Staff photo by Duffy Coffman
CENTER OF ATTENTION-The newly constructed Pauling Science Center has yet to be accepted because of various problems in the
construction. The problems have ranged from cracks in the courtyard to inferior plants being used in the landscaping.
Pauling Center workmanship questioned
Story by David J. Hayden
and Duffy Coffman
■ The Print
■ Final acceptance of the $4.4
■Ilion Pauling Science Center
has been delayed by the Col
ne because of obvious pro
Hems with the workmanship.
■The construction problems,
mainly of an aesthetic nature,
■elude: cracks in the concrete
Hurtyard; cracks in the above
Hound foundation footings
and deficiencies in the land-
Haping work.
■These problems, believed by
■me construction experts to
be related to sub-standard
■orkmanship, may also be a
■suit of the current low bid
■cess.
According to Andy Rice,
landscape architect for the
Pauling Center who was
responsible for the design of
the courtyarcTand landscaping,
“It’s obvious to the least obser
vant person that there’s a pro
blem in the overall quality. I
don’t believe that there was any
consistency or real care given
to the supervision or the work.
That’s my opinion.”
Don Fisher, College facilities
development and planning of
ficer and the College’s
representative in the construc
tion process, further com
ments, “We are still arguing
with the contractor (Contrac
tors, Inc., Of Sherwood) over
certain aesthetic problems, and
be Wolfe receives
humanities
prant
page 4 ,
have yet to accept the science
center.”
Foremost among the con
struction problems is the readily
visible cracking in the courtyard
area.
Courtyard Cracking
The multi-level enclosure
was formed with two pours of
concrete which were cut by a
diamond-bladed saw into four-
foot by six-foot modules. The
saw-cut joints were designed,
according to Rice, to achieve
two goals: first, to'give the im
pression of paving stones laid
in an irregular pattern; second,
to control shrinkage and crack
ing of the concrete slab.
However, numerous cracks
The art of
tattooing
page 9
have formed in the concrete
and, although not uncommon,
have caused what both Rice
and Fisher have called definite
aethetic problems. “You know
concrete will crack,” stated
Fisher, “but, you always hope
that it won’t.”
Cracks form in concrete due
to shrinkage as the material
dries. Saw-cut- joints control
that shrinkage by dispersing it
evenly throughout the , con
crete. In this case, the saw-cut
joints in the courtyard were in
effective in controlling that
shrinkage, which resulted, in
greater cracking than had been
planned for.
Ron Lee, of Barrentine,
Bates and Lee, the consulting
architectural firm for the pro
ject, commented, “We believe
that the major problem is that
they (Contractors, Inc.) did not
saw-cut the control joints within
the specified time that the con
tract documents called for.”
Addressing the time frame,
Rice stated, . “the saw-cuts
should have been made within
24 to 48 hours after the con
crete was poured.”
However, Larry Singleton,
contractor representative from
Contractors, Inc., the general
contracting firm of the project,
replied, “Is that right? Well,
that’s somebody’s theory, I
guess.”
Cont. on page 6
Sports year
in review
pages 10-12