New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1921-08-14
Concrete Has Been Found
Wonderful Building Material
Is Comparatively Cheap, Is Fireproof and Gets Bet
ter With Age; Introduced Here When Lumber
Supply Began to Show Depletion

This fact also prevents the loss of time
due to failure of shipments Of material
to arrive on time. the laying off of men,
railroad or material strikes and the
numerous difficulties that confront the
building contractors
Another important item in using
concrete in construction is the fact that
machinery replaces manual labor to a
large extent and that it is not neces-
sary to employ SO much skilled labor
on the job. Concrete mixers are used
to transform the sand, gravel, cement
and water into concrete. There is no
need for so many of the highly paid
mechanics called for in many other
types of building. A skilled foreman
who understands concrete can take
gang of ordinary laborers and turn out
a finished job. In these days Of high
wages this item cuts off a considerable
amount from the original cost Of q
building, and when the job is started it
can be rapidly pushed to conclusion.
By using concrete in constructor a
building can be completed in much less
time than by using other types Of con-
struction. Once the forms are placed
the concrete mixer can turn out large
quantities of material; it can be placed
in the forms in surprisingly short
time and the concrete hardens into a
permanent mass. 1t also improves with
age, and is free from the many repair
and maintenance costs associated with
less substantial types of conslruc-
ton.
In buildings where machinery IS to
be operated the use of concrete Ct
ers an advantage peculiar to this type
of construction. Running machinery de-
mands that the structure in which it
is housed be rigid, and that there be
no vibration Of the building. Where
rigidity is lacking there is annoyance
caused by disalignment of the shafting
and by the uneven support of the ma
chimes.
Concrete buildings have remarkably
low upkeep and maintenance charges
This is due to the qualities of the ma
terias 1t is not subject to decay.
Weather has little effect on concrete,
except to make it harder and stronger,
and rats, vermin and parasites cannot
injure it. The depreciation of a con-
crete building is exceptionally low.
Gets Better With Age
The hard wearing qualities of con-
crete can be best illustrated by the
miles of concrete roads that have been
built throughout the country. Here
again the item of location of mate
rails was an important one, and the
road building sand and gravel were
found along the route of the highway.
The concrete roads in use to-day carry
tremendous loads with an exceptionally
low maintenance cost.
The advantage of concrete in con-
struction are not confined to the mono
lthic idea. Unit construction and con-
crete block and brick are used extern
sively in all sorts of buildings, while
effects derived by concrete trimstone
have proved very popular. Monolithic
concrete and concrete block are widely
used not only in the construction of
great Office buildings, but in residences
and smaller commercial structures. In
residential construction concrete blocks
have proved very popular, architects
being able to work out many attractive
designs with this material.
In every phase of building activity,
from the tallest skyscraper to the
smallest bungalow or garage, concrete
has been found to be most economical
as construction material. 1t saves
money from the very start-in the loca-
ton of materials close to the job 1t
saves in cost of labor bills by machine
mixers and use of common labor in
stead Of skilled mechanics; it saves in
time Of constructions it saves on in
surance bills, maintenance and depre-
citation. And when the job is finished,
no matter what it is, it stands for a
long, long time when built of concrete