Construction Materials Under The Priorities System

The National Retail Lumber Dealers Association's release of October 11 commenting on the statement of policy of the Supply Priorities and Allocation Board is further clarified by the address of John L. Haynes, Chief, Lumber and Building Materials Branch, Division of Civilian Supply, Office of Production Management.

The real purpose of this address, the Association states, was to assure the building industry that the SPAB release of October 9 does not propose any new program, but merely formalizes conditions that have existed for some time.

Below is quoted copy of a telegram received by the Association from Bruce Caytton, assistant to Donald Nelson, in reply to an inquiry as to whether or not local private building can proceed where materials are available:

"Construction policy ruling does not mean that material suppliers cannot sell stocks on hand and does not call for arbitrary stoppage of building programs, such as you describe. Ruling means that priority applications for building materials hereafter will be handled along lines in release published Thursday. Nothing in ruling affects builders who are able to get materials without priority rating."

Mr. Haynes' address which was delivered before the fall board meeting of the Associated General Contractors of America at the Book-Cadillac Hotel, Detroit, Mich., October 14, 1941, follows:

"May I preface my remarks with the statement that the title of my talk (Construction Materials under the Priorities System) appearing on your program was decided upon some ten days before press release SPA-9 was issued. SPA-9 is the one which refers to the stoppage of nonessential construction. I should like to add by way of further preface that I have been in, or closely associated with, the construction industry for over 20 years and that neither I nor anyone else with whom I am acquainted in OPM has any idea that the general contractors of America are the logical persons to bear the brunt of the scarce metals situation in which we now find ourselves. Relatively few of the structures which you build may be classed as luxuries or as unnecessary-or which do not add to the asset side of America's balance sheet.

"Howeyer, the initial successes of Mr. Hitler have forced us to revise some of our ideas. A now frank and open policy of armament, and of resistance to the efforts of Mr. Hitler has caused, as I know you appreciate, a tremendous drain on our national stockpile-on our steel and copper pro,duction-more specifically on our next month's supply of 'rolled shapes and reinforcing bars.

"ft is this situation which sometime ago caused OPM to change its test of whether an allocation should be made or a priority granted. Where months ago we inquired as to urgency, we have been lately forced to require of applicants a demonstration that the proposed structure, or the use of steel and copper is for defense needs or that the building is vitally necessary to the health and safety of the people. This accelerated tightening-up of grants of priorities has been brought about, not only because of reports of our own economists and statisticians but from reports from the field as to how deliveries under the priorities system were had. Of late, where project priorities were granted, they were made applicable to the minimum structural frame of the building and to certain substitute materials for. those more scarce,-they were not made applicable, for example, to copper pipe, copper flashing, or because of the zinc situation to seemingly unnecessary quantities of galvanized materials.

"fn effect, this treatment gave assistance to the general structure, but not to certain scarce materials. The use of copper pipe was discouraged so there would be left enough copper to make wire. Substitutes by and large for copper wire are not practicable. The owner or builder or rather the owner and builder were still at liberty to scramble for (continuing the example) copper pipe in the open market. It is safe to assume that those with the long purses or the best connections got the copper pipe. It was recognized that such procedure does not do equity-neither does it place strategic materials where they are most urgently needed.

"As a corrective, we have more recently been asking the architect or the designer of an urgently needed structure to come to Washington and to agree upon changes in plans and specifications, looking toward minimizing the use of critical metal. He is asked to take off the bronze doors, take off the copper downspouts, etc. Not until this 'strip-tease' has been performed is the project granted a priority rating.

"But these measures have obviously been only of stopgap character. Some contractors instead of applying for a project priority status have applied on Form Pd-l-for say only the structural steel or perhaps only structural steel and reinforcing steel. The idea seems to be that more expedition was expected in a particularized request and the job would be got under way. Once in that status f presume the feeling rvas that the great government would have to see that the job was completed. Tossing a PD-l request in the grab-bag along with the 1,999 others received that day is no sensible procedure. For one thing, it does not assure the contractor the receipt of the hundred or perhaps thousand and one other items necessary to get the job under roof and finished. It does not assure the completion of the Hospital or say the manufacturing plant. There is no merit in the first come-first served system.

'OPM has ever been wary of unnecessary interference with free enterprise,-but there is not much to be said for the unrestricted bidding for materials in a market where the demand exceeds the supply by 5O/o and in some instances by well over fiO/o. Many of you must be acquainted with bootleg prices, bid and asked for steel and copper. These are matters of common talk. You must also be acquainted with numerous jobs half completed and bogged down for lack of deliveries of critical materials and equipment. Ifundreds and hundreds of construction jobs are being choked, choked here and choked there because of the shortage I have been describing. I am informed several munitions plants under construction, (and by the way blessed with the highest of priority ratings) are having difficulty in obtaining among other thingsstructural steel. Cement as you know is not yet on the priorities critical list, but there are already two extremely tight spots in the country. This period of delayed deliveries when construction labor 'goes on slow motion' and the overhead just 'goes on' cannot help but make the low bidder feel he is going to turn out to be the unstrccessful bidder.

"It is with these things in mind that SPAB issued the statement of policy that 'no public or private construction project which use critical materials may be started during the emergency unless these projects are either necessary for direct national defense or are essential to the health and safety of the people.'

"The prime consideration in such policy is obviously the diversion of steel and copper to those works most deserving at this time,-a more equitable distribution of material in the light of the emergency. Some people, and of course some contractors, are bound to be adversely affected, by this program and other features of the National Defense Program. Business as usual is an impossibility. The proportion of our output of steel which is being taken for defense is steadily rising. In recent months it has risen from 45/o to 57/o. The backlog of unfilled steel orders is likewise rising, from 34O,000 tons only a month ago to 600,000 tons today. The copper situation is much worse.

"But by and large is not the construction industry as well off today Tuesday, October 14th, as it was Wednesday, October 8th, before release 9 was issued ? As a practical matter, does not the proposed program merely formalize conditions as they existed last week with the ragged edges trimmed off ? I fully appreciate words 'projects may not be started' is strong talk, but was not that, as a matter of practical fact, just the situation we had yesterday? Was the gamble, and you must admit it was a gamble, that you MIGHT be able to perform your contract for a 5 story apartment house of any material benefit to the construction industry ? Was it of any benefit to the contractor to get his bridge piers up only to find that his order for steel for the span was delayed by another bridge order carrying priority assistance? It certainly does not appear so. I suggest that there are many benefits to A. G. C. in SPA release 9. There should be better deliveries, much better deliveries, to that large amount of construction work still to be undertaken. With the mad scramble for materials curtailed, with some of the speculative builders out of the rvay, prices should be better, and the danger of ruinous inflationary tendencies lessened.

"The newspapers argue that Auto production has been cut only 50/o while the construction industry has been stopped dead in its tracks. In the first place, the auto cut is not accompanied by any priority assistance at this time. The auto program releases some 3,000,000 tons of steel to the national stockpile of which the general contractor will get a share. Similar programs will soon affect other manufacturers. On the other hand, the construction industry is now getting defense priorities to the extent of. about 45/o of its dollar volume of business in the year l94l-and l94l is no lean year. It is the largest since the late '20's. In addition, it is now estimated that non-defense construction will be held to slightly less than half of '41. This would add (again using '41 as a base) some 30/o. So in all probability, in 1942, the construction fraternity even under the new program will get priority assistance for somewhere around 75/o of the dollar volume for '41. This alone would be larger than the year 194O. In addition, it is estimated that an additional 1,200,000 tons, or if you please another billion dollars in defense construction projects will be let, again with high priority assistance. Is this a gloomy picture? 75/o of. '41 is not a volume to bring complaint.

"On the other hand, the United Kingdom is devoting about 5O/o of all their resources to war efiort while we are currently devoting about tS/o. This picture fore-shadows some difficult times ahead.

"I have discussed SPA 9 with Mr. Henderson. As you all know, Mr. Henderson is the director of the Division of Civilian Supply as well as a member of SPAB. He has authorized me to state he will not see civilian life cut off, and that he is determined that necessary civilian construction shall go forward in an orderly manner. As you know, he is dedicated to the proposition that inflation should be prevented. To you gentlemen who represent purchasers of about l/6 of the nation's steel, f say that the so called dark cloud may have a silver lining."

NOT ME (Author Unknown)

Cose Ah ain't sayin' Ah won't do Des whut mah country wants me to, But dey's one job dat Ah fo'see Ain't gwine to 'tach itse'f to meNuh-uh! Not me!

Dass dis heah ai'plane stuff. No bosq

Ah'll bear some oddah kine o' cross, Lak drive a mule, er tote a gun, But Ah ain't flirtin' wid no sunNuh-uh! Not me!

If Ah mus' do a loopde-loop, Let mine be roun'some chicking coop; H'it airft gwine be up whah de crows

Kin say Ahse trompin' on dey toesNuh-uh! Not me!

H'it sho look sweet, Ah doan deny To be a'oozin roun' de sky, But dat's fo' folks whuts in de mood

To pass up love, an' gin, an'foodNuh-uh! Not me!

Down heah I fust saw light o' day.

Down heah is whah Ah'm gwine to stay. Folks, Ah doan keer to have Mah feet Git too blame proud to walk de streetNuh-uh! Not me!

So Ah'll des wait til Gabriel brings, Dem good ole-fashioned angel wings.

Den, as Ah pass dem ai'planes by In pity Ah'll look down, an sighNuh-uh! Not me!

Equipped For Defense

And then, of course, there was the fellow who said he thought he was the one man who could cope on equal terms with bootleg liquor; he was a fire-swallower, and his wife was a snake charmer.

Tree Duty

Who does his duty is a question

Too complex to be solved by me, But he, I venture the suggestion, Does part of his, who plants a tree.

Your Competitor

When two men are fighting, the maddest one generally gets licked.

Be fair with your competitor, but conduct your business in the interest of the consumer and the community.

Prices are always competitive, but good service creates a monopoly.

Compete with your own past record, and let your competitor alone.

Greater foolishness hath no man than this-that he cuts wery price he meets.

Don't waste your time fighting your competitor for business that neither of you helped develop. What your town needs is dealers with buitding FACILITIES, not building HOSTILITIES.

Taking an order away from the other fellow doesn,t help the situation a bit-in the long run. Creating an order that would never have appeared without your work is what makes building prosperity.

We heard a man say of his competitor, one time. .,He is the sort of competitor who puts money in our pockets, brains in our heads, and character in our lives." Isn't that SOME recommendation?

Then Deep Silence

The wife of the traveling salesman decided to go into the chicken raising business. When her husband got home from a long trip, she had already started. Her first equipment was a hen and two roosters. ',Why two roosters?" asked her husband. "That," replied his wife, ..is in case one of them might decide to go on the road.',

. CATTY

Hatty-"She dresses sensibly and modestly.,' Catty-"Yes, that woman will do anything to attract attention."