Document 3e7NgqpaQpxpVMRK3wgpXjy9D

PUBLIC LIBRARY 295970\ LiJsnx >N0 Lone Star CONSTRUCTORSMIlt. integrity and Responsibility Vol. 1 OCTOBER, 1924 Skill, Integrity and Responsibility No. 1 CONTENTS Page Editorials ...........................................................................................3-4 Responsibility Loaded on Contractors ................................ 5 A. G. C. Board Meeting............................................................... 6 Standard Contract Forms ......................................................... 7 Texas Branch Summer Meeting................................................ S Texas Branch and Chapter News ....................................... 9 Rostev of Texas Branch................................... 13 NOTICE The Lone Star Constructor im a monthly magniloe issued an the official organ or the Texas Branch, Associated General Con tractors of America. It is mailed free to all hulidlagi highway, railroad and publie work General Contractors, all Architect* and all Engineers In the State of Texan. Publication date nn the 23tb of each month, preceding. Advertis ing rates furnished on applica tion to FRANK flf. WATS-OX Editor 1104 Liggett Building Rutliiff, Texas ITH THIS ISSUE the Lone Star Con expressed in the organization and activity of W structor makes its bow to the con the A. G. C., the Lone Star Constructor has struction industry of Texas. As the been dedicated. official organ of the Texas Branch, Asso ------o------------- ciated General Contractors of America, it will serve, primarily, to further the princi ples of co-operative effort on the part of Constructors, and to bring about better con tracting conditions. Texas Constructors have long labored un der the yoke of disorganization. Combating the encroachments of other groups within the industry with the obsolete weapon of in dividual resistance has proven futile. Armed with the modern weapons of organization, co-operation and ethical self-regulation suc cess is absolutely certain. Constructors are prone to forget that they are the fiscal agents of construction--the only group within the industry that has di rect contact with every other element of a construction operation. The very nature of the service he renders demands that the Con structor assume his full responsibility as the co-ordinating and directing force in construc tion progress. In the field of professional and trade asso ciations A. G. C., both nationally and locally, esign and. construction are, of D necessity, two separate and distinct phases of a construction project," re cites the Code of Ethics and Practice adopted by a Texas Branch, "and the best results can be obtained only when a capable de signer and a skilled, reliable and responsible general contractor are employed on the work." While that declaration of principle is di rectly aimed at the Architect or Engineer who attempts to combine construction with design and the Constructor who attempts to design or draw plans and write specifica tions, it applies with equal force to designers or constructors who evade the duty and re sponsibility which the true sphere of each imposes. Without mincing words, the article in this issue by Ward P. Christie, A. G. C. Engineer, discusses the many evils that result from evasion of the designer's duty to furnish complete plans and specifications as well as 's comparatively recent. But based on fun damental principles that are economically sound in conception and operation it has al ready wielded a tremendous influence for Rood. the inequity of shifted responsibility. Evasion of responsibility is a form of men tal dishonesty that too frequently occurs-- another instance of much needed house To the furtherance of these principles, as cleaning. flrtober, 1924 LONE STAB CONSTRUCTOR industry, are an important cog in the commercial TEXAS BRANCH A G. C. OFFICERS . s raILEY HOXJX. HoustonPresident It L BURNEY, San Antonio_____Vice-President THOR. M. MURRAY, Houston-.-Secy.-Trensurer life of the city. Dallas Chapter has received a large supply of the new Joint Conference Standard Building and En gineering contract forms and has placed copies in the hands of each Architect and Engineer in Dallas. DIRECTORS \ J McKenzieSan Antonio i A WALKERSan Antonio i F. JOHNSONAustin iV W. HARRISONWaco .UnnnKlns Editor Lone 9tnr Confttrtlctnr FRANK N. WATSON 204 Llgfett Diilldlss, Dnllns Hereafter our members, will submit all proposals conditioned on the execution of these standard con tract forms. The A. G. C. sign is being prominently displayed on most of the construction work in Dallas and we are rapidly succeeding in impressing the public that the seal of Skill, Integrity and Responsibility- Activities of the Texas Branch during the past sixty clays have been largely devoted to internal development. The plan of organizing- the engineer ing construction firms of Texas into a state-wide Chapter, Highway Division of the Texas Branch, as approved by the Austin meeting, is being pushed as rapidly as possible. More than a dozen of the leading road, paving and engineering constructors of the state have sig nified their willingness to come into such an or ganization. Complete outline of the organization plan together with tentative constitution and by laws are being mailed to all prospective members of this Chapter with the request that they sign applications for membership conditioned on the per fecting of the organization with not less than twenty members. It is planned to hold a ratification meeting at Sau Antonio November 12th and 13th, in connection with the regular Texas Branch scheduled for those dates, for the purpose of electing permanent offi cers, adopting the final draft of constitution and by laws and working out the details of operation. The Austin meeting designated Frank N. Watson us temporary executive-secretary for the purpose of getting the Highway Chapter organized. Engineer ing construction firms interested in this movement should communicate with Mr. Watson. Plans are also under way for the organization of a local Chapter at Austin with an initial mem bership of eight to ten constructors. Under the recent ruling of the Texas Branch which reduced the required membership of new Chapters from ten to five it is expected that several more new Chapters will be inaugurated in the next few months. THOS. M. MURRAY, Secretary, Texas Branch DALLAS CHAPTER L. W. HICKEY ______ OWEN HUGHES_______ \V. H. VlacIiAY________ ____________ Vice-President AKCH MUNN................... ___-.Secretary-Treasurer FRANK N. WATSON _______Secretary -Manager Educational work on the subjects of quantity sur veying and cost accounting have taken up most of the regular meeting time of Dallas Chapter the past two months. W. E. Henger, George Watson and Arch Munn have handled these topics and suc ceeded in investing them with real practical interest. The luncheon meetings held for all general con tractors each Wednesday noon are steadily growing jn attendance and interest. Outside speakers are invited to address these meetings on . topics of inter est to constructors, so that in addition to the good fellowship, we are building up the feeling that con stands for something tangible. FRANK N. WATSON, Secretary-Manager. FORT WORTH CHAPTER THOS. S. BYRNEPresident JOHN ABBOTTVice-President J. D. JOHNSONSecretary-Treasurer C. H. CETTI___:Director C. M. BUTCHERDirector F. M. KUHLMAN_______________ --...........--Director D. T. WOMACKDirector Weekly luncheon meetings have been resumed by the Wort Worth Chapter, being held each Wednes day noon at the Maryland Coffee Shop, 812 Hous ton Street. No program is being attempted at these luncheons but the good fellowship engendered by such social get-to-gethers is bringing the Chap ter membership much closer in spirit and harmony. Out-of-town members are cordially invited to at tend these luncheons when business brings them to Fort Worth on Wednesdays. Regular Chapter meetings are held every other Wednesday night, usually at the office of the presi dent, Thos. S. Byrne. Meetings so far have been largely devoted to round-table discussions of local conditions and on subjects as developed at the re cent Texas Branch meetings. After January first when the new budget goes into effect we expect to enlarge our activities to include a campaign designed to put association ideals1 on the map in Fort Worth. J. D. JOHNSON, Secretary. HOUSTON CHAPTER THOS. M. MURRAY_______________________President C. A. THANHEISERVice-President E. G. MacLAYSecretary-Treasurer JAMES M. L. WEST________________________Director DON HALLDirector The members of the Houston Chapter are hold ing regular meetings once a month and are doing considerable work on different subjects between times. We find that these regular meetings are of great benefit to the contractors. For one thing, it helps to get them better acquainted with each other, and to exchange ideas on matters that are of common interest to all. The membership com mittee is actively at work in raising our member ship at least twenty members. This will give us a nice sized chapter and sufficient members to carry out our programs successfully. We are at the present time combating day labor practices in the city government, and are endeav oring to show the city administration that it is more economical to do work on a contract basis NOTICE: THIS MATERIAL MAY BE structors, as the central unit of the construction than by the faulty day labor system. Houston has 10 LONE STAR CONSTRUCTOR October, 1924 just passed through a general strike over the metal trim controversy, and successful co-operation of the contractors and the united stand which they made helped largely to break the strike. This is another instance where organization and unity in effort has won out. We have started to form a campaign to put the A. G. C. more before the public and let everyone know what A. G. C. stands for. THOMAS M. MURRAY, President. SAN ANTONIO CHAPTER A. J. McKENZIBPresident J. T. HAILE. JRSecretary-Treasurer S. E. CORNELIUSExecutive Secretary San Antonio Chapter is devoting her main energy just now to making plans and preparations for the Texas Branch meeting to be held in this city No vember 12th and 13th. 'While the full details have not as yet been worked out a general outline of the program shows separate meetings of the building and highway divisions on the first day. The highway meeting will be de voted to perfecting their statewide Chapter. Joint meeting of the two divisions on the second day will take up questions of mutual interest-- mainly the question of day labor. Entertainment features will be adequate--and then some. So come prepared to work hard and play the same way. SIDNEY E. CORNELIUS, Executive Secretary. WACO CHAPTER J. S. HARRISONPresident K. .T. POTTSSecretary-Treasurer Apologies are due Waco Chapter for not advising them of the publication date of this first issue bo that an article covering their activities could be pre pared. In the rush of getting this issue to press the matter was overlooked.--Editor. -- SAN ANTONIO GETS FALL MEETING (Continued from page 7) tiie entire Branch membership on matters of general interest. Day labor will be the major topic 'for discussion. The San Antonio Chapter has not developed the plans made for entertaining visiting constructors, but they have let enough leak out to insure that this convention may see the first one hundred per cent attendance in the history of Texas Branch. SAND and GRAVEL For AH Purposes WASHED and SCREENED QUALITY .... SERVICE Potts-Moore Gravel Co. WACO CONTRACTORS EQUIPMENT We are distributors in the Southwest for the Austin Machinery Cor poration line of Ditching, Excavating, Road Building and Paving Ma chinery. The Austin line includes Trenching Machines, Drag Lines, Steam Shovels, Back Fillers, Cranes, Paving Machines, Road Building and Re pairing Equipment, Concrete Mixers, etc. We also distribute the celebrated Novo Engine line of unit equip ment and the famous Knickerbocker Concrete Mixers. WRITE - WIRE - PHONE Briggs- Weaver Machinery Company DALLAS, TEXAS. Since 1896 "The House of Quality"