PART SIX - SUMMARY AND RDT&E PLAN 
by J. J. Hromadik and D. A. Davis 
CONSTRUCTION PROCEDURES SUMMARY 
It is concluded that concrete is a feasible and practical construc- 
tion material for large ocean platforms. It seems clear that existing 
construction technology can be successfully applied to the fabrication 
through an orderly process of development. Raw material quantities 
even for the largest platform at 3% million cubic yards are not exces- 
sive. Cement requirement is nominally 7 million barrels, less than 2% 
of the 1968 production of 400 million barrels. Also, the aggregate 
production of one million tons per year can be readily accomplished. 
Neither the size nor shape of the components presents unusual construc- 
tion requirements. The experience gained in the concrete ship building 
program is also indicative of the suitability of applying tried and 
proven techniques to the construction of concrete vessels. The success 
of these vessels, combined with substantial progress in concrete tech- 
niques during the intervening years, offers assurance that the structures 
under study can be built. It appears likely that the final selection 
of a MOBS platform will be more dependent upon stability, ease of 
assembly, and other factors related to design and cost rather than to 
feasibility vis-a-vis the state-of-the-art in concrete construction. 
In view of the number of available alternatives - also constraints 
and limitations as yet undefined - a positive position on the construc- 
tion techniques and sequences is not possible at this time. The study 
suggests the following as possibilities. 
Elevated Platform 
A complete floating deck will be launched and buoyant elements 
added at sea in the final assembly of a section, the size of which would 
be optimized during design. The deck will consist of precast, pre- 
stressed box-like elements post-tensioned into a complete deck module. 
The deck will be single tiered, multiple, or in combinations as required; 
size of the elements and/or modules will be optimized in final design. 
Construction and assembly of the deck will probably take place in a 
polder and dike. The buoyant elements will be precast, prestressed and 
post-tensioned into a complete buoyant column. Construction will be in 
an area adjacent to the deck, but the cast-in-place option using the 
slip-form method at sea should be considered. After all modules are 
assembled, the basin will be flooded, the dike broken, and the modules 
launched. Various schemes for assembly at sea are suggested, but none 
have been explored in depth for feasibility and practicability. Assembly 
location, logistics burden, and availability of heavy-duty equipment 
*Volume approximately that of Hoover Dam 
