In view of the future heavy programme of road construction and the anxiety of the public, the time had come when the costing of road works and contract pro- A careful examination should cedures required review. be made of the additional costs involved in minimizing obstructions and inconvenience, and the value of having the obstructions reduced.
The
Mr. Szeto believed that most projects could be com- pleted much more quickly if higher costs were accepted. When Queen's Road East was the only low-level link between Wanchai and the Central District, the section between Hennessy Road and Murray Road had been con- structed rapidly because of its great importance. question thus arose whether, when less important road works were being undertaken, it was decided how much it was worth spending to obtain speed. Was this problem ever considered or was all the effort confined to getting the physical work done at the lowest cost, regardless of the time taken and the inconvenience and obstruction caused?
The cost of road works comprised not only the con- tractor's bill but also the frustrating delays, general nuisance and often loss of income to the public. How many shops had suffered a serious loss of business because the road or footpath outside had been dug up for an overlong period?
The aim should be to achieve the lowest total social cost and not just the minimum contract cost.
Every proposal should be examined closely in respect of the minimum reasonable time required for its completion. involving overtime if necessary, as well as the use of suitable equipment. All this must be specified and not left to the convenience of the tenderers.
While being aware that a lower contract cost could be obtained if the tenderer was left to state his own time and way of working. Mr. Szeto said that he was also conscious that the Financial Secretary was always anxious to cut costs and that the Director of Public Works might be concerned with complaints from the public, caused by efficient construction work outside normal working hours. Nevertheless he was convinced that the public would pre- fer a little more noise for a shorter duration, knowing that the Government was making every effort to minimise delay. The Ministry of Transport in the United Kingdom established in 1965 a Working Party to study the costs, efficiency and productivity of road construction and had evolved modified contract procedures and a new system of calculating time allowed for roadwork contractors.
The organization, capability and attitude of some local contractors left much to be desired and it would be im- prudent to entrust these firms with roadworks of any urgency and magnitude. Obstruction and inconvenience caused by incapable and irresponsible road contractors should not be tolerated. There should therefore be a review of the present list of P.W.D. approved contractors eligible for road work contracts. Mr. Szeto proposed that the new Technical Audit Unit in the Public Works De- partment, established two years ago, should look into the
matter.
BUILDING PLANS APPROVED
The Building Authority approved a total of 48 new build- ing plans of all types in Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories during the month of December, 1966.
In the same period, completed buildings certified for occupation numbered 75 a decrease of 4 as compared with that in the preceding month. This total includes ten buildings for domestic purposes, 17 for non-domestic pur- poses and 48 for combined domestic and non-domestic use. In addition, the Building Authority approved the demolition of 16 buildings.
Cost of new building work in the Colony during the month of December was HK$28,996,487. Another HK$3,559,680 was spent on site formation work. New buildings of all types erected totalled 51, including three factories and godowns, three offices and shops, forty-three houses and flats and two mixed accommodation,
08X3
J
BOLTON SHUTTER DOORS
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22
Far East Architect & Builder February, 1967