ENGINEERS' ESTIMATES.

Taranaki Daily News, 7 December 1920, Page 4

ENGINEERS' ESTIMATES.

THE HYDRO-ELECTRIC SCHEME. INFORMATION WANTED. The matter of the big advance in the estimates of the hydro-electric works was mentioned at last night's meeting of the New Plymouth Borough Council by Cr. Hill, who said he thought some explanation should bo secured from Mr. Blair Mason as to tho very large differ, ence between the first estimates and the latest figures. Tho first cost was given for the whole scheme at £40,000, and now the engineering portion only was to cost £05,530. Cr. Parkin also considered that some explanation froih the consulting engineer was necessary. Cr. Short remarked that a question of such a nature might involve any council or committee in serious difficulties with such a discrepancy in estimates. After getting the work started it was found that the work was going to cost three or four times the original figure, which was greatly out of proportion. Cr. Hayden moved that Mr. Mason be asked to mako a report explaining how the estimate had gone up to over £93,000. The Mayor (Mr. F. E. Wilson) said that as one of the public he had been staggered by the enormous increase shown in the cost of this work over the first estimates. Nothing had tended to shake public confidence in the success of the scheme so much as the difference in the figures in the three estimates received at various periods. From his experience they never would find a work carried out to estimate. He wondered that local bodies had never adopted the principle of recompensing consulting engineers on a percentage based on the estimate, and not the cost of the work. In the , present matter he thought the Council was rather late in the action. Subsequently the motion w«V withdrawn. consideration being deferred till next Monday.