CHAPTER 13.2 1949 PROCUREMENT ACTIVITIES In view of the nonavailability of funds for extensive procurement of construction materials and supplies, the primary problems that required the attention of the Procurement Department during the first quarter of 1949 were home office space and equipment; warehousing facilities; export packing arrangements; and shipping facilities. Provision of additional office space and office equipment for the growing department followed a schedule calculated to keep pace with the estimated personnel increases. Holmes & Narver at this time submitted a plan for centralizing the control and supervision of purchasing, receiving, warehousing and exporting functions within the limits of the greater Los Angeles area. Warehouse and export packing facilities were available at the Port of Los Angeles, Wilmington, California, within easy access of shipping and port facilities and close to sources of supply. This proposal was not approved for cogent reasons given hereafter, and it was determined that all material destined for the project should be shipped through the Naval Supply Center in Oakland, California. In accordance with this decision, it was deemed expedient to establish only a gmall warehouse in the Les Angeles area for local shipments and to create a cargo liaison office to be located at the Fright Transshipment Branch of the Oakland Supply Center. The H & N group at the Supply Center included an Office Manager, an assistant, and two clerks. One function of this office was to procure fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables for use at Jobsite. These previsions were obtained through Navy sources at the General Depot, and the operation involved the coordination of H & N procurement requests with those sources. The Oakland office-aiso acted as a branch of the Procurement Department in expeditimg purchases from suppliers in the Oak- land-San Francisco Bay areas. A third fumstion was the coordination of material receipt and handling at the Supply Center. Navy regulations required all material for transshipment loading to arrive fully and correctly packed for export on a precise delivery schedule, as there were no facilities available for storage of any but regular Naval Supplies. This office was also required to resolve the difficulties that arose in vendor or carrier failure to meet shipping schedules. The Oakland branch worked in cooperation with the staff of the Naval Supply Center in spotting Jobsite material in incoming shipments, check- ing the various pieces through proper channels, seeing that all necessary loading and shipping permits were correctly typed and approved for scheduling, and performing allied expediting services. This office also assisted the Joint Task Force liaison office at the Naval Supply Center in the assignment of priority requests and designations. Daily records were furnished the Task Force office for use in eadjmsting allocations and in assigning priorities for transport space. Daily reports of shipments received from the various sources of sup- ply were furnished to the Los Angeles warehouse by the Oakland office. 13-6