WAIWAKAIHO BRIDGE.

Taranaki Daily News, 6 March 1917, Page 3

WAIWAKAIHO BRIDGE.

FOUNDATIONS BEING LAID, At the meeting of the Taranaki County Council yesterday, Mr. Sladden, of I firm of Sladden and Palmer, coun- j ty engineers, waited on the Council, and ! reported that good progress was being 'lade with the foundations of the abutments of the Waiwanaiho bridge. He ?aid the plans for the renewal of the lamaged superstructure had been forwarded to the Resident Engineer of tlie 'ublic Works Department. These had ■ot yet been returned, but, with minor alterations, he knew they would be ap■oved. In the meantime, the work of 'aying the foundations for the abutnents, as agreed upon by the resident ■ngineer, the borough eng'neer and the "ounty engineers, had been gone on with. The excavation for the foundations on <me side had been completed and a por>on had been filled with concrete. On lie other <side the excavations had been link lour or five feet. The whole of ;he broken portion of the bridge had een reduced to small size, and a -hole n the river-bed had been filled up. V'th regard to the mode of payment—commission at tlie rate of 12y s per cent. -Mr. Sladden considered this was per'.■ctly fair. When a contractor made :p his estimate he usually took into count his own wage 3, his plant, and ontractor's profit or commission. The per cent, chirged by Messrs Grayling and Parkin, who were doing the i.rk. covered everything. The job was a difficult one, and required men of integrity and ability to carry it out. Moreover, if a contractor were employed, tlie Council would have to engage an expensive clerk of works to match every shovelful of concrete put into it. Messrs Grayling and 'Parkin were on the spot all the time. The borough engineer Jiad signified his entire approvaf of the steps that were now being taken, and had shown tlie utmost cordiality in his relations with the county engineers. As soon as the plans for the main works were to hand, they would be submitted to the Borough Council for approval. The chairman and members of the Council expressed their entire approval o< what had been done, and thanked Mr. Sladden for his statement. ,