours hours hours hours hours

T o ta l............................. 5 .4 1 3 .8 1 0 .7 26.1 3 .2 ■ 8 .5

Bulldozer operator ............. 1 .0 2 .6 2 .7 6 .3 .3 .9

Roller operator..................... .0 .0 .0 .1 .0 .0

Trencher operator .............. .0 .0 .0 .0 .0 .0

Front-end loader operator . 1.0 2 .6 2 .3 5 .7 .4 1 .0

Backhoe operator............... .9 2 .3 2 .2 5 .4 .3 .9

Crane-shovel-dragline operator.......... 1 .4 3 .7 1 .8 4 .4 1 .3 3 .4

Tractor operator ................. .4 .9 .6 1 .5 .3 .7

Pump and compressor operator......... .0 .0 .2 .5 .0 .0

Scraper operator ................ .0 .0 .1 .2 .0 .0

Other operating engineers .7 1 .7 .8 2 .0 .6 1.6

10
Chart 3. Employee-hours per $1,000 of contract cost for sewer line and plant construction,

19t>3 and 1971

Construction

Manufacturing

Wholesale trade,

transportation,

and services

Mining and other

Employee-hours

Tabl* 6. Apprentice employee-hours as a percent of skilled

onsite employment for sewer works construction, by

occupation and major construction type, 1963 and 1971

1971 1 963

O c c u p a tio n

T o ta l L in es P la n ts T o ta l L in es P la n ts

All skilled trades ....

Operating

3.5 0.1 5.9 2.2 1.1 2.9

engineers ..... .3 .1 1.0 .2 .4 —

Carpenters ....... 6.3 — 7.0 2.0 4.6 1.5

Plumbers .......... 7.8 6.2 7.8 8.9 18.9 8.0

Ironworkers..... 2.6 .7 2.6 1.4 — 1.6

Bricklayers ....... 4.6 — 5.5 1.5 — 2.7

Electricians .....

Cement finishers

13.4 3.6 14.2 14.1 8.3 14.5

2.3 — 3.9 1.0 — 1.2

Painters ............

Other skilled

2.5 — 2.6 1.7 — 1.8

trades ............ 5.5 .2 6.8 5.2 .4 7.1

requirements in 1971 and about 38 percent in 1963. 

Important components of this sector are stone, clay, 

glass, and concrete products; construction equipment; 

and machinery, except electrical.

Wholesale trade, transportation, and services. For sewer

works construction, about 15 employee-hours per 

$1,000 were generated in industries which provide 

transportation or other services for materials, either 

between processing stages or between the last stage of 

manufacturing and the construction site. About 23 

hours were generated in 1963. Wholesale trade, transportation, and services accounted for about 12 and 11 

percent in 1971 and 1963, respectively, of total employee-hour requirements. In future studies, an attempt 

will be made to include the employee-hours expended 

in the retail trade sector. This would have the effect of 

raising labor requirements a few hours per $1,000 of 

contract cost.

Mining and other industries. Measured in this category 

is the labor impact of producing materials, equipment, 

and supplies from mining, agriculture, communications, public utilities, finance, insurance, real estate, 

and government enterprises. This sector accounted for 

8 employee-hours per $ 1,000 of contract cost for sewer 

works in 1971 and 13 hours in 1963, contributing 

about 7 and 6 percent, respectively, of total labor 

requirements.

11
Chapter IV. Distribution of Costs and Wages

Distribution of construction contract costs

The distribution of costs in 1971 was as follows: 25 

percent for onsite wages and salaries, 52 percent for 

materials, supplies, and equipment, and 23 percent for 

overhead and profit. (See table 7.) The cost distribution varied only slightly between lines and plants. (See 

chart 4.) However, there was a major difference in cost 

components between lines and plants regarding the use 

of construction equipment as opposed to materials, 

supplies, and built-in equipment. Construction equipment accounted for about 17 percent of the cost for 

lines and about 6 percent for plants. On the other hand, 

materials, supplies, and built-in equipment accounted 

for a much larger share for plants than for lines, i.e., 

about 47 and 35 percent, respectively.

Onsite labor costs as a percent of total cost for sewer 

line construction did not change between 1963 and 

1971. Materials, equipment, and supplies declined to 

51.9 percent in 1971 from 55.7 percent in 1963, while 

the percentage allocated to profit and overhead increased to 23.8 percent from 20.0 percent.

A similar shift in the allocation of the construction 

costs occurred for treatment plants surveyed. Onsite 

labor costs decreased only slightly, to 25.2 percent in 

1971 from 26.6 percent in 1963. On the other hand, 

the share of materials, equipment, and supplies 

dropped to 52.6 percent in 1971 from 57.4 percent in 

1963. Profit and overhead climbed to 22.2 percent in 

1971 from 16.0 percent in 1963.

The total cost allotted to materials, equipment, and

Chart 4. Percent distribution of contract costs

for sewer line and plant construction,

1963 and 1971

Materials,

built-in

equipment,

and supplies

Onsite wages

and salaries

Overhead and

profit

Construction

equipment

Table 7. Percent distribution of contract costs for sewer works construction, United States, 1963 and 1971, and regions, 1971

U n ite d S ta te s R e g io n s . 1971

T y p e o f 1 963 1971 N o rth e a s t N o rth C e n tra l S o u th W e s t

c o s t T o ta l L in es P la n ts T o ta l L in e s P la n ts T o ta l L in e s P la n ts T o ta l L in e s P la n ts T o ta l L in es P la n ts T o ta l L in es P la n ts

Total expenditures . 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Onsite wages and

salaries.....................

Materials, built-in

25.3 24.3 26.6 24.7 24.3 25.2 26.0 24.1 27.4 23.4 24.2 21.8 25.5 25.3 26.0 22.2 21.2 22.6

equipment, and

supplies....................

Construction

46.6 44.5 49.2 40.7 35.2 47.0 37.9 35.1 39.8 36.5 29.0 51.3 43.2 39.2 53.5 50.6 41.4 54.2

equipm ent............... 9.9 11.2 8.2 11.5 16.7 5.6 11.7 19.1 6.5 10.8 14.5 3.6 15.0 17.9 7.4 5.8 10.8 3.8

Overhead and profit i ... 18.2 20.0 16.0 23.1 23.8 22.2 24.4 21.7 26.3 29.3 32.4 23.3 16.3 17.6 13.1 21.4 26.6 19.3

i Overhead costs include salaries of offsite workers, supplemental NOTE: Detail may not add to 100.0 percent because of rounding,

benefits, interest expense, bonding, office expense, inventory and other

overhead and miscellaneous expenses.

12
supplies declined by 6.8 percent for sewer lines and 8.4 

percent for plants. (For more detailed description of 

material costs, see next section.) However, the profit 

and overhead portion increased by 19 percent for 

sewer lines and 38.7 percent for plants. This sharp 

change in the relative position of these components is 

largely the result of differential shifts in costs among 

the various categories. The cost of sewer works construction increased over 47 percent between the two 

survey periods, as measured by the EPA price indexes 

for sewer lines and treatment plants, while the wholesale price index for all construction materials rose only 

20 percent.

The cost distributions for the regions were similar to 

the distribution for the Nation, but there were some 

differences. The North Central region showed the 

greatest proportion of contract dollars allotted to overhead and profit for sewer lines (32.4 percent). The 

South had the lowest percentage in that cost category 

for both sewer lines and plants: 17.6 and 13.1 percent, 

respectively. In both regions, the materials, equipment, 

and supplies cost component exhibited the same inverse relationship with the profit and overhead component that was observed nationally: As one decreased 

the other increased. The survey did not provide information regarding the items included in overhead. One 

of these items would be the cost of fringe benefits 

received by the worker. These benefits would tend to 

be less costly in an area like the South, where unions 

are not strong, than in the more highly unionized areas, 

such as the North Central region. The variation in the 

level of fringe benefits may partially explain the fact 

that the percentages of the total contract cost allotted 

to profit and overhead in the regions differ markedly. A 

definitive explanation of this situation cannot be made 

without further research.

Wages as a percent of contract coats

When the percent distribution of the weighted total 

cost of all contracts was arrayed by region and type of

construction in class intervals by percent of construction contract amount allocated to onsite wages, the 

class with the greatest percent of the weighted total 

contract value (the modal class) was usually 20 to 

under 30 percent. (See table 8.) The exceptions were 

the Northeast and the West for sewer line construction 

where the modal class was 10 to under 20 percent. 

However, at the national level the modal class for both 

lines and plants was 20 to under 30 percent in 1963 and 

1971.

Materials, equipment, and supplies

The total of all expenditures for materials, supplies, 

and equipment per $1,000 of construction contract 

cost for sewer works construction in the 1971 survey 

was $522.01 (table 9), a decline of $42.69 or 7.6 

percent from the previous study. The cost of materials, 

equipment, and supplies for lines in 1971 was $519.23; 

the cost for plants was $525.20. These represent decreases since 1963 of 6.8 and 8.5 percent, respectively.

Materials, equipment, and supplies used in sewer 

works construction accounted for 52.2 percent of each 

$1,000 of construction contract cost (table 10). For 

lines it was 51.9 percent and for plants 52.5 percent. 

The comparable data for 1963 were: All sewer works 

construction, 56.5 percent; lines, 55.7 percent; and 

plants, 57.4 percent.

These declines were largely the result of the increase 

in the proportion of the construction dollar represented 

by other cost factors, primarily costs allocated to profit 

and overhead.

The distribution of materials shown in table 10 indicates the relative importance of the various product 

groups. The stone, clay, glass, and concrete products 

category ranked first with 29 percent of the total product value for sewer works constructed in 1971; contractor equipment was second with 22 percent. This 

group was followed by machinery except electrical, 18 

percent; primary metal products, 9 percent; and fabriTabie 8. Percent distribution of contract cost for sewer works construction by percent of contract cost expended for wages,

United States, 1963 and 1971, and regions, 1971

Wages as a percent of

contract cost

United States Regions, 1971

1963 1971 Northeast North Central South West

Lines Plants Lines Plants Lines Plants Lines Plants Lines Plants Lines Plants

Total ................. 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Under 1 0 ...................... 2.5 1.1 .4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.1 0.0 0.0 0.0

10 and under 20 ....... 30.8 8.7 25.0 19.9 49.5 9.8 5.8 26.7 14.2 16.0 57.2 39.0

20 and under 30 ........ 47.2 61.5 65.9 63.4 35.1 62.8 87.4 61.1 82.6 71.1 21.4 81.0

30 and under 40 ........ 15.8 28.4 8.7 14.7 15.4 23.1 6.8 12.2 2.1 12.9 21.3 0.0

40 and under 50 ........ 3.7 .3 0.0 2.0 0.0 4.4 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

NOTE: Detail may not add to 100.0 percent because of rounding.

13
cated metal products, 8 percent. These product groups 

ranked in the same order with regard to sewer works 

construction in 1963.

As would be expected, the various construction 

products that were used to construct sewer lines were 

used in proportions that differed sharply from those 

required to erect sewage treatment plants. The following tabulation shows the percent of the total made up 

by the leading groups of materials, equipment, and 

supplies used to construct sewer works in 1971:

Product group Sewer lines Treatment plants

Total .................... 100 100

Stone, clay, glass, and

concrete products ........ 41 16

Contractor equipment ..... 32 11

Primary metal products .... 7 11

Petroleum refining and

related products ........... 5 1

Machinery, except

electrical ..................... 4 34

Fabricated metal products . 2 14

All other ......................... 9 13

Over 50 percent of the value of the stone, clay, glass, 

and concrete products used to construct sewer lines 

consisted of concrete pipe. A comparatively insignificant amount of concrete pipe went into the erection of 

the sewage treatment plants. The leading product 

group used for treatment plants, machinery except 

electrical, consisted largely of built-in sewage processing equipment.

There were a few significant shifts in the distribution 

of the major groups of materials, supplies, and equipment between 1963 and 1971. There was a decline in 

the percentage allotted to stone, clay, glass, and concrete products for lines; an increase in the proportion 

spent on machinery, except electrical, for plants; and 

an increase in the proportion spent on contractor

equipment for lines. Several factors can account for 

these shifts. In addition to the general decline in materials costs for a given unit of costs (i.e., $ 1,000), substitution of one type of material for another and relative 

price changes can account for the change.

Total materials, equipment, and supplies used to 

construct sewer works break down into 11 major 

groups. The expenditures for six of these groups increased between 1963 and 1971 while the expenditures 

for the remaining five groups decreased during the 

same period. The decreases were sufficiently large to 

offset the increases that occurred in the remaining six 

groups.

The following tabulation lists selected products that 

showed significant shifts between 1963 and 1971 in 

value per $ 1,000 of contract cost of the total materials, 

equipment, and supplies used to construct sewer lines

and plants:

1963 1971

Percent

change

Sewer lines:

Asphalt paving ............. $7.40 $15.06 + 104

Asbestos cement pipe .... 7.20 14.31 + 99

Contractor equipment ... 112.50 167.28 + 49

Pumps, compressors, and 

pumping equipment ... 15.80 2.84 — 82

Reinforcing rods and 

bars-joist ................... 4.70 2.69 - 43

Sand and gravel ........... 22.80 14.75 - 35

Treatment plants:

Steel pipe ..................... 6.70 12.41 + 85

Asphalt paving ............. 1.60 2.72 + 70

Chlorinators ................. 2.40 3.78 + 58

Electric meters and 

measuring equipment . 3.90 .87 ___ 78

Mechanical collectors .... 34.10 8.47 — 75

Power distributors and 

specialty transformers . 4.30 1.72 — 60

Table 9. Materials, equipment, and supplies used In sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971

Per $1,000 of contract cost

Item 1963 1971

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

Total materials,

equipment, and

supplies................ $564.70 $557.20 $573.90 $522.01 $519.23 $525.20

Materials, built-in equipment, and supplies

Total materials, built-in

equipment, and supplies 466.10 444.70 492.10 406.80 351.95 469.57

Agricultural products................... 1.00 .40 1.80 1.08 1.28 .84

Nursery..................................... 1.00 .40 1.80 1.08 1.28 .84

Mining and quarrying of

nonmetallic minerals except

fuels .............................................. 20.10 25.90 13.00 12.22 17.80 5.83

Sand and gravel .....................

Other nonmetallic minerals

17.70 22.80 11.50 10.06 14.75 4.70

except fuels ........................ 2.40 3.10 1.50 2.16 3.05 1.13

14
Table 9. Materials, equipment, and supplies used in sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971—Continued

Per $1,000 of contract cost

Item 1963 1971

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

Materials, built-in equipment, and supplies

Lumber and wood products

except furniture ......................... 6.70 4.40 9.40 10.28 7.96 12.92

Dimension lumber ................

Other lumber and wood

5.40 4.20 6.90 5.81 3.13 8.87

products .............................. 1.30 .20 2.50 4.47 4.83 4.05

Chemical and allied products..... 3.60 2.00 5.60 5.28 5.93 4.56

Dynamite and caps ............... 1.80 1.30 2.50 2.79 4.99 .29

Paint .........................................

Other chemical and allied

1.10 .10 2.40 1.12 .06 2.34

products ............................... .70 .60 .70 1.37 .88 1.93

Petroleum refining and related

products ...................................... 14.00 16.80 10.60 16.44 25.03 6.54

Fuels, diesel fuel, gas, oil,

grease ................................... 8.70 9.20 8.00 6.45 9.38 3.14

Asphalt paving ....................... 4.80 7.40 1.60 9.30 15.06 2.72

Other petroleum products ... .50 .20 1.00 .69 .59 .68

Stone, clay, glass, and concrete

products ...................................... 214.50 311.30 96.30 151.22 211.71 82.03

Concrete p ip e ......................... 88.00 147.40 15.70 64.48 108.05 14.82

Ready mixed concrete ......... 29.80 16.30 46.30 24.99 16.81 34.35

Concrete block....................... 2.50 2.40 2.70 1.29 .49 2.20

Asbestos cement pipe ..........

Other stone, clay, glass, and

6.00 7.20 4.50 9.05 14.31 3.04

concrete products............. 88.20 138.00 27.10 51.41 72.05 27.62

Primary metal products ............... 64.20 49.00 83.10 47.98 38.32 58.94

Cast iron p ip e......................... 34.10 28.50 41.00 23.05 20.15 26.38

Steel p ip e ................................. 8.00 9.00 6.70 10.55 8.93 12.41

Structural steel.......................

Cast iron products

8.80 .70 18.70 6.17 1.05 12.02

(manholes, etc.) .................. 5.50 8.80 1.40 3.51 5.31 1.45

Fence posts, fencing ............ 1.80 .50 3.40 2.21 .96 3.61

Other primary metal

products .......................... 6.00 1.50 11.90 2.49 1.92 3.07

Fabricated metal products.......... 41.50 13.30 75.50 39.84 11.43 72.85

Reinforcing rods and bars;

joist .......................................

Pipe fittings and plumbing

15.30 4.70 28.20 10.94 2.69 20.83

fixtures ................................. 8.30 2.30 15.70 9.42 1.61 18.36

Metal plate products ............

Fabricated metal plate

4.20 1.70 7.30 1.94 .04 4.13

products ..............................

Metal doors, windows, and

3.40 .60 6.70 1.62 .08 3.39

fram es...................................

Other fabricated metal

2.50 .80 4.60 1.74 .08 3.66

products ............................... 7.80 3.20 13.00 14.18 6.93 22.48

Machinery, except electrical....... 66.40 16.80 128.20 94.55 23.29 176.01

Sewage "packaged"

equipm ent...........................

Other sewage injector and

N.A. N.A. N.A. 32.59 19.35 47.75

disposal equipment...........

Blowers, exhaust and

N.A. N.A. N.A. 10.05 0) 21.54

ventilating fans ................... 2.40 .20 5.00 1.02 .23 1.93

Chlorinators............................

Pumps, compressors, and

1.10 0) 2.40 1.82 .11 3.78

pumping equipment.......... 27.20 15.80 41.00 15.44 2.84 29.86

Collectors, m echanical......... 15.40 0) 34.10 3.96 .01 8.47

Digesters, clarifiers............... 10.00 .10 22.10 11.69 .07 24.98

Diffusers...................................

Other machinery, except

5.10 (D 11.40 3.09 .08 6.52

electrical.............................. 5.20 .70 12.20 14.89 .60 31.18

Electrical machinery, equipment.

and supplies................................ 26.80 4.10 54.60 19.26 5.33 35.31

Power distribution and

specialty transformers ......

Electrical switchboards and

1.90 d) 4.30 1.56 1.43 1.72

panel boards.......................

Electric motors and

12.80 1.40 26.80 6.96 1.48 13.64

generators........................... 1.40 .20 3.00 1.95 1.14 2.88

15
Table 9. Materials, equipment, and supplies used in sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971—Continued

Per $1,000 of contract cost

Item 1963 1971

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

Materials, built-in equipment, and supplies

Electric meters and

measuring equipment ....... 2.10 .60 3.90 .51 .20 .87

Conduit and conduit fittings 1.60 .40 3.20 1.69 .28 3.31

Current-carrying devices .....

Lighting fixtures and

1.20 .20 2.40 .47 .15 .84

nonelectric lamps and

b u lbs..................................... 1.00 .20 2.10 1.15 .07 2.38

Other electric equipment and

supplies ............................... 4.80 1.10 8.90 4.97 .58 9.67

All other types of materials, builtin equipment, and supplies ..... 7.30 .70 14.00 8.65 3.87 13.74

Contractor equipment

Total, contractor

equipment2 ...................... 98.60 112.50 81.80 115.21 167.28 55.63

Drill rigs .......................................... N.A. N.A. N.A. 29.54 46.70 9.87

Front-end loaders ......................... N.A. N.A. N.A. 16.12 26.89 3.78

Trucks ..............................................

Power cranes, drag lines,

N.A. N.A. N.A. 11.98 17.20 6.03

shovels......................................... N.A. N.A. N.A. 15.44 18.36 12.11

Tractors and bulldozers .............. N.A. N.A. N.A. 14.24 16.96 11.13

Other ................................................ N.A. N.A. N.A. 27.89 41.17 12.71

t insufficient data.

2 Rental value if rented, depreciation or equivalent rental value if NOTE: Dollar figures for 1963 are rounded to the nearest 10 cents,

owned. Detail may not add to totals because of rounding.

N.A. = Not available.

Table 10. Percent distribution of materials, equipment, and supplies for sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971

Percent

Item 1963 1971

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

Total materials. , * . ; . .

equipment, and ' {,.-V , •

supplies................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Materials, built-in equipment, and supplies

Total materials, built-in *

equipment, and supplies . 82.54 79.81 85.75 77.93 67.78 89.41

Agricultural products.................... .18 .07 .31 .21 .25 .16

Nursery products .................. .18 .07 .31 .21 .25 .16

Mining and quarrying of

nonmetallic minerals except

fuels .............................................. 3.56 4.65 2.27 2.34 3.43 1.11

Sand and gravel .....................

Other nonmetallic minerals

3.13 4.09 2.00 1.93 2.84 .89

except fuel .......................... .43 .56 .26 .41 .59 .22

Lumber and wood products

except furniture ......................... 1.19 .79 1.64 1.97 1.53 2.46

Dimension lumber ................

Other lumber and wood

.96 .75 1.20 1.11 .60 1.69

products .............................. .23 .04 .44 .86 .93 .77

Chemical and allied products..... .64 .36 .98 1.01 1.14 .87

Dynamite and caps ............... .32 .23 .44 .53 .96 .06

Paint .........................................

Other chemical and allied

.19 .02 .42 .21 .01 .45

products .............................. .12 .11 .12 .26 .17 .37

Petroleum refining and related

products ...................................... 2.48 3.02 1.85 3.15 4.82 1.25

Fuels, diesel fuel, gas, oil,

and grease .......................... .54 1.65 1.39 1.24 1.81 .60

Asphalt paving ....................... .85 1.33 .28 1.78 2.90 .52

Other petroleum products ... .09 .04 .17 .13 .11 .13

16
Table 10. Percent distribution of materials, equipment, and supplies for sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971—Continued

Percent

Item 1963 1971

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

Materials, built-in equipment, and supplies

Stone, clay, glass, and concrete

products ...................................... 37.98 55.87 16.78 28.97 40.77 15.62

Concrete p ip e ......................... 15.58 26.45 2.74 12.35 20.81 2.82

Ready mixed concrete ......... 5.28 2.93 8.07 4.79 3.24 6.54

Concrete block....................... .44 .43 .47 .25 .09 .42

Asbestos cement pipe ..........

Other stone, clay, glass, and

1.06 1.29 .78 1.73 2.76 .58

concrete products............. 15.62 24.77 4.72 9.85 13.88 5.26

Primary metal products............... 11.37 8.79 14.48 9.19 7.38 11.22

Cast iron p ip e ......................... 6.04 5.11 7.14 4.42 3.88 5.02

Steel p ip e ................................. 1.42 1.62 1.17 2.02 1.72 2.36

Structural steel.......................

Cast iron products (manhole

1.56 .13 3.26 1.18 .20 2.29

covers, etc.) ........................ .97 1.58 .24 .67 1.02 .28

Fence posts, fencing ............

Other primary metal

.32 .09 .59 .42 .18 .69

products .............................. 1.06 .27 2.07 .48 .37 .58

Fabricated metal products.......... 7.35 2.39 13.16 7.63 2.20 13.87

Reinforcing rods and bars;

joist .......................................

Pipe fittings and plumbing

2.71 .84 4.91 2.10 .52 3.97

fixtures ................................. 1.47 .41 2.74 1.80 .31 3.50

Metal plate products ............

Fabricated metal plate

.74 .31 1.27 .37

i

.01 .79

products ..............................

Metal doors, windows, and

.60 .11 1.17 .31 .02 .65

fram es...................................

Other fabricated metal

.44 .14 .80 .33 .02 .70

products .............................. 1.38 .57 2.27 2.72 1.33 4.28

Machinery, except electrical....... 11.76 3.02 22.34 18.11 4.49 33.51

Sewage "packaged"

equipment ...........................

Other sewage injector and

N.A. N.A. N.A. 6.24 3.73 9.09

disposal equipm ent...........

Blowers, exhaust and

N.A. N.A. N.A. 1.93 (1) 4.10

ventilating fans ................... .43 .04 .87 .20 .04 .37

Chlorinators............................

Pumps, compressors, and

.19 (i) .42 .35 .02 .72

pumping equipm ent.......... 4.82 2.84 7.14 2.96 .55 5.69

Collectors, m echanical......... 2.73 <1) 5.94 .76 (2) 1.61

Digesters, clarifiers............... 1.77 .02 3.85 2.24 .01 4.76

Diffusers...................................

Other machinery, except

.90 0) 1.99 .59 .02 1.24

electrical.............................. .92 .13 2.13 2.85 .12 5.94

Electrical machinery, equipment.

and supplies............................... 4.75 .74 9.51 3.69 1.03 6.72

Power distribution and

specialty transformers ......

Electrical switchboards and

.34 0) .75 .30 .28 .33

panel boards.......................

Electrical motors and

2.27 .25 4.67 1.33 .29 2.60

generators...........................

Electrical meters and

.25 .04 .52 .38 .22 .55

measuring equipm ent....... .37 .11 .68 .10 .04 .17

Conduit and conduit fittings . .28 .07 .56 .32 .05 .63

Current-carrying devices .....

Lighting fixtures and non-

.21 .04 .42 .09 .03 .16

electric lamps and bulbs ..

Other electric equipment and

.18 .04 .37 .22 .01 .45

supplies ............................... .85 .20 1.55 .95 .11 1.84

All other types of materials, builtin equipment, and supplies.... 1.29 .13 2.44 1.66 .75 2.62

17
Table 10. Percent distribution of materials, equipment, and supplies for sewer works construction, 1963 and 1971—Continued

Percent

Item 1963 1971

Total Lines Plants Total Lines Plants

Contractor equipment

Total, contractor

equipments.......................... 17.46 20.19 14.25 22.07 32.22 10.59

Drill rigs .......................................... N.A. N.A. N.A. 5.66 8.99 1.88

Front-end loaders .........................

Power cranes, drag lines.

N.A. N.A. N.A. 3.09 5.18 .72

shovels......................................... N.A. N.A. N.A. 2.96 3.54 2.31

Tractors and bulldozers .............. N.A. N.A. N.A. 2.73 3.27 2.12

Trucks .............................................. N.A. N.A. N.A. 2.29 3.31 1.15

Other ................................................ N.A. N.A. N.A. 5.34 7.93 2.42

1 1nsufficient data. N.A. = Not available.

2 Less than .01 percent.

3 Rental value if rented, depreciation or equivalent rental value if NOTE: Detail may not add to 100.0 percent because of rounding,

owned.

i

4

18
Chapter V. Comparison with Previous Surveys

Comparison of cost components, all sewer

works construction studies

The earliest BLS studies of labor and material requirements for sewer works construction were for 

1934, 1940, and 1949.15 Differences in scope, sampling, classification, and data collection between these 

earlier studies and the latest two studies limit the usefulness of comparisons.

However, some generalizations seem reasonable. For 

1963 and 1971, onsite wages as a percentage of the 

total contract costs have declined from the earlier studies. The percentage of combined overhead and profit 

appears to be increasing. The materials, supplies, and 

built-in equipment category is decreasing as a percent 

of total costs.

Percent distribution of sewer

works construction contract cost

1934 1940 1949 1963 1971

Total costs ............. 100 100 100 100 100

Onsite wages and salaries .. 

Materials, supplies, and

26 30 32 25 25

built-in equipment ........

Overhead and profit and

51 50 44 47 41

other costs, including 

construction equipment . 23 20 24 28 35

Comparison of ali construction labor

requirements studies

Total labor requirements for sewer works were lower 

than for all other types of construction studied except 

highways. The major disparity between sewer and highway construction was in the higher indirect requirements for sewer works, indicating the greater amount 

of embodied labor in the more expensive, complex 

materials and equipment used. i

15 “Relative Cost of Material and Labor in Construction of Water

and Sewage System,” Monthly Labor Review, January 1935 (based

on data collected about 1934), pp. 145-46; “Expenditures for Labor

and Material and Man-Hours of Labor Created per $1 Million of

Contracts Awarded for Sewers and Sewage Systems,” BLS release,

November 1944 (based on data collected about 1940); “Expenditures per Million Dollars for Construction of New Water Supply and

Sewage Disposal Systems,” BLS release, May 1951 (based on data

for 1948-50).

Employee-hour requirements for sewer works construction during 1971 were higher than those required 

for federally aided highways during 1973. (See table 

11.) These two types of construction are roughly comparable.

Comparison of the percent distribution of the onsite 

employee-hour requirements for the various types of 

construction (table 12) shows that sewers and highways have in common extensive use of operating engineers. They fulfilled over one-fourth of all labor requirements for highways and over one-fifth for sewer 

works. For sewer lines the figure is even higher, over 27 

percent. This reflects the heavy use of construction 

equipment for these projects, as shown in table 13.

Comparison of cost figures in table 13 shows that the 

percentage of total costs expended for onsite wages and 

salaries was virtually identical for sewer works and 

highways. Materials, supplies, and built-in equipment, 

however, represented a slightly larger proportion of 

total costs for highways than for sewer works. The cost 

of construction equipment, while not available separately for highways, is a substantial portion of total 

costs for both of these activities. The figure for highways is estimated to be relatively close to the figure for 

sewer works, about 12 percent.

The heavy use of construction equipment for highways has to be inferred from a comparison of the 

percent of contract costs that is allocated to the combined contract cost category, “construction equipment 

and overhead and profit,” for sewer works and highways. This analysis is necessary because construction 

equipment for highways is included in the contract cost 

category “overhead and profit.”

Table 14 also demonstrates that in both highways 

and sewer works projects a comparatively large proportion of the cost of materials, supplies, and equipment is 

allocated to construction equipment.

A higher percentage of all materials, equipment, and 

supplies was expended for stone, clay, glass, and concrete products for sewer works than for highways. Of 

course, a large proportion, over one-fifth, of sewer 

works expenditures for materials was for machinery 

and built-in equipment for which there was no equivalent expenditure for highways. A much larger proportion for highways, on the other hand, was spent on 

petroleum products (asphaltic tars and pitches, bitu19
mens, etc.), fabricated metal products (structural steel 

for bridges and steel bars and mesh for reinforcing

highways), and mining and quarrying of nonmetallic 

minerals (gravel, stone, clay, etc.).

Table 11. Employee-hour requirements per 1,000 current dollars of contract cost, by industry, all construction studies,

1958-73

Type

of

construction

Year of

construction

Total,

all

industries

Onsite

construction

Offsite

construction

Manufacturing

Wholesale

trade,

transportation,

and services

Mining and

all other

Second studies:

Sewer works .............

i

1971 124 48 3 50 15 8

Lines ................... 1971 123 48 ■ 1 49 16 9

P lants.................. 1971 125 47 4 52 15 7

Federal office

buildings ................ 1973 N.A. 43 7 N.A. N.A. N.A.

Federally aided

highways................ ! 1973 114 44 6 37 18 8

Single-family housing . 1969 137 52 10 41 20 14 ,

Public housing.......... 1968 160 80 14 42 16 8

General hospitals .... 1965-66 178 76 10 64 18 10

Elementary and

secondary schools .. 1964-65 188 72 9 65 26 15

Initial studies:

Sewer works ............. H 962-63 204 85 5 78 23 13

Lines ................... 11962-63 204 86 5 76 23 14

P lants.................. 11962-63 203 , 83 5 80 23 12

Multifamiiy housing .. 1971 126 50 8 43 15

• . • iC '

10

Single-family housing . H 962 203 72 12 61 31 26

College housing ....... H960-61 226 94 11 72 31 18

General hospitals .... 11959-60 224 89 11 76 31 18

Public housing.......... 11959-60 237 '114 12 62 29 r‘ 20

Civil works:

Land projects.... i 1959-60 201 85 4 53 35 24

Dredging ............ i 1959-60 238 134 10 57 24 14

Elementary and

secondary schools .. 11959 222 86 10 74 33 19

Federal office

buildings ................ H 959 228 97 10 72 31 17

Federally aided

highways................ 11958 237 97 10 66 39 ■ 24 .

11ndirect data revised from original study results due to reprocessing NOTE: Detail may not add to totals because of rounding,

materials through improved input-output tables.

N.A. — Not available.

20
Table 12. Percent distribution of onsite employee-hour requirements per 1,000 current dollars of contract cost, by

occupation, all construction studies, 1958-73

T y p e o f

c o n s tru c tio n

Y e a r

o f

c o n ­

s tru c ­

tio n

All

o c c u p a ­

tio n s

A d m in is ­

tra tiv e

a n d

s u p e r ­

v is o ry

B ric k ­

layers

C a rp e n ­

te rs

E le c ­

tric ia n s

Iro n ­

w o rk e rs

O p e ra ting

e n g ine ers

P a in te rs

P la s ­

te re rs

a n d

lath ers

P lu m b ­

ers

an d

p ip e

fitte rs

O th e r

s killed

c o n ­

s tru c ­

tio n

tra d e s

L a b o re rs ,

h e lp e rs ,

an d

te n d e rs

O th e r

o c c u p a ­

tio n s

(in c lu d ­

ing

tru c k -

drive rs )

S e c o n d s tu d ie s :

S e w e r w o rk s :

T o ta l ................ 1971 1 00 .0 12.9 1.0 6 .9 2 .9 1.9 2 0.4 .8 3 .3 5 .4 3 0 .0 14.4

L in e s ............... 1971 1 0 0 .0 1 3.5 .2 1.2 .4 .2 2 7 .3 — — — 3 .0 3 3 .7 2 0.6

P la n ts ............. 1971 1 0 0 .0 12.3 1.9 1 4.0 5 .7 4 .5 11.5 1 .9 — 7 .2 9 .8 25.1 5.9

F e d e ra l o ffic e

b u ild in g s ....... 1 97 3 N .A . N .A . N .A . N .A . N .A . N .A . N .A . N .A . N .A . N .A . N .A . N .A . N.A.

F e d e ra lly a id e d

h ig h w a y s ....... 1 97 3 1 00 .0 5 .9 6.1 1.1 2 .5 2 5.5 .3 .2 1 8 .9 3 4 .0 2 1 9 .0

S in g le -fa m ily

h o u s in g ......... 1 969 1 0 0 .0 2 .8 5 .7 3 4 .9 3 .0 1.8 7 .3 1.7 4 .3 2 0 .0 2 7 .9 .5

P u b lic h o u s in g . 1 96 8 1 0 0 .0 3 .6 7 .8 2 0 .3 5 .8 3 .5 3.1 4 .9 3 .0 9 .3 6 .6 3 0 .2 1.9

G e n e ra l

h o s p ita ls ....... 1 9 6 5 -6 6 1 0 0 .0 3 .2 5 .0 1 3.0 9 .9 3.1 1.8 2 .6 6.1 1 5.6 13.1 2 5.7 .7

E le m e n ta ry an d

s e c o n d a ry

s c h o o ls ......... 1 9 6 4 -6 5 1 0 0 .0 3 .6 9 .2 1 6.5 7 .3 3.1 2 .7 3 .5 2 .0 9 .6 10.1 3 0 .9 1.5

In itia l s tu d ie s :

S e w e r w o rk s :

T o ta l ................ 1 9 6 2 -6 3 1 00 .0 11.2 1.7 7 .7 1.5 1.9 17.4 .7 2 .5 2 .7 39.1 * 13.4

L in e s ............... 1 9 6 2 -6 3 1 0 0 .0 10.1 1.3 2.4 .1 .4 19.6 — — .4 2 .7 4 4 .5 18.5

P la n ts .............. 1 9 6 2 -6 3 1 0 0 .0 9 .0 2 .0 14.3 3 .3 3 .9 14.6 1 .5 — 5.1 6 .6 3 1 .7 8.0

M u ltifa m ily

h o u s in g .......... 1971 1 0 0 .0 5 .8 5 .0 2 5 .4 5 .9 2 .3 2 .9 4 .0 1.7 7 .6 11.3 2 5 .8 2.3

S in g le -fa m ily

h o u s in g ......... 1 962 1 00 .0 3 .0 5 .5 3 4 .6 2 .8 1.4 9 .5 2.0 5 .2 12.2 2 3 .3 .5

C o lle g e

h o u s in g .......... 1 9 6 0 -6 1 1 00 .0 3 .4 1 0.0 1 6.9 6 .6 3 .9 1.7 3 .6 3 .4 9 .7 7 .8 3 1 .8 1.1

G e n e ra l

h o s p ita ls ....... 1 9 5 9 -6 0 1 0 0 .0 3 .9 5 .4 13.2 8 .8 3 .5 1.6 2 .8 6 .2 1 4.2 12.0 2 6.7 1.7

P u b lic h o u s in g . 1 9 5 9 -6 0 1 0 0 .0 4 ,0 7 .6 19.1 4.1 2.1 2 .7 4 .4 6 8 7 .8 6 .5 3 0 .9 • 4 .0

C iv il w o rk s

L an d

p ro je c ts ... 1 9 5 9 -6 0 1 0 0 .0 10.1 6 .4 3.1 24.1 6 .9 2 3 .0 2 6.4

D re d g in g .. 1 9 5 9 -6 0 1 0 0 0 4 .7 — — — — 1.1 — — — 1.7 1.7 3 9 0.8

E le m e n ta ry a n d

s e c o n d a ry

s c h o o ls ......... 1 959 1 00 .0 3 .9 9 .3 18.7 7.1 2 .8 1.9 3 .3 2.7 9 .4 7 .9 29.1 4 .0

F e d e ra l o ffic e

b u ild in g s ....... 1 95 9 1 00 .0 6 .0 5 .2 12.6 9.1 4 .2 2 .4 2.1 3 .8 8 .7 11.8 3 2 .5 ( 1.5

F e d e ra lly a id e d

h ig h w a y s ....... 1 958 1 00 .0 10.4 (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) 5 3 8 .2 (4) « 5 1 .4

1 1ncludes apprentices and on-the-job trainees.

2 Includes blue-collar supervisors.

3Includes mostly ships' masters, captains, mates, crewmen, and support personnel.

4 Detail by occupation not available.

5 Excludes apprentices and on-the-job trainees.

eIncludes apprentices and on-the-job trainees and laborers, helpers,

and tenders.

N.A. = Not available. Dash denotes no data reported.

NOTE: Detail may not add to 100.0 percent because of rounding.

21
Table 13. Percent distribution of contract costs, all construction studies, 1953-73

Type

of

construction

Year

of

construction

Total

contract

costs

Onsite wages

and

salaries

Materials,

supplies, and

built-in

equipment

Construction

equipment

Overhead

and

profiti

Second studies:

Sewer works:

Total ........................ 1971 100.0 24.7 40.7 11.5 23.1

Lines........................ 1971 100.0 24.3 35.2 16.7 23.8

Plants ...................... 1971 100.0 25.2 47.0 5.6 22.2

Federal office

buildings2 ............... 1973 100.0 34.0 50.0 (3) 16.0

Federally aided

highways ................ 1973 100.0 24.6 44.5 (4) 30.9

Single-family

housings................. 1969 100.0 20.4 43.4 .9 35.3

Public housing.......... 1968 100.0 32.4 41.9 1.5 24.2

General hospitals .... 1965-66 100.0 29.6 50.4 1.3 18.7

Elementary and

secondary schools . 1964-65 100.0 25.8 54.2 1.0 19.0

Initial studies:

Sewer works:

Total ........................ 1962-63 100.0 25.3 46.6 9.9 18.2

Lines........................ 1962-63 100.0 24.3 44.5 11.2 20.0

Plants ...................... 1962-63 100.0 26.6 49.2 8.2 16.0

Multifamily housing .. 1971 100.0 27.9 44.2 3.0 24.8

Single-family

housings................. 1962 100.0 22.1 47.2 1.0 29.7

College housing ....... 1960-61 100.0 29.3 52.6 1.6 16.5

General hospitals .... 1959-60 100.0 28.2 53.2 1.2 17.4

Public housing.......... 1959-60 100.0 35.5 45.0 2.5 17.0

t. f ,

Civil works:

Land projects ........ 1959-60 100.0 26.0 35.0 19.3 19.7

Dredging ................ 1959-60 100.0 32.3 17.3 24.9 25.5

Elementary and

secondary schools . 1959 100.0 26.7 54.1 1.4 17.8

Federal office

buildings ................ 1959 100.0 29.0 51.4 1.9 17.7

Federally aided

highways ................ 1958 100.0 23.9 50.6 (4) 25.5

1 1ncludes offsite wages, fringe benefits, construction financing costs,

inventory, and other overhead and administrative expenses as well as

profit.

2 Estimated.

3 Equipment included in materials.

4 Equipment included with overhead and profit.

5 Includes selling expenses.

NOTE: Detail may not add to 100.0 percent because of rounding.

22
Table 14. Percent distribution of cost of materials, supplies, and equipment, by product group, all construction studies,

1958-73

Type of construction

Year of

construction

Total

m aterials,

supplies,

and

equ ipm ent

M ining

and

quarrying

of nonm etallic

m inerals

except

fuel

Lum ber

and

wood

products

except

furniture

Furniture

and

fixtures

Chem icals

and

allied

products

Petroleum

refining

and

related

products

Stone,

clay,

glass, and

concrete

products

Prim ary

m etal

products

Fabricated

metal

products!

M achinery

except

electrical

Electrical

m achinery,

equipment,

and

supplies

Construction

equipm ent

Other

materials

and

supplies

Second studies:

Sewer works:

Total ........ 1971 1 0 0 .0 2 .3 4 1 .9 7 .10 1.01 3 .1 5 2 8 .9 7 9 .1 9 7 .6 3 1 8 .1 1 3 .6 9 2 2 .0 7 1 .7 6

Lines ...... 1 97 1 1 0 0 .0 3 .4 3 1 .5 3 — 1 .1 4 4 .8 2 4 0 .7 7 7 .3 8 2 .2 0 4 .4 8 1 .0 3 3 2 .2 2 1 .0 0

P lants..... 1 97 1 1 0 0 .0 1.11 2 .4 6 .2 2 .8 7 1 .2 5 1 5 .6 2 1 1 .2 2 1 3 .8 7 3 3 .5 1 6 .7 2 1 0 .5 9 2 .5 4

Federal office

buildings ... 1 9 7 3 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A.

Federally

aided

highways .. 1 9 7 3 1 0 0 .0 1 4 .2 6 1 .6 5 .7 3 1 7 .1 8 1 5 .1 7 2 1 .2 1 (2) 2 9 .9 8

Private

singlefamily

housing ... 1 9 6 9 1 0 0 .0 .8 9 3 7 .4 0 3 .2 8 1 .8 2 1 .8 0 2 1 .3 3 5 .0 5 1 2 .9 0 1 .9 0 6 .7 7 2 .0 0 4 .8 7

Public

housing ... 1 9 6 8 1 0 0 .0 .8 0 1 4 .4 0 .3 0 2 .0 0 2 .2 0 2 4 .7 0 9 .2 0 2 7 .2 0 2 .5 0 1 1 .3 0 3 .5 0 1 .8 0

General

hospitals ... 1 9 6 5 -6 6 1 0 0 .0 .51 4 .6 6 .4 4 .7 7 .8 0 1 8 .4 0 8 .6 1 3 1 .1 1 1 2 .1 1 1 5 .6 2 2 .5 0 4 .4 7

Nursing

homes .... 1 9 6 5 -6 6 1 0 0 .0 .5 3 9 .0 6 .2 7 1 .2 4 1 .8 2 2 0 .1 6 6 .2 3 3 3 .3 2 1 1 .0 3 1 0 .7 8 2 .1 5 3.41

Elementary

and

secondary

schools ... 1 9 6 4 -6 5 1 0 0 .0 1 .5 5 1 0 .2 0 2 .6 9 .9 6 2 .2 7 2 3 .4 4 5 .5 0 3 2 .2 9 4 .5 0 9 .7 6 .82 4.01

Initial studies:

Sewer works:

Total ........ 1 9 6 2 -6 3 1 0 0 .0 3 .5 6 1 .1 9 .6 4 2 .4 8 3 7 .9 8 1 1 .3 7 7 .3 5 1 1 .7 6 4 .7 5 1 7 .4 6 1 .4 7

Lines ....... 1 9 6 2 -6 3 1 0 0 .0 4 .6 5 .7 9 — .3 6 3 .0 2 5 5 .8 7 8 .7 9 2 .3 9 3 .0 2 .7 4 2 0 .1 9 .20

Plants ..... 1 9 6 2 -6 3 1 0 0 .0 2 .2 7 1 .6 4 — .9 8 1 .8 5 1 6 .7 8 1 4 .4 8 1 3 .1 6 2 2 .3 4 9.51 1 4 .2 5 2 .7 5

Private

multifamily

housing ... 1971 1 0 0 .0 1 .3 4 1 8 .6 7 3 .8 9 2.21 1 .7 4 2 2 .1 2 8 .8 5 1 5 .5 9 3 .7 2 9 .3 6 6.51 6 .0 0

Private

singlefamily

housing ... 1 9 6 2 1 0 0 .0 .7 9 4 0 .0 5 2 .2 2 2 .3 0 2 3 .5 8 5 .5 0 1 4 .6 0 .46 6 .4 9 2 .0 3 1 .9 9

College

housing ... 1 9 6 0 -6 1 1 0 0 .0 .7 8 1 0 .6 7 1 .7 0 1 .1 8 1 .0 5 2 5 .7 8 6 .1 1 3 3 .9 0 2 .9 2 1 1 .3 6 2 .9 4 1 .6 2

General

hospitals ... 1 9 5 9 -6 0 1 0 0 .0 .4 2 4 .1 6 .86 .81 .9 7 1 8 .9 8 6 .8 2 3 5 .0 5 8 .4 8 1 5 .6 0 2 .0 6 5 .8 9

Public

housing ... 1 9 5 9 -6 0 1 0 0 .0 .8 0 1 4 .1 0 .3 0 1 .8 0 1 .7 0 2 7 .1 0 8 .0 0 2 8 .5 0 2 .3 0 8 .4 0 5 .3 0 1 .8 0

Civil works:

Land

projects . 1 9 5 9 -6 0 1 0 0 .0 1 7 .4 6 4 .1 5 3 .8 7 1 2 .6 5 9 .0 9 1 .3 3 1 3 .2 0 .5 9 .24 3 5 .3 9 2 .0 5

Dredging ... 1 9 5 9 -6 0 1 0 0 .0 — — — 3 .9 3 2 8 .0 7 — — 1 .4 9 1 .4 0 — 5 8 .9 8 6 .1 3

Elementary

and

secondary

schools ... 1 9 5 9 1 0 0 .0 .6 9 9 .6 7 1 .8 8 1.41 2 .0 2 2 4 .2 2 7 .5 2 3 2 .3 4 1 .7 9 1 0 .4 8 2.51 5 .5 0

Federal office

buildings ... 1 9 5 9 1 0 0 .0 .41 3.31 .3 4 1 .0 3 .8 8 2 1 .6 0 7 .3 2 3 2 .8 1 6.91 1 8 .2 0 3 .5 9 3.61

Federal aided

highways .. 1 9 5 8 1 0 0 .0 1 1 .3 4 1 .7 6 - .8 0 1 7 .0 9 1 6 .7 7 - 1 9 .4 8 - - (2) 3 2 .7 5

1 Fabricated metals include some stone, glass, and concrete products

(vitreous china fixtures) except for single-family and multifamily housing.

2Construction equipment estimate included in "other materials and

supplies."

N. A. = Not available. Dash denotes no data reported.

NOTE: Detail may not add to 100.0 percent because of rounding

23
Appendix A. Survey Scope and Methods

Universe characteristics and sample selection

The study included all sewer works construction 

projects which were subsidized by the Environmental 

Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of 

Housing and Urban Development (HUD) located in 

the 48 contiguous States and started during calendar 

year 1969 and completed by August 31, 1973. The 

development of a sampling frame consisting of over 

1,500 units began with 907 projects on lists supplied by 

the EPA and HUD. The EPA list consisted of 874 

projects. The HUD list consisted of 33 projects. Each 

sewer construction project within the scope of the 

survey was contained on one of these lists. A project 

could consist of several distinct units of construction— 

multiple treatment plants, pumping stations, or several 

separate stretches of sewer lines.

The lists were stratified by (a) the four broad economic regions, (b) type of construction: Sewer lines, 

treatment plants, pumping stations, etc., (c) location: 

Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas (SMSA) or 

nonmetropolitan areas, and (d) construction contract 

cost class. Previous experience indicated that these 

variables were also good stratification variables for the 

sewer works studies. Therefore, they were used again 

as they were available on the sampling frame.

These lists showed a total cost figure for each project 

which included the cost of items such as architectural 

and engineering fees, land acquisition, clearing, and 

landscaping costs. These costs are out of the scope of 

this survey, which was intended to develop data for the 

onsite labor and materials used to construct these projects as a ratio of each $ 1,000 of construction contract 

value.

Approximately 1,500 general contracts were selected from the above-mentioned lists. These contracts 

involved a total of about 3,000 general contractors and 

subcontractors. Because of the limited resources available and experience from similar surveys, the survey 

sample size was set at 150 of these general contracts. In 

order to maintain the sample size of 150 units it was 

necessary to survey 196 sample units.

These 196 sample units were randomly selected from 

the stratified universe. Within a stratum each sample 

contract was assigned equal probability and a random 

sample was selected without replacement. When the

data for a selected sample contract could not be collected, an additional sample contract was selected at 

random to maintain the size of the sample at the 150- 

unit level.

Initial weights for sample units within a cell were 

calculated by using the reciprocal of the probability of 

selection. Whenever a unit was encountered which was 

out of the scope of the study, it was deleted along with 

its weight since the experience of the sample units 

within each cell was considered representative of what 

would be discovered if all the units in the cell were 

surveyed. Nonresponse was compensated for within a 

cell by increasing the weights associated with all the 

responding units in that cell by a single factor.

Collection experience

Of the 196 sample contracts for which data were 

originally sought, 30 were found to be out of the scope 

of the study and 21 could not be studied because the 

contractors did not cooperate or could not be located. 

Therefore, the final sample for this survey consisted of 

the remaining 145 sample units. This was 5 less than 

the 150 sample units specified. The reduction in sample 

size was not expected to have a significant impact on 

the survey results.

If data were missing partially or completely for a 

given subcontractor, the subcontractor was asked to 

provide an estimate for the missing data. If the subcontractor was not available, an estimate was obtained 

from the general contractor.

The sample contracts were divided into two major 

groups: (a) Sewer lines and (b) sewage treatment 

plants. These major groups were each divided into two 

subgroups designated as (a) maximum contract data 

(maxi) and (b) minimum contract data (mini). The 

data collected for a maxi contract included occupational detail for onsite employee-hours and a detailed 

listing of the value of materials, equipment, and supplies used in construction. The data collected for a mini 

contract provided no detail on onsite occupations or 

materials, equipment, and supplies. Only the total onsite employee-hours and the total value of materials, 

equipment, and supplies were obtained.

The division of the total sample between the mini 

and the maxi projects was determined by an analysis of

24
the probable cost of collecting the data for (a) a maxi 

or (b) a mini survey. The results of this cost analysis 

determined that the most efficient allocation of available resources required 100 maxi sample units and 50 

mini units. One hundred and forty-four of these sample 

units were selected from the list of 874 projects that 

was furnished by EPA. The remaining 6 units were 

selected from the HUD list of 33 projects.

The tabulation below shows the distribution of the 

145 sample units for which all the required data were 

collected, with regard to lines and plants, and the number of maxi and mini contracts in each category.

Lines Plants

Total ............... ............ 82 63

Maxi ......................... ............ 54 40

Mini .......................... ............ 28 23

In addition, among the maxi contracts, there were 21 

nonrespondents and 19 out of the scope of the survey. 

The mini contracts had no nonrespondents but 11 that 

were out of scope.

Most of the value-put-in-place for the above-mentioned 145 sample units was constructed during calendar years 1970 and 1971. ( Value-put-in-place is a 

measure of the value of construction installed or 

erected at the site during a given period.)

Error

Except for the nonresponding sample units and the 

data estimated by the contractors, there are no known 

sources of nonsampling error. Sampling variances are 

available at the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

While the overall estimates of employment are believed to be reasonably accurate, the detailed data 

would have a wider margin of sampling error and may 

be subject to other limitations. Employee-hour and 

material requirements are affected by a number of 

factors such as location, size of project, type of structure, architectural design, availability of certain materials or equipment, labor skills, and local building codes 

and customs. The effects of these separate factors cannot be isolated.

Data collection procedures

Three major stages were employed to fulfill the objective of reliable data for each project in the study: (1) 

Pretest and training, (2) visits to national and area 

offices of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and (3) visits to project sites and contractors.

Pretest and training. Education and orientation were 

accomplished in two ways. First, experienced data collectors from three regional offices assembled in Washington, D.C., to discuss the survey and prepare for the 

pretest. The Washington staff explained the purpose of 

the complex study and proposed collection schedules. 

Informal discussion was conducted to clarify specific 

points, and agreement was reached on the data required to meet the objectives. A pretest was conducted 

and all data were forwarded to Washington with a 

critique and recommendations for improvements and 

modifications to the survey approach. The Washington 

staff revised and improved final schedules and field 

instructions.

Next, representatives from all eight BLS regional 

offices met in Washington, D.C., for a training session. 

All facets of the program were explained in detail with 

the use of training aids, collection instructions, and 

schedules for data collection. Findings of the pretest 

survey were presented and potential problems were 

discussed. Regional coordinators generally transmitted 

this information to data collectors at a regional conference.

During the survey planning stage, the BLS requested 

that EPA and HUD send letters describing the survey 

to all EPA and HUD area offices to solicit their cooperation when a BLS representative would visit. This 

approach assured entree to the area offices with EPA 

and HUD endorsements for the survey.

The BLS data collectors had three missions to perform when visiting the area offices: (1) Obtain project 

payrolls, (2) obtain project characteristics, and (3) 

obtain listings of all contractors involved in the project 

construction.

The data collectors arranged to have payroll data of 

the general contractor and subcontractors forwarded 

on loan to the BLS regional office. (Contractors are 

required to keep these records for 3 years to comply 

with the Davis-Bacon Act.) In some cases, the payrolls 

had been placed in a Federal storage depository and 

authorization had to be obtained to secure them. In 

other cases, copies of the original payrolls were made 

and forwarded to the BLS regional offices.

Next, the BLS data collectors obtained the name, 

address, contract value, and type of contract for all 

general and prime contractors and subcontractors on 

the sample contracts. Missing payrolls were identified 

so that the contractor could later furnish supplemental 

information.

Visits to project sites and contractors. After completing 

their research at the EPA or HUD area offices, data 

collectors often visited the construction sites to become as familiar as possible with the structural characteristics of the projects before visiting the general contractors. If a general contractor should refuse to

25
cooperate, the project would have to be dropped from 

the survey and another one substituted. The substitution of sample projects is time consuming and costly 

and, in addition, could bias the survey results. Therefore, every effort was made to enlist the cooperation of 

the general contractor by explaining the nature of the 

survey and the reasons for conducting it. Of the approximately 3,000 general contractors and subcontractors who were interviwed in order to compile the list of 

196 general contracts from which the sample of 145 

contracts was derived, only a small number refused to 

cooperate or could not be located.

If the contractors agreed to cooperate, they were 

asked to verify the final contract value, including 

change orders, and the list of subcontractors and their 

current addresses. Additional payroll data were obtained for onsite workers who were not covered by the 

Davis-Bacon Act, such as the superintendent, technical 

personnel, and guards. Finally, the data collectors recorded the type of material item, the purchase cost, 

and the name and fair rental value or equivalent of any 

equipment used on the job. Each of the subcontractors 

also was contacted to obtain similar data.

After all the data for a sample project were collected, 

they were checked for completeness and internal consistency by the regional offices and forwarded to Washington, D.C., for final analysis, editing, and coding for 

computer processing.

Data collected for the sewer works construction survey were very complex and required experienced personnel for processing.

Development of employee-hour estimates

Onsite and offsite employee-hour estimates were 

combined to obtain estimates of total employee-hour 

requirements for sewer works construction.

Onsite (direct) employee-hours, as explained in the 

previous section, were obtained from payrolls submitted by the contractors to the EPA and HUD. Offsite 

(indirect) employee-hour requirements, representing 

the hours to produce, transport, and sell the mater ials, 

supplies, and equipment used in construction were 

developed by use of the 1963 Interindustry Study of the 

Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce. BLS field representatives coh 

lected the basic data on materials, supplies, and equipm ent from each prim e c o n tra c to r and his 

subcontractors (or estimated in a relatively small number of cases).

The materials listings thus obtained were categorized 

according to the four-digit industry classification of the 

Standard Industrial Classification Manual (1967 edition, Office of Management and Budget). For each 

product group, the average amount required for $ 1,000 

of construction cost was calculated. This bill of materials was deflated to the 1963 price level by application 

of the appropriate wholesale price indexes. The resulting deflated value for each group was reduced by the 

ratio of producers’ value to purchasers’ value. (This 

ratio was based on data provided by BEA.) The differences between purchaser and producer valuation were 

allocated to trade and transportation sectors. The de-? 

flated values were matched to the sector coefficients in 

the 1963 interindustry study of BEA. For each group of 

materials, the interindustry study provided information 

on the amount of products required from each of the 

367 industry sectors. The product data were converted 

to employee-hours by use of output per employee-hour 

ratios for each industry. While processing the data, the 

Economic Growth Division of BLS adjusted for price 

and productivity changes from the base year of the 

tables (1963) to the study year. The results were the 

average total (indirect) employee-hours per $1,000 of 

contract cost required to produce, transport, and sell 

the materials used to construct the projects covered by 

this survey.

These employee-hours, plus the builders’ offsite employment, were combined with direct or onsite employee-hours to determine total employee-hours within 

the definition of the study. Offsite employment of each 

construction contractor was not obtained directly from 

the contractors since it would be difficult to allocate a 

portion of total offsite employment to a particular 

project. Instead, an estimate for the offsite employeehours was developed by applying to the onsite employee-hours collected for this study the ratio of construction workers to all employees in the total construction industry for 1971, as reported in Employment

and Earnings, United States, 1909-72 (BLS Bulletin 

1312-9).

26
Appendix B Forms Used for Data Collection

BLS 2651.02A Office of Management and

Budget No. 44-R 1381

Approval expires: 12-31-73

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Bureau of Labor Statistics

Washington, D.C. 20212

GENERAL INFORMATION

SURVEY OF

CONSTRUCTION LABOR REQUIREMENTS

FOR

SEWERS AND SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANTS

The Bureau of Labor Statistics

will hold all information furnished by the respondent in

strict confidence.

Name of Local Government Sponsoring Agency

EPA or HUD Project Number ________________

OFFICE

USE

ONLY

Survey

Ident

Schedule

Number Sample Weight Region SMSA

0 | 2

1 1 1 .1 1 ..1... 1 ....

27
I. TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION

When you are reporting more than one type of construction, code for the type

which represents the largest dollar value.

Sewer lines include lift stations (sometimes called pumping stations) associated with the sewer lines. Lift stations push sewage up inclines or raise

sewage to a level high enough to allow it to flow by gravity thru the lines.

Consider "outfall" sewer lines, i.e., lines which carry treated sewage from

a treatment plant, as part of a treatment plant. Do not include construction

which is primarily for outfall sewers in this "sewer lines" section.

A new treatment plant is an entirely new facility. It may be a simple pond

or a more sophisticated facility.

An addition to an existing plant is an addition of equipment, or equipment

and building, or pond or outfall sewer, to an existing facility. Construction of building(s) only with no equipment, or outfall sewer or pond, is

out-of-scope.

NOTE: If construction provides secondary treatment capability to an

existing primary treatment facility, use code "2". Under these

conditions the "type of construction" is considered new treatment plant construction.

A pumping station related to a treatment plant is a station housing relatively

large pumps. The function of a pumping station is to push all or any portion

of incoming waste liquid thru and from a treatment plant. (Stations that

push waste liquids _to a treatment plant are to be classified as sewer line

lift stations.)

II. VALUE OF CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT(S)

The value you report here will, when added to values reported in all other

"A" forms submitted for the "assignment", add to the total value of the

assignment. Thus, report the combined value of any general or prime construction contracts related to the construction activity represented by this

"A" form.

Ill. CONSTRUCTION DATES

For the construction being reported, enter the beginning and ending dates

of on-site activity and the total number' of elapsed weeks from beginning to

ending dates.

28
ALWAYS COMPLETE SECTIONS I, II, III, VIII, IX AND X

I, TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION

Is the construction represented by this "A"

form primarily? ..........................

Code

1 - Sewer line and/or lift station [go to IV)

2 - New treatment plant [go to l/)

3 - Addition to existing treatment plant [go to VI)

4 - Pumping station related to treatment plant [go to VII)

II. VALUE OF CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT

What is the total dollar value of the general and/or

prime contract(s) related to this construction? ....

III. CONSTRUCTION DATES

Beginning (mo./day/yr.) ............................

Ending (mo./day/yr.) ........... ...................

Total number of construction weeks

(including down time) .............................

Complete Section IV Only if the Type of Construction is

primarily SEWER LINE and/or LIFT STATION

IV. SEWER LINE CHARACTERISTICS

a. Construction is for— .............

Code

1 - Sewer line only

2 - Lift station only

3 - Sewer line and other (specify)

I& code 2, Aktp to IVk.

29
IV. SEWER LINE CHARACTERISTICS

g. If the entire sewer line is above ground, enter "0" for both the

minimum and maximum depth.

If the sewer line is partly above and partly below ground, enter

"0" for the minimum depth.

h. Report the maximum amount of sewage that the installed pipe can

handle in one day.

30
IV. SEWER LINE CHARACTERISTICS— Continued

b. What was the principal type of pipe?

Code

1 - Asbestos cement

2 - Concrete

3 - Cast iron

4 - Vitreous clay

5 - Reinforced fiberglass or plastic

6 - Steel (except corrugated steel)

7 - Corrugated sheet metal

8 - Other (specify) ________________

c.

d.

e.

f .

How many linear feet of pipe were laid for

this sewer line(s)? ........................

What is the size (diameter in inches) of the

predominant pipe used? .....................

Is the pipe primarily underground or

aboveground? ...............................

Code

1 - Underground

2 - Aboveground

What was the principal method of laying pipe?

Hir+

00

in. 9

10

11

Code

1 - Trenching

2 - Tunneling

3 - Other (specify)

g. What is the minimum and maximum depth of the trench

or tunnel in feet? (Round to nearest foot) .

Minimum depth ................................

Maximum depth ................................

12

13

h. What is the peak flow rate (gallons 1 day)

of the sewer line (or lift station)? .... sa l- 14

i. (If a lift station) is a majority of equipment

installed for the lift station "packaged"? ... 58

GO TO VIII WHEN COMPLETED WITH IV

31
V. CHARACTERISTICS OF NEW TREATMENT PLANTS

a. The inflow for a primary treatment plant is the raw sewage from sewer

lines. ’’Primary treatment” removes solid wastes from sewer water.

The inflow for a secondary treatment plant is the sewer water discharged

from a primary trea trnent facility. Secondary treatment removes organic

matter suspended in sewage which has already been given primary treatment.

Waste stabilization ponds are shallow ponds which hold raw sewage and

where micro-organisms in the atmosphere partially decompose the raw

sewage.

NOTE: New plants often are designed to provide both primary and

secondary treatment. Such plants are to be coded "secondary

treatment plant", code 2.

b. Answer this question only if IV. a. is coded "2".

In the activated sludge type of treatment waste liquid, air and sludge

loaded with bacteria are mixed in an aeration tank. Bacteria decompose suspended organic matter and the sludge is then settled out of

the liquid.

In the trickling filter type of treatment waste liquid is trickled

over a bed of rocks. Bacteria on the surface of the rocks cause the

organic matter in the waste liquid to decompose.

c. "Packaged" sewage treatment equipment usually consists of a large prefabricated tank unit which provides all the treatment processes desired

by the purchaser. It also contains all wiring, metering, and input/

output piping necessary to make a complete, integrated unit.

d. Incinerators are devices used to burn sludge. After incineration, all

tbat remains is a non-burnable ash.

Drying beds are open areas where sludge is spread-out, exposed to the

air, and dehydrated. ,

Outfall lines are large pipe lines which carry treated waste liquid

from a treatment facility to a point of final discharge or disposal

(stream, lake, etc.).

Removal equipment is any kind of new, heavy equipment (e.g., bulldozer, loader, conveyor system, dump truck) which is used in the treatment plant’s disposal system.

e. The BOD removal rating is a measure of the effectiveness of a sewage

treatment plant.

A BOD removal rating of 85% means that the treatment process will remove approximately 85% of the suspended organic matter in the waste

liquid treated. i

Secondary treatment plants ordinarily have BOD removal rating of

85-95%.

f. Report the maximum number of gallons of waste liquid the plant can

handle in one day.

g. Population design is a measure of a plant's capacity. It is expressed in terms of numbers of people the plant is designed to serve.

When a treatment plant processes a combination of residential and

industrial/commercial generated sewage, the industrial/comniercial

volume should be converted to a population equivalancy for reporting

purposes.

32
Complete Section V Only if the Type of Construction is

primarily a NEW TREATMENT PLANT

V. CHARACTERISTICS OF NEW TREATMENT PLANTS

a. Is construction primarily for a— .

Code

1 - Primary treatment plant

2 - Secondary treatment plant

3 - Waste stabilization pond

4 - Other (specify) _____________

b. (If a secondary treatment plant) is it—

Code

1 - Activated sludge type

2 - Trickling filter type

3 - Other (specify) __________________

16

c. Is a majority of the equipment installed for

this facility "packaged"? .................

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

d. Does the construction contract(s) provide for

any of the following types of sewage disposal?

(Enter "1" if "yes")

Incinerators ............................

Drying beds .............................

Outfall lines ...........................

Removal equipment .............. ........

Other (specify) __________________________

18

19

20

21

22

e. What is the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)

removal rating (percentage) of this facility?

f. What is the capacity flow rate (gallon 1 day)

of this facility? ..........................

g. What is the maximum population design of

this facility? ....................................................................... j ....

% 23

________ gal. 24

’ 25

GO TO VIII WHEN COMPLETED WITH V

33
VI. CHARACTERISTICS OF ADDITIONS TO PLANTS

b. Leave blank if VI. a. is coded "2".

c. "Equipment" covers the entire range of products usually associated

with waste treatment including tanks, filters, drums, pumps, aerators, incinerators, etc. Equipment may be located inside buildings

or in open areas.

34
Complete Section VI Only if the Type of Construction is

primarily an ADDITION TO AN EXISTING PLANT

VI. CHARACTERISTICS OF ADDITIONS TO PLANTS

a. Does this construction involve a— 26

Code

1 - Primary treatment capability

2 - Secondary treatment capability

3 - Waste stabilization pond

4 - Other (specify) _______________________

b. (If a secondary treatment capability) is it—

Code

1 - Activated sludge type

2 - Trickling filter type

3 - Other (specify) _______________________

27

Does this construction primarily involve

Code

1 - An addition of building(s) only

2 - An addition of building(s) and equipment

3 - An addition of equipment only

4 - An addition to pond(s)

5 - Other (specify) ________________________

d. Is a majority of equipment installed for

this facility "packaged"? ...................

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

e. Does the construction contract(s) provide for any of

the following types of sewage disposal? (Enter "1"

if "yes".)

Incinerators ..................................

Drying beds ...................................

Outfall lines .................................

Removal equipment .............................

Other (specify) ...............................

30

31

32

33

34

35
VI. CHARACTERISTICS OF ADDITIONS TO PLANTS— Continued

g. Enter the increase in the BOD removal rating which resulted from the

addition represented by this "A" form.

If the BOD removal rating did not change, enter "0".

VII. CHARACTERISTICS OF PUMPING STATIONS (RELATED TO TREATMENT PLANTS)

a. Packaged pumping stations are prefabricated units in which all

necessary equipment is installed and connected prior to delivery

to the construction site. The "package" includes pumps, motors,

valves, piping, controls, wiring, etc. It is a complete, integrated unit ready to be connected to treatment plant pipes.

b. Report the maximum amount of sewage this pumping station can handle

in one day.

36
VI. CHARACTERISTICS OF ADDITIONS TO PLANTS— Continued

f. What was the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)

removal rating (percentage) of the entire

facility prior to this addition? .............

g. What was the increase of the BOD removal rating

(percentage) as a result of this addition? ....

h. What is the capacity flow rate (gallon 1 day)

of the equipment installed for this facility? .

i. What is the maximum population design of

this facility? ...............................

% 35

% 36

__.______gal. 37

38

GO TO VIII WHEN COMPLETED WITH VI

Complete Section VII Only if the Type of Construction is primarily

for PUMPING STATIONS (RELATED TO TREATMENT PLANTS)

VII. CHARACTERISTICS OF PUMPING STATIONS

a. Is this primarily a "packaged”

pumping station(s)?...........

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

b. What is the capacity flow rate (gallons 1 day)

of this station? ............................

c. What is the maximum population design

of the pumping station?......................

gal. 40

41

GO TO VIII WHEN COMPLETED WITH VII

VIII. BUILDINGS AND ADDITIONS TO BUILDINGS

a. Did the construction activity represented by this

"A" form include work on buildings? ............

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

"no," 6 kip to Section IX.

37
VIII.

b. Did the building construction involve a new building

or an addition to an existing building? ...........

Code

1 - New building

2 - Addition to existing building

3 - Both

c. Did work include construction of

"office" space? ...................................

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

d. What was the principal building material used

in construction of each of the following:

Foundation walls ..................................

Code

1 - Vertically poured concrete

2 - Concrete block

3 - Other (specify) ______________________________

4 - No foundation wall

Frame .............................................

Code

1 - Structured steel

2 - Concrete block

3 - Precast concrete

4 - Cast-in-place concrete

5 - Wood

6 - Other (specify) ______________________________

7 - No frame

Exterior wall ......................................

Code

1 - Metal siding

2 - Concrete block

3 - Precast concrete

4 - Cast-in-place concrete

5 - Curtain wall

6 - Brick

7 - Wood

8 - Other (specify) ______________________________

9 - No exterior wall

BUILDINGS AND ADDITIONS TO BUILDINGS— Continued

60

44

45

38
VIII. BUILDINGS AND ADDITIONS TO BUILDINGS— Continued

Roof base ............................

Code

1 - Concrete

2 - Sheet metal

3 - Wood

4 - Other (specify) _________________

5 - No roof base

Roof cover ...........................

Code

1 - Built-up

2 - Sheet metal

3 - Asphalt shingle

4 - Wood shingle

5 - Other (specify) _________________

6 - No roof cover

e. What type of building heating

was installed? .......................

Code

1 - Forced air

2 - Hot water

3 - Other (specify) _________________

4 - No heating

f. Was central air conditioning installed?

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

g. Were elevators installed? ............

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

46

49

50

GO TO IX AND X

39
IX. WORK STOPPAGES AND SLOWDOWNS

a. Sum up the number of days during the construction period when all

on-site work was completely stopped because of strikes, bad weather,

etc. Convert this to an equivalent number of work weeks and round

to a whole number.

If there were no stoppages enter "0".

b. If anything happened during construction which required major redesign of the project, or which greatly prolonged the construction

time, or which greatly increased the cost of construction, code

"yes" and explain the circumstances. This question should reflect

any such occurances which could not be reported in question IX. a.

X. NUMBER OF CONTRACTS

a. If this information cannot be accurately completed at the initial

interview, it should be completed later by the agent after all

contractors have been scheduled.

b. Enter "0" for Sample 2 assignments.

XI. TOTAL ON-SITE MAN-HOURS

Do not complete this section for Sample 1 assignments.

Line 996 - This line is reserved for "office use only". Leave

this line blank.

Line 997 - This is an aggregate of all hours which ordinarily

would be reported in contractor "B" forms.

Line 998 - This line is reserved for "office use only". Leave

this line blank.

40
IX.. WORK STOPPAGES AND SLOWDOWNS

a. Were there any complete work stoppages during the

construction of this project (due to material

shortages, strikes, disruptive weather, etc.)?

Enter the total number of weeks lost due to such

stoppages. (Round to whole numbers.) ..........

Please explain any complete stoppages:

51

b. Where there any unanticipated events or circumb. How many B schedules are attached

for this project? ..............

Complete Section XI only for SAMPLE 2 Assignments

XI. TOTAL ON-SITE MAN-HOURS

From EPA or HUD payrolls

Other .................

TOTAL ................. 1

996

997

998

41
BLS 2652.02B Office of Management and

Budget No. 44-R 1381

Approval expires: 12-31-73

Contract No.

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Bureau of Labor Statistics

Washington, D.C. 20212

CONTRACT INFORMATION

SURVEY OF

CONSTRUCTION LABOR REQUIREMENTS

FOR

SEWERS AND SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANTS

The Bureau of Labor Statistics

will hold all information furnished by the respondent in

strict confidence.

Name of Local Government Sponsoring Agency

EPA or HUD Project No. _____ _____________

42
I. CONTRACTOR IDENTIFICATION

a . Name ___________

Address ________

Telephone number

b. Record of personal visits:

Date of visit Official contacted Field representative

c. Contract codes:

From the

"C" form

From the

"A" form

Schedule

No.

Contract

No.

II. CONTRACT AMOUNT

Superior

Contract No.

Leave blank if this

schedule is for a

general or prime

contractor.

What was the final contract amount, including all change

orders? (Exclude land costs and exclude adjustments for

performance clauses. Round to whole dollars.) ........

III. SUBORDINATE CONTRACTS (Except by General Contractors)

List below the identification of any subordinate contractors who performed any operations for this contract? Also provide the contract

operations code, the contract value, and the contract number assigned

(form the MC" form).

Name, address, and telephone number

of subordinate contractor(s)

Contract

operation

code

Value

of

contract

Contract

number

assigned

$

$

$

$

43
IV. DESCRIPTION OF WORK PERFORMED BY THIS CONTRACTOR

a. In the space below, describe the work performed and the important

kinds of heavy equipment, materials, and labor supplied under this

contract. (Exclude work which the contractor has sub or sub-subcontracted .)

Example: "Dug trench for sewer line. Used backhoe, bulldozer and heavy truck. Important occupations

included operating engineer, truckdriver, and

laborer."

b. Major operations code

REMARKS

44
V. CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT— RENTAL COST

a. On this page, report the rental cost (or the rental cost equivalent

if the contractor owns the equipment) for the time the equipment is

used on-site. This category will include all heavy equipment and

any non-heavy equipment that is actually rented. Do not include

operator’s wages.

Description of equipment Equipment

code

Rental cost

(whole dollars)

$ 100

101

102

103

104

105

106

107

108

109

110

111

112

113

114

115

116

117

118

b. Total on-site rental costs (exclude equipment

operator’s wages)...........................

45
V. CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT— RENTAL COST— Continued

Description of equipment Equipment

code

Rental cost

(whole dollars)

$ 119

120

121

122

1

123

124

j

125

126

127

128

129

130

131

132

133

'

134

135

136

137

138

139

140

141

142

46
VI. MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES

a. What was the total cost of all materials

and supplies used during construction? .

b. What materials and supplies were used during construction and 

what was "delivered on-site" cost of each?

599

Name and description

of materials and supplies

Materials

code

Cost

(whole dollars)

Percent of

sales tax to

be added

$ 200

201

202

203

204

205

206

207

208

209

j 210

| 211

212

i .

213

214

215

216

217

218

219

47
VI. MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES— Continued

Name and description

of materials and supplies

Materials

code

Cost

(whole dollars)

Percent of

sales tax to

be added

$ 220

221

222

223

224

225

• : . | 226

. . . • i ■ • > | 227

|____

228

229

- - ! 230 !

: |

: 231

_

! 232 !

i j

i ________________ i__________

i ;

I 233 | ! 1

! 234 j

1

1 |

! 235

r

236

237

238

! 239

.

240

241

242

48
VII. LABOR REQUIREMENTS

a. Did this contractor have a labor agreement

covering any of the work performed on this contract?

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

b. What were the total wages paid for on-site

labor for this contract? (Exclude profit

and overhead, and exclude any supplemental

benefits.) ..............................

c. Are EPA or HUD payrolls being submitted for

this contract? ...........................

005

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

d. Complete the following for any on-site labor not already reflected

on the payrolls filed with the local authority, (e.g., missing

payrolls, hours and earnings of exempt employees who performed onsite work but who are not subject to EPA or HUD reporting requirements).

Occupation

code Hours

Earnings related to hours

$ 600

601

602

603

604

605

606

• 607

608

609 .

610

_____________

49
VII. LABOR REQUIREMENTS— Continued

Occupation

code Hours Earnings related to hours

$

611

612

613

614

615

616

617

618

i

i

619

1

1

620

621

622

623

624

625

626

627

628

629

630

631

632

633

634

Total earnings ........

999

50
WORK AREA
VIII. CONTRACT RECONCILIATION

Total value of subcontracts let by this contractor ....

Total equipment cost (approx.) (From line 199) ........

Total material cost (approx.) (From line 599) .........

Total labor cost from this B form (approx.) (From line 999)

Total labor cost from attached payrolls (approx.) .....

Total on-site costs (approx.) ......................

'Total contract amount (From line 001) .................

Total on-site costs (From line Oil) ...................

i

Approximate total profit and overhead ........ ....

% profit and overhead = Approx, total profit and overhead =

Total contract amount

$ 006

+ 007

+ 008

+ 009

+ 010

$ 011

$ . 012

- 013

$ 014

015

IX. SCHEDULE STATUS

a. Is this a complete B form for this contract?

Code

1 - Yes

2 - No

b. If "no," please explain:

52
Appendix C. Bibliography

Construction Labor Requirements Studies by the BLS

Office of Productivity and Technology

Civil works construction

Labor and Material Requirements for Civil Works Construction by the Corps of Engineers (BLS Bulletin 

1390), 1964, 28 pp.

A statistical study of onsite and offsite employeehour and wage requirements for dredging and land 

projects in the U.S. Corps of Engineers’ civil works 

program from 1959 to 1960.

College housing construction

Labor and Material Requirements for College Housing

Construction (BLS Bulletin 1441), 1965, 34 pp.

A survey of 43 college housing projects which were 

administered by the Community Facilities Administration. The survey is designed primarily to determine the 

employee-hours required per $ 1,000 of college housing 

construction.

Miller, Stanley F., “Labor and Material Required for 

College Housing,” Monthly Labor Review, September 1965, pp. 1100-1104.

A summary of BLS Bulletin 1441.

Federally aided highways

Fingers, Diane S., “Labor Requirements for Federal 

Highway Construction,” Monthly Labor Review, December 1975, pp. 31-36.

A study of labor and material requirements for federally aided highway projects completed during 1973. 

The study examines the trends between 1958 and 1973.

Ball, Robert, “Labor and Materials Required for Highway Construction,” Monthly Labor Review, June 

1973, pp. 40-45.

Discussion of labor and material trends in highway 

construction between 1958 and 1970.

Labor and Material Requirements for Construction of

Federally-Aided Highways, 1958, 1961, and 1964

(BLS Report 299, 1966), 17 pp.

Study providing measures for 1958, 1961, and 1964 

of the labor and material requirements for federally 

aided highways, with separate measures of the requirements for onsite and offsite construction. For onsite 

construction, the study also provides a comparison of 

annual labor requirements for 1947-64.

Kutscher, Ronald E., and Waite, Charles A., “Labor 

Requirements for Highway Construction,” Monthly

Labor Review, August 1961, pp. 858-61.

Summary of findings of the 1958 highway survey.

Wakefield, Joseph C., “Labor and Material Requirements: Highway Construction, 1958 and 1961,” 

Monthly Labor Review, April 1963, pp. 394-98.

A summary comparison of the 1958 and 1961 highway surveys.

Federal office building construction

Olsen, John G., “Decline Noted in Hours Required to 

Erect Federal Office Buildings,” Monthly Labor Review, October 1976, pp. 18-22.

A statistical study of 26 new office building projects 

completed in 1973 under the jurisdiction of the General Services Administration. In addition to data on 

labor requirements, the study provides information on 

building characteristics and contract operations.

Labor Requirements for Federal Office Building Construction (BLS Bulletin 1331), 1962, 43 pp.

A statistical study of onsite and offsite labor requirements for 22 Federal office building projects in various 

localities of the United States over a 3-year period from 

the fall of 1957 to 1960.

Murray, Roland V., “Labor Requirements for Federal 

Office Building Construction,” Monthly Labor Review, August 1962, pp. 889-93. A summary of BLS 

Bulletin 1331.

53
Labor Requirements fo r Hospital Construction (BLS 

Bulletin 1340), 1962, 46 pp.

A statistical study of onsite and offsite labor requirements for construction of selected public and private, 

profit and nonprofit, general hospitals in various localities of the United States between mid-195 8 and mid1959.

Rothberg, Herman J., “Labor Requirements for Hospital Construction, 1959-60,” Monthly Labor Review,

October 1962, pp. 1120-24.

A summary of BLS Bulletin 1340.

Labor and Material Requirements for Hospital and Nursing Home Construction (BLS Bulletin 1691), 1971, 

50 pp.

A study similar to the one done in 1962 but with data 

shown per square foot as well as per $1,000 of construction contract cost. Covers hospitals and nursing 

homes constructed in 1965-66.

Riche, Martha Farnsworth, “Man-hour Requirements 

Decline in Hospital Construction,” Monthly Labor

Review, November 1970, p. 48.

Summary of BLS Bulletin 1691.

Private multifamily housing construction

Labor and Material Requirements for Private Multifamily Housing Construction (BLS Bulletin 1892), 1976, 

69 pp.

Discusses labor and material requirements for the 

construction of private multifamily housing projects. 

Data were obtained from a survey based on a probability sample representing all privately owned structures 

of five units or more located in metropolitan areas 

where building permits were issued during 1969 for 

500 units or more of this type. The survey covered 89 

projects in 22 Standard Metropolitan Statistical Areas. 

Most of the construction took place in 1971.

Ball, Robert, “Labor and Material Requirements for 

Apartment Construction,” Monthly Labor Review,

January 1975, pp. 70-73.

Summarizes the first construction labor requirements study of private multifamily housing construction.

Private single-family housing construction

Labor and Material Requirements for Private One-Family House Construction (BLS Bulletin 1404), 1964, 

37 pp.

A statistical study of onsite and offsite labor requirements for constructing single-family houses developed

Hospital construction from a sample of one-family houses built in 1962 in 

various localities of the United States.

Rothberg, Herman J., “Labor and Material Requirements for One-Family Houses,” Monthly Labor Review, July 1964, pp. 797-800.

A summary of BLS Bulletin 1404.

Labor and Material Requirements for Construction of

Private Single-Family Houses (BLS Bulletin 1755), 

1972, 30 pp.

A study of labor and material requirements for construction of single-family housing in 1969.

Ball, Robert and Ludwig, Larry, “Labor Requirements 

for Construction of Single-Family Houses,” Monthly

Labor Review, September 1971, pp. 12-14. 

Summary of BLS Bulletin 1755, a study of labor and 

material requirements for single-family housing construction 1969.

Public housing construction

■ V

Labor and Material Requirements for Public Housing

Construction (BLS Bulletin 1402), May 1964, 42 pp. 

A report based on findings of a survey of 31 public 

housing projects which the Public Housing Administration administered. Projects were selected in various 

States to represent four broad geographic regions of 

the conterminous United States.

Labor and Material Requirements for Public Housing

Construction, 1968 (BLS Bulletin 1821), 1974, 20

pp.

A study based on findings of a survey of 48 public 

housing projects sponsored by the Housing Assistance 

Administration of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

i

Finn, Joseph T., “Labor Requirements for Public 

Housing,” Monthly Labor Review, April 1972, pp. 

40-42.

Summary of a study of labor requirements for public 

housing construction in 1968.

School construction

Labor Requirements for School Construction (BLS Bulletin 1299), 1961, 50 pp.

A study of primary and secondary employee-hours 

required per $ 1,000 of new school construction based 

on contracts awarded for 85 elementary and 43 junior 

and senior high schools throughout the United States.

54
Epstein, Joseph, and Walker, James F., “Labor Requirements for School Construction,” Monthly Labor Review, July 1961, pp. 724-30.

A summary of BLS Bulletin 1299.

Labor and Material Requirements for School Construction (BLS Bulletin 1586), June 1968 23 pp.

A survey of selected elementary and secondary public schools constructed primarily during 1964-65. In 

addition to providing information on labor requirements, the study also includes data on the types and 

values of materials used, wages paid, occupations, and 

use of apprentices.

Finn, Joseph T., “ Labor Requirements for School Construction,” Monthly Labor Review, August 1968, pp. 

40-43.

A summary of BLS Bulletin 1586.

Ball, Robert and Finn, Joseph T., “Labor and Material 

Requirements for Sewer Works Construction,” 

Monthly Labor Review, November 1976, pp. 38-41. 

Summarizes the 1971 study of sewer works construction which updates a study done in 1962-63. Provides 

data on labor and material requirements for construction of sewer lines and plants for the United States. 

Additional national data and also regional data appear 

in the present study, Bulletin 2003.

Labor and Material Requirements for Sewer Works Construction (BLS Bulletin 1490), 1966, 31 pp.

Study designed to measure employee-hours required 

for each $1,000 of new sewer facilities construction 

contract. The basis for this study was 138 contracts for 

new sewer works in years 1962-63.

Sewer works construction

Other Reports, Articles, and Summaries

Ball, Claiborne M., “Employment Effects of Construction Expenditures,” Monthly Labor Review, February 1965, pp. 154-58.

A summary of labor requirements for eight types of 

construction broken down by offsite and onsite hours, 

by occupation, and by region.

Finn, Joseph T., “Material Requirements for Private 

Multifamily Housing,” Construction Review, April 

1976, pp. 4-10.

This article summarizes the results of the survey of 

labor and building materials requirements for private 

multifamily housing (BLS Bulletin 1892) with reference to the value of the materials, supplies, and equipment used in this type of construction. A detailed listing of the cost of these materials, supplies, and 

equipment per $ 1,000 of construction contract cost 

and per 100 square feet is included. In addition, comparisons are made between the results of this study and 

the Public Housing (BLS Bulletin 1821) and Private 

One-Family Housing (BLS Bulletin 1755) studies.

Ball, Robert, “The Contract Construction Industry,” 

Technological Trends in Major American Industries

(BLS Bulletin 1474), 1966, pp. 32-38.

Discusses economic trends in the industry with emphasis on the impact of technological change on employment, occupations, job skills, and productivity.

“Construction Labor Requirements,” reprint of Chapter 33 of BLS Handbook of Methods (BLS Bulletin 

1910), 1976.

Description of techniques of construction labor requirements studies.

Mark, Jerome A., and Ziegler, Martin, “Measuring 

Labor Requirements for Different Types of Construction,” Paper presented before the Conference 

on the Measurement of Productivity in the Construction Industry, sponsored by the National Commission 

on Productivity and the Construction Industry Collective Bargaining Commission, September 14, 1972, 

Washington, D.C.

Discussion of the BLS program of labor and material 

requirements and analysis of the potential of using data 

from the program to measure productivity by type of 

construction.

Weinberg, Edgar, Mechanization and Automation of

Building Site Work, National Response Paper for the 

Economic Commission for Europe, Committee on 

Housing, Building, and Planning, Third Seminar on 

the Building Industry, Moscow, October 1970. 

Discussion of current technology and labor requirements at the construction site.

Weinberg, Edgar, “Reducing Skill Shortages in Construction,” Monthly Labor Review, February 1969, 

pp. 3-9.

Discussion of methods for reducing occupational 

shortages.

Ziegler, Martin, “BLS Construction Labor Requirements Program,” Paper presented before the North 

American Conference on Labor Statistics, San Juan, 

Puerto Rico, June 1971.

Construction labor requirements program and objectives are discussed.

The results of recent surveys of labor and materials 

requirements for (a) civil works construction, (b) 

college housing construction, and (c) school construction will be published in the near future.

55 OU.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1979 281- 412/144 1-3

DIGEST OF SELECTED

PENSION PLANS 1976-78

Keep Informed About... Pension plan provisions affecting • Participation • Retirement benefits, Normal, Early,

Special early, Disability • Vesting • Survivor benefits • Reciprocity (allows transfer of credits between plans).

Digest of Selected

Pension Plans

1976-78 Edition

A New Edition

This digest gives the latest facts about pension 

provisions under collective bargaining and pension 

plans for salaried employees, and should be of 

interest to personnel directors and managers, 

contract negotiators, pension trustees and 

administrators, and benefit plan consultants and 

analysts.

The 363 page volume provides up-to-date 

information on the benefits, vesting, and financial 

provisions of 150 private pension plans. The new 

edition includes many new industries and indicates 

for the first time which plans have reciprocity 

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Bureau of Labor Statistics

Regional Offices

Region I

1 6 0 3 J F K F e d e r a l B u i l d i n g

G o v e r n m e n t C e n t e r

B o s t o n . M a s s . 0 2 2 0 3

P h o n e : ( 6 1 7 ) 2 2 3 - 6 7 6 1

Region II

S u i t : 3 4 0 0

1 5 1 5 B r o a d w a y

N e w Y o r k , N Y 1 0 0 3 6

P h o n e : ( 2 1 2 ) 3 9 9 - 5 4 0 5

Region III

3 5 3 5 M a r k e t S t r e e t

P . O . B o x 1 3 3 0 9

P h i l a d e l p h i a , P a . 1 9 1 0 1

P h o n e : ( 2 1 5 ) 5 9 6 - 1 1 5 4

Region IV

1 3 7 1 P e a c h t r e e S t r e e t , N E .

A t l a n t a , G a . 3 0 3 0 9

P h o n e : ( 4 0 4 ) 8 8 1 - 4 4 1 8

Region V

9 t h F l o o r

F e d e r a l O f f i c e B u i l d i n g

2 3 0 S . D e a r b o r n S t r e e t

C h i c a g o , I I I 6 0 6 0 4

P h o n e : ( 3 1 2 ) 3 5 3 - 1 8 8 0

Region VI

S e c o n d F l o o r

5 5 5 G r i f f i n S q u a r e B u i l d i n g

D a l l a s , T e x . 7 5 2 0 2

P h o n e : ( 2 1 4 ) 7 4 9 - 3 5 1 6

Regions VII and VIII*

9 1 1 W a l n u t S t r e e t

K a n s a s C i t y , M o . 6 4 1 0 6

P h o n e : ( 8 1 6 ) 3 7 4 - 2 4 8 1

Regions IX and X**

4 5 0 G o l d e n G a t e A v e n u e

B o x 3 6 0 1 7

S a n F r a n c i s c o , C a l i f . 9 4 1 0 2

P h o n e : ( 4 1 5 ) 5 5 6 - 4 6 7 8

* R e g i o n s V I I a n d V I I I a r e s e r v i c e d

b y K a n s a s C i t y

" R e g i o n s I X a n d X a r e s e r v i c e d

b y S a n F r a n c i s c o