Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1956-03-15

can be modified as classrooms,
all-purpose rooms. laboratories,
etc.
A complete "modular unit" pro-
gram would permit suppliers to
stock pile" materials since they
would know what size and quality
products are going into every
school.
Actually a modified and less
complete system of modular con-
struction is taken for granted in
the building trade today. Win
dows and doors, for instance,
while varying in material and
quality, are built in but few di-
mansions. Four and eight are key
numbers in modular construction.
For example, most doors are so
inches high. Most cinderblock is
eight inches high.
Charge Late Completion
The McKinsey report charges
that Of the 1913 school projects
completed between 1850 and 1855,
81 were finished after the agreed
contract date and "conservatively"
46 were not ready for occupancy
until after the beginning of the
planned semester. If the Board
of Education can prove that de-
lays are not beyond the control
of the contractor" the builder
must pay liquidated damages of
between $50 and $3.50 for each
late day.
Director of construction Shell
don remembers only two late
school jobs on which liquidated
damages were collected. H. O.
McAlister paid $50 a day for 20
days on the Maryvale school and
the same company paid $50 a
day for 16 days on Brookmont
school. Jim McAlister says his
company was awarded three
school jobs at one time and was
unprepared for the construction
load.
Many contractors believe that
the Board of Education has re-
Trained from seeking liquidated
damages In other cases because
the courts might not uphold the
contractors late clause" unless
there is a bonus clause" for com.
pletion before the deadline.
One contractor says builders
would raise their prices 20 per.
cent to offset possible late pen.
allies.
McKinseys survey states,
Some of the projects were held
up because of delays in site con.
domination proceedings and other
administrative delays. Appar.
emily, however, a substantial re-
sponsibility for late projects is
the architects and contractors.
One contractor counters, "Only
poor businessman lets a job
lag and the building trade al
most unanimously affixes the
blame for late school competitions
to slow material deliveries, espe.
cially on steel products. One firm
says it has a man whose major
job is raising hell with the sup
pliers, trying to get deliveries.
The steel shortage is attribut-
able to: % A general building
boom which is taxing the mills
output. 90 The banking of the
steel furnaces during a threaten
ed strike last summer which
caused the mills to fall a month
behind in their orders. 90 The
floods of last winter, after which
the government took much steel
Tor construction, causing the mills
to fall another month-and-a-half
to two months behind in their or
ders. And "a a general tendency
of the steel companies to produce
heavy, more profitable beams
more than 80 pounds per lineal
foot.
Only about 10 percent of the
steel is an elementary school is
heavier than 30 pounds per foot,
according to one authority.
The steel mills claim they are
on schedule. This, charge a num-
Der of contractors, is because an
order placed one month is not "ac.
cepted" until two or three months
later. Steel is usually delivered
from the mill two or three months
after an order is placed. During
the severe shortage of last fall
and winter delivery was five
months after order.
Some school jobs are ready for
steel installation a month after
initiation. Others are not ready
for steel until three months after
they're started.
United States Steel Supply Co. s
warehouse in Baltimore and Fab
ricator Steel Corp. of Hyattsville
say only 10 percent of their ton
mage may be in steel of less thar
80 pounds per foot. Southern
Iron of Alexandria says its total
steel purchases of 1856 may moi
exceed its steel purchases of 1854
The company says it has already