Reporter's Statement of the Case IV. On June 5, 1918, Admiral Bowles attended a meeting of the Railway Car Manufacturers' Association in the city of New York and stated the requirements of the Emergency Fleet Corporation for the fabrication of steel for ships, and sought the aid of the car manufacturers to participate in this work. It was of the highest importance that the establishments which were located in the Pittsburgh district and points east thereof be utilized in order to minimize the distances from the steel mills to the fabricating plants, and memorandum was prepared and left with the association for use of its members by Admiral Bowles: "JUNE 5, 1918. "The American International Shipbuilding Corporation is desirous of placing the fabrication of 100,000 tons of ship plates in shops outside of those already under contract. If the car builders will take on this work, the shipbuilding company will supply material, as follows: In June___ In July In August-- In September_. In November Tons 15,000 20,000 20,000 20,000 15,000 10,000 "It will be desirous that fabrication of this steel and its shipment to Hog Island be made within thirty days after receipt of material by the fabricator. "All of this fabrication will be on flat plates to be used on the ship for shell plating decks and bulkheads. The plates will vary in size. Thickness will run from a minimum of 14" on the bulkheads to a maximum of 1" on shell plate. The width of plates will vary from 62" to 100", and the length will practically all be over 16 ft. and up to 30 ft. "Detailed drawings will be furnished for all rectangular plates, and all holes will be spaced for multiple punching. Templates will be furnished for all sketch plates. These can only be fabricated on single punches. 66 "A commercial tolerance will be allowed on all work. We will have inspectors in every shop who are instructed to see that the work conforms to detail, templates, and specifications, which are made up in conformity to Lloyd's rules. Any work which does not conform to same can not be accepted by the inspector, but if the material is not spoiled and can be corrected by reasonable measures same will be Reporter's Statement of the Case authorized by the proper authority. Practically all holes will be countersunk. Plates are ordered from the mills of such size as should not require shearing, but a great many of them have to be sheared. Wherever butt joints occur the edges of the plates have to be planed. The extent of this is not to exceed 10% of the total." V. The Allegheny works of the contractor at Pittsburgh were fully equipped as a steel freight car building plant, occupied about 680,000 square feet of space, and had a capacity of about 50 steel cars per day, or a fabrication capacity of 450 tons per day of steel-car materials at the beginning of the Fleet Corporation work. Fabrication of steelcar materials was quite similar to the work of fabricating steel-ship materials and required the use of similar with some additional equipment. VI. The contractor set aside and reserved in its Allegheny works for the exclusive use of the United States the full space agreed to be devoted to the fabrication of ship materials, expeditiously installed therein the additional machinery furnished by the United States, and promptly provided the necessary labor and organization for fabricating the quantities of steel-ship materials named in paragraph 6 of the contract. Approximately 64 per cent of space was devoted to work under the contract and 36 per cent of space retained for the car company's work. VII. The contractor estimated that it would produce fabrication of ship material as follows: 10,000 January, 1919, and monthly thereafter_. but stated that its agreement to fabricate this amount of tonnage per month was subject to strikes, fires, and labor conditions and other contingencies over which the contractor had no control, and provided the owner supplied sufficient and regular quantities of material and promptly furnished Reporter's Statement of the Case full details of the fabrication to be done, and provided the machinery and equipment called for therein were promptly furnished. The total amount of 113,000 tons during the period of the life of the contract was not furnished by the United States. The United States furnished to the plaintiff during the life of the contract steel tonnage as follows: amouting to 57,734 tons. Of this amount 38,711 tons were fabricated and shipped; of the residue 14,742 tons were returned to the United States and 4,281 tons consisted of rejected steel and scrap. Had the United States supplied the plaintiff with 113,000 tons of steel the plaintiff would have fabricated 74,288 tons more than it did, which at $10 per ton would have amounted to the sum of $742,880. VIII. Both the plaintiff and the United States at the time of the execution of the contract had full knowledge of the difficulties that would be involved in supplying steel. The United States Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation, like all other governmental organizations during the war, was subject to the orders and directions of the War Industries Board for priorities in shipments of material. Reporter's Statement of the Case The War Industries Board was a governmental agency for the purpose of allocating to the different agencies of the Government raw materials and supplies which were necessary to be furnished the departments in order to prosecute the war to its greatest effectiveness. Steel was in great demand by the War Department, the Navy, the Shipping Board, and the aircraft divisions. Only such steel as was allocated by the War Industries Board on priority orders could be obtained by the United States Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corporation from the steel mills, and it could only furnish the amount allocated by the War Industries Board to its agent, the American International Shipbuilding Corporation, and the American International Shipbuilding Corporation could only ship to the Pressed Steel Car Co. such amounts as were allocated to it. IX. During the period from June 15, 1918, to September 29, 1919, steel was furnished the plaintiff by the United States. The plaintiff requested that there should be a supply of steel on hand at the beginning of each month sufficient to permit the fabrication of the quantity which the plaintiff estimated it would fabricate for that month. The United States did not in every instance furnish the steel so requested, and the plant was not utilized to its full capacity. The United States was also often delinquent in furnishing necessary information, dies, and templates essential to the work. X. During the month of June, 1918, and thereafter for the months following the Government shipped and the plaintiff received at its Allegheny works the following steel tonnage: The tonnage fabricated per month by the car company and the fabricated tonnage delivered were: The difference between the tons fabricated and the tons shipped is accounted for by the difference in methods of weighing. The 39,374 figure is the weight computed by the plaintiff; the 38,711 represents the weight accepted by the United States. The plaintiff is bound by the weights determined by the United States, and makes no claim on account of the difference in weights. XI. The armistice was signed on November 11, 1918. The war with Germany was officially declared ended on July 2, 1921. On June 30, 1919, the United States notified the plaintiff of the termination of the contract 90 days from the date of said notice, namely, September 29, 1919, and the United States furnished no steel after September 29, 1919. The 20684-27-C C-VOL. 62- 18 |