Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-02-03
PRICES MAY RISE
AGAIN ON CARS
General Manager of REQ Co.
Says Cost of Material Goes
Steadily Up

There is no doubt about 1t, If
prices of materials continue to soar,
automobile manufacturers generally
will be compelled to announce an
other increase of price within the
next few weeks" says Richard H.
Scott, vice president and general
manager fthe REQ Motor Car COM
pany.
Even those concerns like REQ.
who, because of their financial stand
ing and credit, have been in the
habit of covering for two years in
advance for their requirements, now
find their two-year-old contracts ex-
pired and no possibility of renewing
them at the former prices. Advances
all the way from twenty-five to one
hundred per cent. are announced, and
worst of all. few supply houses can
guarantee deliveries or prices even at
present quotations.
Everybody is in the same boat. The
fact of the matter is. there is a short
age of raw materials, or If you prefer
to put it the other way, an override
mand for them.
Il have never known a time when
market conditions were so uncertain
or when the manufacturer had so
much di Is Guilty in estimating his costs
as that which now exists.
Just take one item that the aver
age buyer would never think of-the
shortage of railway cars. Who
would suppose that that would be a
serious item in the increased cost of
making automobiles?
when l tell you that we frequent
ly pay as high as $2.50o.00 in ex-
press charges in one day in ordEr to
get materials that otherwise would
seriously hold up the factory, and
that our average express bills amount
to several hundred dollars per day,
1t will be seen that this is an item of
considerable importance in the cost of
production to-day
Every time YOU stop a big factory
like this, you entail a tremendous ex-
pense and consequent increased cost
of the product that is coming through.
The customers who are clamoring
for cars cannot appreciate the prob
lens that beset the manufacturer,
first in getting the material to his
factory. and then getting the finished
product out again to the customer.
Many times the raw material ship
ped to us gets lost, and in the present
state of congestion, it is almost i'm
possible to trace and locate. Some
times this material cannot be replaced.
We have had cars lay around some
times thirty days to six weeks on an
obscure siding somewhere. Meantime
we have run out of stuff and must get
the heavy material by express.
1T costs money. too, to keep men
scouting around at the different plants
to see that our stuff is shipped as per
schedule-and that is the only way II
can be done. Our own men must
chase up freight cars and then see
that the material is loaded into them
on time.
Machinery has doubled in value;
tool steel is out of sight; die makers
and die Sinkers are earning twice and
three times as much as they did a year
ago; working hours are shorter and
wages are higher. Then look at the
price of coal-not to mention the un-
certainty of the supply.
Everything that goes into an au-
tomobile has taken an upward trend,
and as the REQ policy is to make cars
better and better every year and
hence cannot accept substitutes for
the material specified by REQ en-
gineers-our costs are most seriously
affected.
so far, We have weathered the
storm and steadfastly refused to in
crease prices, but there is no certainty
how long we may be able to do so. AS
stated before, if conditions do not
change for the better soon, not only
we will have to announce an increase
of price, but other manufacturers,
who have previously done so, will
have to announce another"