Steelwork Specifications

IT is very often stated that ferro-concrete construction, inasmuch as it renders possible wider spans to the apertures in buildings, will lead to the creation of a new style and that the old proportions of architecture will be superseded. Very long bressummers unsupported except at their extremities now cause us aesthetic displeasure, but we are told that as soon as our senses are trained to familiarity with these forms, they will seem not only satisfactory but even elegant. Two separate fallacies appear to be involved in this assumption, and as these fallacies are brought forward again and again in numerous articles and discussions on the aesthetic factor in ferro-concrete construction, I propose to devote a few paragraphs to attempting their refutation. A. Trystan Edwards

MR. E. FIANDER ETCHELLS (Past President) proposed a vote of thanks to Mr. Bylander for his paper. Dealing with the, question of floor loads, he said that Mr. Bylander's list was particularly interesting, because, to a very great extent, it was the average of the world's opinion. In every country there were extremists who took particular views on particular topics, but if one considered the whole of the recommendations of these various authorities, one would find that there was such a thing as a centre of gravity of instructed opinion as to what the loads might, be, and Mr. Bylander had got wonderfully near to that standard practice. Certainly the loads he had given would not suit all, but if each opinion were considered separately, and an average obtained, the list would be very much the same as that given in the paper. Therefore the author's figures might well be accepted.

Mr. W.J.H. LEVERTON proposed a hearty vote of thanks to Major Smith for his paper dealing with the use of pneumatic tyres on heavy vehicles, he pointed out that if a tyre on a heavy vehicle, such as a bus or a lorry, were to burst, it would give a report like that of a cannon, which was not only disconcerting, but very dangerous, inasmuch as it would upset the steering. No doubt the arguments in favour of pneumatic tyres, from the point of view that they did less damage to the roads than solid tyres, were strong, but notwithstanding that, the possibility of bursts must be kept in view. The costs of construction in America, as given by the author, seemed estremely low as compared with the costs in this country. The cost of the road between Croton and Reerskill, in New York State, was given as 14s. per sq. yard, of which 5s. 4d. represented the cost of excavation, whereas he believed that, generally speaking, the cost in this country would be roughly £l per sq. yard. According to the author’s figures, the cost was only 8s. 8d. per sq. yard for concrete 8 in. thick, with reinforcement. With regard to the camber of roads, a good many people considered that on roads with snrfaces such as concrete and asphalte it need not be anything like so much as on the old macadam roads. Of course, the camber tended to cause the skidding of motor vehicles, but the author of a book he had been reading recently had stated that on surfaces such as asphalte the water dried off quickly, so that the camber might be considerably reduced, and almost abolished.