The estimates were based on the best engineering experience that was available at the time, but as I said, these are new and unusual devices. We had never tested them with the "dollars and cents" test, only the architectural-engineering estimates were available. Mr. SHEPPARD. I can well recall the original request on that operation was rather astounding from the construction point of view because of the terrific tonnage that you had to boost up and the small tolerance at the base. Admiral CORRADI. To give you some indication of the magnitude of this structure, there will be 30,000 tons on movable drives which must be rotated and elevated in altitude. Mr. SHEPPARD. What is the circumference of the drive down there? Admiral CORRADI. I do not have the figures offhand. I have walked across it. If I could estimate, it is about 460 feet in diameter and 1,500 feet in circumference. Mr. SHEPPARD. In your drive, what tolerance do you have to attain? Admiral CORRADI. All of the tolerances stem from the requirement that the surface skin, which is an aluminum mesh, must be retained within very close tolerances of a perfect parabaloid. This surface skin is 600 feet in diameter. All the tolerances of the structures that support it must be fitted into this perfection in the skin. It has created some problems that have never been experienced before, in the drives that move this device, and the details of how we are going to create a small observation room at the apex of the tower which is several hundred feet above this 600-foot skin. Mr. SHEPPARD. You not only have to take into consideration the minute tolerance that controls the weight factor, but you also have to consider the wind conditions in the area, which is the control part of the tolerance? Admiral CORRADI. The Servo mechanisms that are being designed to control the aluminum skin to the tolerance that I mentioned, must adjust to achieve this perfection under high winds. Mr. SHEPPARD. This has to be built in? Admiral CORRADI. Yes, sir. Mr. SHEPPARD. Is it reasonable to assume at this time that the funds presently requested will complete the funding of the facility? Admiral CORRADI. As I mentioned, we have placed contracts for some of the most difficult and most expensive components of the device, and it is on the basis of these competitively obtained bids that we are now estimating the cost which results in this request for increased appropriations. In answer to your question, and I am not attempting to beg it, there are still so many imponderables in this that it is hard to make a flat statement that this is the guaranteed maximum cost. We feel much more confident than we did 3 months ago, or a year ago, that this is a good estimate. Mr. SHEPPARD. You have checked out the contingencies in the contractor's estimates? Admiral CORRADI. Yes; we have checked out our contingencies, and we believe they are reasonable, and we can finance them within the funds requested. Mr. SHEPPARD. In an operation of this character, would not the contingencies more or less be a controlled factor on change orders that might have to be issued? Admiral CORRADI. Yes, sir; that is true. The delays we had due to the steel strike, the delays while we prefected some of the designs, they all result in claims for change orders for not only delay in time, but revisions in the structure. This we believe we have reasonably estimated. It could be different from what we have estimated. Mr. SHEPPARD. Apparently you are using a good technique because we have not heard the howls from your contractors on this that we have heard from missile hole contractors. You must be having a pretty tight survey. Admiral CORRADI. We believe so. Mr. SHEPPARD. If you issue change orders, you take the responsibility for issuing the change orders, and pay the contractors accordingly? Admiral CORRADI. We believe the contractor should be paid for legitimate extra costs. Mr. SHEPPARD. How much of a contingency item are you carrying in the present estimate? Admiral CORRADI. We have separated out of the basic contract all the amounts that can be competitively bid on fixed-price contracts. This amounts to about roughly 90 percent of the work. On the balance of the 10 percent of the work, we have an estimate for contingency that I would have to extract from this estimate. I would be pleased to furnish it for the record. (The information to be supplied follows:) At the time this revised estimate was developed a 10-percent contingency was included. Further development of the design has resulted in additional costs which have reduced this so that at this time our contingency is less than 10 percent. Mr. SHEPPARD. When do you contemplate the station will be operational? Admiral CORRADI. Our present target date is the year 1964. We hope it will be early in the year. CLASSIFIED PROJECTS Mr. SHEPPARD. We have a grouping of stations in the classified projects requirement. The justification for one seems to be the justification for all of them. Is that correct? Admiral VIRDEN. That is correct. Mr. SHEPPARD. Can you give me a brief statement covering the principle of requirement for all the stations? Admiral VIRDEN. I have here a prepared statement, Mr. Chairman, if I may read the statement. (Discussion off the record.) YARDS AND DOCKS FACILITIES Mr. SHEPPARD. Next we shall take up the "Yards and docks facili ties." GENERAL AUTHORIZATIONS First is general authorizations. Please insert page 190 in the record at this point. (The page follows:) Admiral JOHNSON. The final facilities class in the program is yards and docks facilities. The Bureau is responsible for fulfilling the Navy's requirements in the broad field of civil engineering at all Naval shore activities. This includes the technical responsibility for design, planning, development, alteration, maintenance, and construction of public works and public utilities, and the operation of base transportation throughout the Naval Shore Establishment. This class includes six projects for a total of $24,700,000. Only one of these projects is for a single specific purpose at a specific location. The others are for general purposes with Navywide application for which permanent authorization was granted in previous years. Mr. SHEPPARD. The first project is for minor construction. MINOR CONSTRUCTION (The following was submitted for the record :) Minor new construction, $4 million The first project is for minor new construction for which funding approval is requested in the amount of $4 million. This amount is required to fund special construction projects during the fiscal year 1962, each costing over $25,000 but not more than $200,000. Authority for accomplishing such projects was granted in section 408 of Public Law 968, 84th Congress, in fiscal year 1957. To be eligible for funding under this authority such special projects should include only those which can not reasonably be foreseen in time to include in the annual military construction program, but which are so urgently required that they should not be deferred for another year. Such projects are generated by many factors, including increased workload, need for increased efficiency, or need for reducing hazards to health and safety of personnel. Mr. SHEPPARD. I wish you would place in the record a tabulation showing the projects approved for fiscal year 1961 and those in process at the present time. List for the record your obligations for this work for each of the last 5 years. Will you supply that information, please? Admiral CORRADI. Yes, sir. (The information requested follows:) Minor construction 1. (a) Fiscal year 1961 projects pending: Port Arguello, probe launch comply (increase) NSY, Boston, alter BOQ No. 5 NSY, Boston, alter Frazier barracks_ PWC, Guantanamo Bay, replace telephone equipment_ Center__ NSB, Pearl Harbor, modify building No. 681 for Radio Island, N.C., rehabilitate LST loading ramps--- NAS, Sanford, extend runway 27-- NAAS, Fallon, potable water supply NSY, Portsmouth, personnel building (increase) MCRD, Parris Island, rehabilitate telephone exchange_ NTC, San Diego, relocation firefighters training unit___ NSS, Washington, D.C., replace Marine Barracks---- $33,000.00 79,000.00 45,700.00 198, 200.00 62,000.00 41,000.00 195,000.00 194, 775.00 195,000.00 36,000.00 36,773.00 137,000.00 64, 300.00 116,000.00 184,000.00 187,000.00 199, 400.00 2,004, 148.00 |