Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging Co. v. United States

130 F. Supp. 368, 131 Ct. Cl. 490, 1955 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 120
CourtUnited States Court of Claims
DecidedApril 5, 1955
DocketNo. 668-53
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 130 F. Supp. 368 (Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging Co. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Court of Claims primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging Co. v. United States, 130 F. Supp. 368, 131 Ct. Cl. 490, 1955 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 120 (cc 1955).

Opinion

LaraMoee, Judge,

delivered the opinion of the court:

This action is brought to recover the difference between the contract price specified for common excavation and that specified for rock excavation with respect to some 21,417 cubic yards of material which plaintiff alleges was erroneously classified as “common” by the contracting officer. Plaintiff appealed this determination to the head of the department, who affirmed it.

Plaintiff also seeks the remission of liquidated damages for delay of $8,700 assessed against it by the contracting officer. This question was also decided adversely to plaintiff by the head of the department.

[492]*492Under date of April 30, 1947, plaintiff entered into contract W45-108-eng-l792 for certain dredging and rock removal in Wrangell Narrows, Alaska. The contract, which was a unit-price contract, showed an estimated 47,300 cubic yards of ledge rock to be removed, for which plaintiff bid $12.50 a cubic yard, and 455,800 cubic yards of “dredging and disposal other than ledge rock,” for which plaintiff bid $1.40 a cubic yard.

The contract required that work be commenced within 90 days after receipt of notice to proceed, and be completed by July 1, 1949, plus one additional day for each 150 cubic yards of ledge rock or 1,800 cubic yards of other excavation in excess of the estimated quantities. Plaintiff’s time of completion was first extended to November 1, 1949, because of the loss of its dredge by fire. When its replacement dredge was lost at sea, the date for completion was further extended to January 31,1950. Work was not completed until April 18, 1950, 77 days after the completion date as so extended. However, plaintiff was entitled to a 19-day time extension because of a quantity overrun, so that liquidated damages were assessed against it for a delay of 58 days.

The original contract had covered only the portion of Wrangell Narrows from Mile 0.00 to Mile 13.00. When this work was substantially completed, it became apparent that the quantities of material removed would be a great deal less than had originally been estimated. The contract was thereupon amended to provide for additional dredging by plaintiff in areas where prior surveys showed rock as far as Mile 18.03. The quantities of work performed in this additional area were measured in the same fashion, and paid for at the same rates, as was the work originally specified.’ Plaintiff raises no question as to these quantities, its only complaint relating to those covered by the original contract.

In total, plaintiff removed and was paid for 72,760.43 cubic yards of ledge rock and 224,867.08 cubic yards of other excavation.

With respect to the work covered by the original contract, the situation is as follows:

[493]*493Location Mile Local name Engineers’ quantities oí rock Estimated Removed Plaintiff's claim 0.10 to 0.16— 0.38 to 0.64— 1.36 to 2.44— 12.00 to 13.00. Total.. Topeak Rock.. Shoal No. 1_ Shoal No. 2_ Green Rocks— 12,400 1,600 10 .33,300 10,704.04 5,787.78 4,014.43 210,442.14 47,300 30,948.39 10,704.04 9,153.70 6,921.48 24,233.31 51,012.53 On Shoal No. 2, no probings had been made prior to award. 2 Plaintiff dredged only to Mile 12 plus 3,685 feet.

Plaintiff filed its petition in this court on December 15, 1953, and on November 2, 1954, plaintiff filed motion for summary judgment in accordance with the provision of Pule 51 of the Rules of this court, on the grounds that the pleadings and records on file herein show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the plaintiff is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.

On January 14, 1955, defendant filed cross-motion for summary judgment on the grounds that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact relating to the finality and conclusiveness of the decision of the head of the department on plaintiff’s appeal to him. Defendant further moves that plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment be denied on the ground that the same is supported by neither the facts nor the law.

Both plaintiff and defendant rely upon the pleadings filed and on the documents which were received in evidence at a pretrial conference held on September 10, 1954.

It is in this posture the case comes before this court.

Plaintiff contends that because in the original survey of the Wrangell Narrows Channel (Culbertson Survey) made in 1938, a 100-pound jet was used in probing for rock and that in preparing specifications and drawings upon which bids were invited, the contracting officer was required to use a 100-pound jet on the actual job to measure contract quantities. Further, that when the contracting officer and the head of the department based their decision upon probings made with a jet having a greater capacity, they placed an erronéous construction on the contract and that their deci[494]*494sion, being one of law, is not binding upon the parties or the court.

It is defendant’s position that plaintiff’s construction of the contract is not supported by the language of the contract nor by the facts now before the court. Further, that no provision of the contract specified the instrument to be used in making probings for rock, and other contract provisions made it clear that the Government was not bound by the 1938 survey and further defined type of material to be classified and paid for as rock. The contracting officer made his determination of the quantities of material excavated and paid for such in accordance with the specific terms of the contract. At the hearing on the appeal from the contracting officer’s decision plaintiff did not call witnesses or produce documents. Plaintiff, on its appeal to the head of the department, accepted the facts so found as conclusive.

With respect to the contention of plaintiff, the following provisions of the specifications are material:

GC-3. Site Investigation and Representations. — The Contractor acknowledges that he had satisfied himself as to the nature and location of the work, the general and local conditions, particularly those bearing upon transportation, disposal, handling and storage of materials, availability of labor, water, electric power, roads and uncertainties of weather, river stages, tides or similar physical conditions at the site, the conformation and condition of the ground, the character, quality and quantity of surface and subsurface materials to be encountered, the character of equipment and facilities needed preliminary to and during the prosecution of the work and all other matters which can in any way affect the work or the cost thereof under this contract. Any failure by the Contractor to acquaint himself with all the available information concerning these conditions will not relieve him from responsibility for estimating properly the difficulty or cost of successfully performing the work. The Government assumes no responsibility for any understanding or representations made by any of its officers or agents during or prior to the negotiation and execution of this contract, unless (1) such understanding or representations are expressly stated in the contract and (2) the contract expressly provides that responsibility therefor is assumed by the Government. Representations made but not so expressly stated [495]

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
130 F. Supp. 368, 131 Ct. Cl. 490, 1955 U.S. Ct. Cl. LEXIS 120, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/puget-sound-bridge-dredging-co-v-united-states-cc-1955.