The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1957-03-21

gested would little more than hold
up the weight of the floor itself
with its dead weight load of some
95 pounds per square foot, and con-
Sidering the length of the span.
Mr.. Friends engineer said the
girder weighing $50 pounds 10 the
running foot would carry about 81
tons Of weight evenly distributed
on a forty-eight foot span. With the
span actually 50 feet long instead
of 48 the stress becomes much
greater. Even at his own figures
each foot on this even distribution
would carry approximately one ton
The county has one road machine.
eight feet wide, 80 feet long, weigh
ing rs tons, or almost a ton to the
foot. This one machine alone could
have caused the buildings collapse.
In addition the roads people told
me Tuesday that they keep four
teen trucks in that garage almost
every night, weighing six tons each,
sometimes they have eight-ton
loads on them, or IA tons per truck.
Ii was further learned Tuesday
that most of the Orders weighed
only 230 pounds to, the foot, not
300, as the Senator asserts. How
ever, when ordering it was impos-
Siple TO get all OF them at that
weight and that three of them are
the 300 weight.
II was further learned that w
W. Dewitt, roads engineer, who de-
signed the building, obtained ex-
! pert advice, first from an engineer
OF a pre-stress concrete slab con-
Germ of Parkersburg, w. Va. and
that his recommendation later
were affirmed by a consulting
/ structural engineer from Pitts
burgh
; just to carry the dead weight OF
the floor and the miscellaneous
| loads it would take from day to
day, the least it would need would
ne beams 1872 pounds to the foot
but with the machinery now used
by the roads department and the
trucks that are parked there con-
Sistently the heavier beams used
were considered adequate but not
overly heavy.
His market price of 10 cents 9
! pound was not correct. for fabri.
Gated steel, even at the date the
steel was purchased Angle irons
, and small pieces might have been
obtained at 10 cents. but not g.
inch beams. But the price of Is
cents included office planning, shop
planning, erection plans, garage
frames and fabrication costs, plus
complicated welding which was
| necessary for two or three of the
girderS which were not Ions
enough to start with
We have made it clear time anc
AGAIN tn at at tho tit1,o tho ctaol woo
needed, if the garage was to be
put under roof that fall, it was moi
to be had on the regular market al
any price, and that these beams
we're obtained from some other
labor job where the builder coulC
afford to wait. All three commits
sioners sat in on the discussion
and all agreed that the construc.
ton should go ahead, and that the
steel should be purchased.
The Senator continues to be mis-
leading. He says Our Roads De
partment is now paying a person
VINO is not an Engineer over six
thousand dollars and furnishing
him car and in addition they are
paying a sC-called assistant engi
neer another $4,000 with car" Tha
sounds like everybody gets car
But that is not correct. The Com
missioners have one car. The roads
engineer uses it, the assistant use.
it and the County Commissioner,
use it when they take necessary
trips. There is just one car for al
five.
Maybe what Senate Bill 141 should
have included is not a requirement
that cur county roads engineer have
a college degree, but require
ment that our Senators should have
a college degree. Maybe then WE
might elect Senators with a broad
err vision and less spite, less ami
mostly for those who attempt t.
cross his path, and less suspicion!
mind.
w w. Dewitt is not a graduate
engineer, but he sought advice o.
expert engineers when he designed
the building, who agreed with hi!
ideas of what was sound and nee
essery. The garage is completed
and it is adequate to take care Of
future machine needs. The "T