AMAZING BUILDINGS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 801, 23 October 1929, Page 11

AMAZING BUILDINGS

UNITED STATES ACTIVITY CARS ON NINTH STOREY During his recent visit to the United States Mr. Eric Rhodes, a director of the Fletcher Construction Company, drove a motor-car up to the ninth storey of a huge ramp garage which provided accommodation for I,COO cars. This is only one example of the amazing buildings which are being erected in America. Mr. Rhodes returned to Auckland this morning by the Limited, after spending three months abroad. During his stay in the United States he gathered much interesting information regarding building construction, particularly with reference to building in earthquake areas. In this department of modern construction Mr. Rhodes found that two schools of thought prevailed. One was construction with solid braced frames, and the other was to construct a building so that the lowertwo storeys took the whole shock. The braced frame method seemed to be the most popular and the one which Mr. Rhodes considers the most effective and efficient. COMBATING ’QUAKE DAMAGE Fie stated that a Japanese professor had designed several buildings by this method and they Ly.d all come through earthquakes undamaged. The method of building with braced

frames was more expensive, as it had to provide for taking the shock over the whole building. Some engineers were of the opinion that the method of constructing a building so that the lower storeys took the whole shock would not work out in practice, but so far there had been no ’quakes in America to test it. Mr. Rhodes found that the majority of the engineers he met during his stay in the States favoured the braced-frame method of construction. Any cornice work on American buildings was strictly forbidden unless it was very secure. Bricki'Nvalls were allowed up to the fourth floor, with reinforced bands on each floor-level. Mr. Rhodes considers that the American building laws are not so

strict as those in New Zealand. Speaking of buildings generally, he said that America was evolving a very definite architecture of its own. For the most part the buildings were attractive and free from a great deal of exterior decoration. He found that straight lines were the most popular with a great deal of terracotta used for facings. A “GHASTLY” BUILDING One building; 140 feet high, which he described as “ghastly,” was jet black with pure gold burned-in facings. It did not look at all attractive, despite the money which had been spent on it. No painters were required for finishing work except in very few instances. Doors, windows, etc., were all sprayed with the required paint or finishing material. Lacquer was becoming popular for finishing work as it saved time and allowed the contractors to get on with the job. Mr. Rhodes found that American methods of erecting a building were entirely different from those prevailing in New Zealand. One firm of contractors did not take over a whole building and finish it. Each separate department seemed to be let to individual contractors. For instance, one contractor did the steel framework, another did the boxing for the concrete, another the steel reinforcing, and another mixed the concrete. INVOLVED METHOD

Concrete was not mixed on the job, as it is in New Zealand. It was prepared on the contractor’s premises and taken to the building in revolving drums on motor-lorries. The whole method, said Mr. Rhodes, seemed to him to be terribly involved. It seemed that the successful contractor appeared only to be there in the capacity of supervisor. In all the cities he visited, including San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago and New York, vast buildings were being erected, though the first-named was doing least of all. The building in which he drove his car up nine storeys was at tlie rear of a business block of 25 storeys. The front consisted of suites of offices and the rear was used as a gigantic motor garage. There were some fine buildings in Chicago. One of them, which he saw in course of .construction, would be 72 storeys high when it was finished. Americans seemed to spend money regardlessly on their own homes, some of which were very beautiful. Mr. Rhodes found that almost every American home was full of all kinds of electrical appliances and labour-saving devices. Although Mr. Rhodes went to Honolulu and tlie United States for a holiday he spent a good deal of time investigating building construction, and the ideas he has brought back with him will be used in the work of his company.