Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1907-09-09
CONCRETE BUILDING
COLLAPSES DUE TO ERRORS In
HANDLING The MATERIAL.
Bad Mixing and Choice of Poor Gravel
Blamed for Numerous Failures.
Building Experts Point Out Errors
Made and Their Causes. Some
Useful Facts.


charge Of the United States geological
surveys structural matetia! laboratories
in st. Louis. Mo-, and Norfolk, Va, de-
clares that the danger OF collapse OF con.
crete structures exiets in nearly every
important city in the U nited States, and
says:
II have examined carefully nearly
every one of the buildings that have col
lapsed within the last year, and in every
instance the fall of the structure has
been due to carelessness OF construction.
From what have seen Of other concrete
buildings in course OF construction, am
satisfied that the same errors are being
repeated and that further collapses will
surely come unless the officials OF the
cities take the question in hand now.
This danger OF careless construction con-
fronts nearly every city of the country,
and 1t is miracle to me that more con-
crete buildings have not collapsed.
''In order to meet this problem square.
ly, every city in the United State should
revise it's building laws in such manner
that either the owner or the contractor
OF a concrete building shall be compelled
to employ competent inspector, whose
duty it shall be to follow every detail OF
the construction from the beginning Of
the foundation to the completion OF the
roof. New York, St. Louis, Boston and
Philadelphia have either prepared or are
now preparing new regulations govern.
ing concrete construction.
"The science of concrete construction
is not yet thoroughly settled, and until
it is, the greatest care should be taken in
the use OF the material. Concrete, by
reason Of its superior qualities, especially
it's resistance to fire and its cheapness, is
being used extensively in these days and
will be employed still more in the future.
1t is a comparatively new material and
until its properties are fully known and
appreciated the greatest safeguards
should be thrown about it. There is a
prevalent idea that it can be used by un-
skilled aborers. That is an error which
has led 70 serious consequences. While
if is true that unskilled labor can be en-
ploved to large extent, concrete con-
structon requires the same care and at
tention to details that is demanded by
first-cass construction with other ma
terals.
"Some OF the causes that have pro-
duced failures are; Carelessness in pro.
portioning and mixing the concrete ;
poor or unsuitable sand, stone or gravel;
poor joints in the forms and insufficient
bracing, and often too early removal of
these forms; insufficient and incorrectly
placed reinforcement, and bad alignment
OF the work.
"Each failure tends to discourage the
use Of concrete, for the reason that it is
almost universally attributed to the ma
terial rather than to the improper condi-
tions under which it is used. The failure
OF a reinforced concrete structure by rea.
son OF improper design, poor materials,
or bad workmanship is no more an argu-
ment against its use than the collapse Of
a steel structure under similar condi-
tions is an argument against the use of
structural steel construction.
"The geological survey, in connection
with its experiments, has made it a point
to investigate promptly the failure of
concrete structures, and the collapse Of
those already examined has been due to
carelessness on the part OF the contract
ors or defective design or forms, and not
to the materials used.
'In the last ruined concrete building |
inspected I found many evidences OF
carelessness in construction. The forms
used we're the bad feature; the joints
were not tight, the supports were light
and for the roof had to be splced.
"The alignment of the work was very
bad; the columns did not center over
each other and the lower sides of the
beams and girJers were not only not