Haggard v. Mid-States Metal Lines, Inc.

• Decision Date: 29 October 1979
• Docket Number: No. 29821,MID-STATES,29821
• Citation: 591 S.W.2d 71
• Parties: John HAGGARD, Jr., d/b/a Haggard Heavy Hauling, Plaintiff-Respondent, v.METAL LINES, INC., a Corporation, and St. Joseph Structural Steel Company, a Corporation, Defendants-Appellants, and Sharp/Kidde/Webb, a Joint Venture, Defendants.
• Court: Missouri Court of Appeals

Page 71

591 S.W.2d 71

John HAGGARD, Jr., d/b/a Haggard Heavy Hauling, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. MID-STATES METAL LINES, INC., a Corporation, and St. Joseph

Structural Steel Company, a Corporation,

Defendants-Appellants,

and

Sharp/Kidde/Webb, a Joint Venture, Defendants.

No. 29821.

Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District.

Oct. 29, 1979.

Motion for Rehearing and/or Transfer to Supreme Court Denied

Dec. 3, 1979.

Application to Transfer Denied Jan. 15, 1980.

Harry D. Dingman, Kansas City, W. Raleigh Gough, Independence, for Mid-States Metal Lines, Inc.

R. A. Brown, Brown, Douglas & Brown, St. Joseph, for St. Joseph Structural Steel.

Robert L. Shirkey, Kansas City, for plaintiff-respondent.

Before HIGGINS, Special Judge, Presiding, SWOFFORD, C. J., and WELBORN, Special Judge.

ANDREW JACKSON HIGGINS, Special Judge.

Appeal by defendants Mid-States Metal Lines, Inc. and St. Joseph Structural Steel Company from judgment for plaintiff for $120,276.75, for extra work. The questions are whether plaintiff made a case under any of his pleaded theories for recovery; and, if so, the damages recoverable. Affirmed in part and reversed in part.

This dispute arose from construction of the Truman Sports Complex in Kansas City. Jackson County, Missouri, sponsored the idea of the complex, acquired land on which to build football and baseball stadiums, and secured approval of the bond issue necessary for the land purchase and the construction. The Jackson County Sports Authority was formed to supervise the project for Jackson County; Kivett & Myers was retained as the architect, Campbell and Associates was retained as the engineer.

In early 1968 the architect provided architectural drawings which showed the general outline, design, and overall dimensions for both the football and baseball stadiums. Bids for work shown by the drawings were solicited and a number of general contractors responded. All were rejected because they exceeded the county's budget.

At the direction of the owner, the architect and engineer eliminated and reduced some items to bring the project within the budget. A second round of bidding was opened in 1969 and a general contract for approximately $29 million was awarded to a joint venture, Sharp/Kidde/Webb, sponsored by Sharp Brothers Contracting Company.

Prior to making its first bid, S/K/W asked Mid-States to furnish a substantial part of the structural steel. Mid-States, in turn, consulted Haggard, a heavy hauler, with the view that he would haul some of the steel from the Mid-States fabrication plant in Grandview and unload and erect it at the jobsite. Based upon the original architectural drawings furnished him by Mid-States, Haggard made a preliminary bid to Mid-States. With Haggard's bid in hand, Mid-States then made its bid to S/K/W.

After the plans were pared by the architect and engineer, a new set of architectural drawings was made. This second set was made available to Haggard and he made an oral bid to Mid-States of $95 per ton. He based his bid in part on two considerations: that the architectural drawings showed the bents and hammerheads all in one piece requiring no field assembly other than to attach the entire assembly to the embedded base in the stadiums' foundations; and that he was told by Mid-States that the fabricated pieces would come "in as large a pieces as I could haul."

Written acceptance of Haggard's proposal occurred sometime after when he received purchase orders 9 and 10 from St. Joseph. Although Haggard made his oral bid to Mid-States to haul, unload, and erect at a rate of $95 per ton, Mid-States sublet a portion of its contract to St. Joseph. In furtherance, Mid-States sent its purchase order 1330 to St. Joseph which then sent purchase orders 9 and 10 to Haggard requesting that he perform the hauling, unloading, and erecting originally called for in purchase order 1330 from Mid-States.

Upon receipt of purchase orders 9 and 10 from St. Joseph, Haggard called Mid-States and discussed them with Winston Apple who had initially invited Haggard to make the bid. Apple explained that Mid-States had sublet that part of the contract to St. Joseph and assured Haggard that his bid had been transferred directly to St. Joseph. Advised of no changes from the original understanding, Haggard signed and returned purchase orders 9 and 10 to St. Joseph on the assumption that his arrangement with St. Joseph would be the same as it would have been with Mid-States.

The chain of command was S/K/W as the general contractor, responsible for the overall job; Mid-States as a first tier subcontractor; St. Joseph as a second tier subcontractor; and Haggard as a third tier subcontractor.

Purchase orders 9 and 10 contained the terms of agreement between Haggard and St. Joseph. They provided that Haggard was to "furnish and erect" for the football stadium:

"sound system supports and catwalks, lighting and catwalks";

and for the baseball stadium:

"outfield lighting support and catwalks, infield lighting supports and catwalks weather canopy supports, excluding roof deck and accessories".

After signing purchase orders 9 and 10, Haggard secured a performance bond as required and waited for St. Joseph to advise him when the shipments of fabricated steel were ready at St. Joseph's plant in St. Joseph, Missouri. Because of a general construction strike, the first load was not hauled until April, 1971.

The items hauled and erected by Haggard consisted of:

(1) "bents," pieces of steel from 25 to 100 feet in length, 28 in the football field and 40-odd in the baseball field;

(2) "hammerheads," "L" shaped assemblies of steel attached to the outward end of the bents designed to hold the light and sound cages;

(3) "light cages" which held the floodlights;

(4) "sound cages," one for each stadium holding the public address system; and

(5) "catwalks," steel railings connecting the bents designed to allow maintenance of the lights.

Apart from the original architectural drawings which showed general outlines and design, each subcontractor was required to prepare "shop drawings" showing the details of his particular work. St. Joseph prepared such refined drawings, submitted them to Mid-States who submitted them to S/K/W who had them approved by the owner, architects, and engineer. The plans then made their way back down the chain of command, returning to St. Joseph who had drawn them in the first place.

These shop drawings or blueprints were prepared as the job progressed. It was the custom of St. Joseph to deliver the shop drawings applicable to any shipment along with that shipment so Haggard would know how to erect the materials on the jobsite.

Unlike the architectural drawings on which Haggard had based his bid, the shop drawings showed the hammerheads to be fabricated separate and apart from the bents, and that the bents and hammerheads were to be assembled in the field.

When he discovered that more field assembly and welding would be required of him than originally anticipated, Haggard complained to St. Joseph. St. Joseph replied that under the plans and specifications, the shop drawings, and his contract, the amount of assembly required of Haggard was proper, and insisted he do the work.

Haggard continued to complain to St. Joseph and also to Don Sharp, the project supervisor. On several occasions he threatened to walk off the job. It was made clear to him, however, that if he did so, he would be sued on his performance bond which covered, among other things, his home and company assets. Haggard thereafter completed the work required of him despite the dispute over terms and price.

The general assembly, essentially, went this way: the bents were attached to the foundation of the stadiums; to these were welded the "L" shaped hammerheads, and fitted inside the "L" of the hammerheads was a light or sound cage. The light cages came in a "knocked down" condition in small bundles to be assembled at the jobsite. Before the light cages or sound cages could be installed and erected, some electrical wiring had to be performed by the electrical contractor. This wiring was done while the bents, hammerheads, and cages were on the ground, then the whole assembly was hoisted in one piece.

Another controversy surrounded Haggard's use of a so-called "Skyhorse" crane. Haggard owned and used his own cranes in doing much of the erection work called for under his contract. For some of the taller and heavier pieces, however, he was unable to do that work with the cranes he owned and used. He had to rent instead S/K/W's "Skyhorse" crane for which he paid $249.50 per hour for crane and crew. Haggard contended that were it not for the increased weight caused by the preassembly of certain electrical work on the ground, his rental of the "Skyhorse" would have been unnecessary as his own cranes would have sufficed. Appellants contended that Haggard's own machinery was inadequate in any event.

Plaintiff's suit against S/K/W, Mid-States, and St. Joseph contained four counts. Important to this appeal is Count II which alleged: that St. Joseph furnished plaintiff with plans and specifications on behalf of itself and other defendants which "implied, warranted and/or represented" that the list of materials which were to be installed would require plaintiff to "haul, unload and erect" the items shown on purchase order 1330, which were represented to be a "true picture of the quantity and type of material that was to be hauled, unloaded and erected." It further alleged that plaintiff relied upon the "implied warranties" made by St. Joseph and "accepted, confirmed and condoned" by the other defendants, and agreed to do the work at an agreed price in reliance thereon; that said "warranties and/or representations" were "false, either intentionally or mistakenly," they were "grossly inaccurate and recklessly made," in that plaintiff was required to do additional work, "constituting a breach by the defendants" of...