NEWS of the WEEK
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ARRANGING FAIR PLAY IN FUEL PRICES _ As a. result of the diminution in the number of operators who can car-y such stocks of liquid fuel as to enable them to obtain these at reduced cost, there has been, as we have mentioned previously, a considerable amount of hearth urning amongst even large users who are no longer permitted to have.
such facilities. • Efforts are being made to overcome this difficulty by allowing neighbouring operators to draw upon stocks held by the fortunate. It seems to us, however, that a better way to meet such complaints would be to fix a standard price throughout the country for fuel used by transport operators.
Fatalities in Coach Fire
ASERIOUS accident occurred on August 6 near Rugeley, when about 12 people were killed and others seriously injured as the result of a collision between their coach and a lorry.
it appears that the seriousness of the affair was aggravated by a fire due to the striking of a match by one of the passengers after the lights had failed, when; apparently, fumes from the spilt fuel ignited and flashed back, causing a serious conflagration.
Most of the 18 passengers who escaped did so via the emergency door at the back, which shows the advantage of this provision. It also indicates that in a smash the first warning should be that naked lights should not be allowed anywhere in the vicinity.
We do not know What fuel was being employed, but it seems that it must have been petrol, as oil fuel would most probably not have fifed in the same way.
100 Per Cent. Agreement on Cotton
DRACTICALLY all members of the indystry carrying raw cotton in Lancashire have supported an agreement for minimum rates; which came into operation at the beginning of the. present month. Conferences arranged by the C.111.U.A. and A.R.O. branches came to unanimous agreement on the figures to apply from Manchester Docks and Liverpool to the spinning districts.
The •agreement has the support of the Federation of Master Cotton Spinners, which recognizes the maehinery that has now been set up for dealing with road-transport matters. The figures, which are the minimum rates and do not prevent higher prices being obtained, are as follow:— (I) Between Liverpool and Manchester, Salford, Stretford, Eccles, Newton Heath, Swinton, Patricroft,. or Monton, 10s. per ton.
(2) Between Liverpool and Bury, Rochdale, Oldham, Roy ton, Hyde, Ashton, Mossley, Failsworth, Boffinwood. Shaw, -Middleton, or Stalybridge, 10s. 6d. per ton.
(3) From Manchester Docks to No. 1 and No. 2 districts as listed above, 5s. ed. per ton.
(4) Between Liverpool and Bacup, 12s. per ton, In each case there is to he a minimum of 2-ton loads. .
Liquid and Solid Fuels from
DEPORTING on the position of Low IX Temperature Carbonisation, Ltd., the chairman, Colonel W. A. Bristow, stated that the sale of coat-oil and liquid Products had reached much higher levels as the result of the completion of the new refinery, which was operating at maximum output for the second half of the year.
• Coal-petrol and oil fuel are being produced on a large scale and are distributed by the Petroleum Board to many important undertakings, with
satisfac-rory results. The recently produced Motor Coalite, a solid fuel for use in gas producers, is stated to he giving excellent results and is being employed by an increasing number of road-transport operators. ANOTHER GOOD YEAR FOR FODENS IN the year ended May 31, 1940, 1 Fodens, Ltd., made a trading profit of 4134,404 and, •after providing for income tax and excess profits tax, and crediting interest on investments, etc., the net profit comes out at 444,770. Adding the amount brought forward from the previous year, and transferring the sum of 42,100 to a war risks buildings fund, the credit balance stands at 470,306.
A 7i per cent. dividend, Jess, tax, is recommended for payment, and this will absorb .413,257, whilst 430,000 is to be transferred to reserve, bringing that account up to 470,000 and leaving a balance of 427,050 to carry forward.
Last year's net profit was. 454,968. but this was not subject to taxation, whilst, in the year covered by the latest report, 291,491 was paid out in taxation, etc.; out of the gross profit of 4134,404.
Damage to Vehicles Hired by . Military
•
DAMAGE to vehicles on hire to the military authorities has led to representation's to the authorities on the• question of compensation. In a bulletin issued by the Yorkshire Area of A.R.O., Mr. W. J. Lowe (Area secretary) advises members that if a vehicle be damaged when returned to an operator and no satisfaction can be obtained by direct representation, the operator should give area headquarters full particulars of the unit to which the vehicle was attached, by whom it was hired, copies of any documents relating to the hire, and the extent of the damage which has been suffered.
" If the damage be such that it necessitates the vehicle being off the road for a period after the termination of the hire, the fullest possible details should be given, when every endeavour will be made by representation to the proper authorities, to obtain redress," adds Mr. Lowe. BAN ON ADDITIONAL FUEL FOR CATTLE-FOOD TRANSPORT I N connection with the distribution of cattle-feeding stuffs from Merseyside mills, the District Transport Officer for the Liverpool area has notified motorvehicle operators that where alternative means for transport exist, supplementary fuel rations will not be issued. It is understood that this ban will also apply to flour (imported and homemilled), wheat, bran, etc. Grain carried in bulk vehicles is excluded from the ban, which came into force on August 9.
Express Carriers to Meet in Liverpool
(IN August 12, a meeting of the 4..J executive committee of the National conference of Express Carriers is to be held at Liverpool. The West Lancashire and Win-al Committee of the Conference will entertain the members to luncheon.
Weight Offences in Durham
REPORTING to Durham County Council, the chief inspector to the council states that under the Construction and Use Regulations, 1937, 189 heavy vehicles were stopped and examined at the Chester-le-Street, Ayclitle and Sedgefield weighing stations during the past quarter.
Of this number it was necessary to verify the weights of 109 vehicles and of this group 31 were found to be incorrect. Verbal and written cautions were administered in 25 cases. Nine cases, including three pending at the end of the past quarter, had been conducted before the justices, convictions being recorded in each case and total penalties of 49 4s. 6d. inflicted.
Scottish Committee for Fire Brigades
THE Fire Brigades Union, which embraces within its membership 85 per cent. of the total full-time regular fire-brigade personnel in Great Britain, established a Scottish District Committee at a recent meeting in Glasgow. The following office-bearers were appointed:—Chairman, Mr. J. M'Nicol, Glasgow Brigade; vice-chairman, Mr. James Carr, Dundee Brigade; secretary, Councillor Thomas Murray, Edinburgh.
Controlling Transfer of Road-transport Workers
RESULTING from consultations between the Ministers of Transport and of Labour and National Service, employment exchanges have been instructed to control the transfer of workers engaged in the transport industry who wish to change over to other industries to which recruitment is regulated by the Undertakings (Restrictions'on Engagement) Order.
A.R.O. headquarters have received this information in reply to a letter pointing out the difficulties arising in certain areas, owing to road-transport drivers leaving their employment and engaging in other work. The broad effect of these instructions is to secure that persons employed, or last employed, by transport undertakings, or in garages or workshops serving such organizations, shall not be transferred to other work by the employment exchanges except with the agreement of the employers, or, failing that, after consideration of the case by the Regional Transport Commissioner in whose area it arises.
In the latter event, the Commissioner would advise the Ministry of Labour whether the transport undertaking concerned is providing an essential service, and whether the employee in question is vital to the organization.
The Minister of Transport has been advised that the Minister of Labour and National Service considers that anything in the nature of a leavingcertificate system, as operated during the 1914-18 war, is not desirable. Before any further order restricting engagements could be considered he would need to be fully satisfied that the action already taken to safeguard the position of road-transport undertakings was proving inadequate for the proper maintenance of essential road services.
Plymouth Haulier Dies
THE death occurred on July 29 of Mr. Harry Smyth, who was well known in the city as a haulier, which occupation he had followed for half a century. He carried out work for Plymouth Corporation and various Government departments.
Call for Municipal Economy at Bangor
A T Bangor, the corporation public 'works committee has replied to the applications from transport contractors for increased rates for haulage work, by raising the rate from 3s. to
4s. per hour. The corporation has asked all heads of departments to exercise economy in hired transport and to make the fullest use of existing municipal-transport facilities. One councillor suggested that officials should make more use of buses. Some officials did use buses, but others went around the town in lorries.
" Resizing " Pistons by " Koetherizing "
AT eight Wellworthy service depots in important centres equipment has been installed for Koetberizing pistons. This is a process by which worn pistons can be " resized " and renewals avoided, thus saving money and conserving metal It is an exclusive processiof Wellworthy Piston Rings, Ltd., Lymmgton, Hants.
Functioning in a manner not greatly dissimilar from sand-blasting, the Koetherizer directs a jet of shot at certain selected portions of the inside of the piston skirt. During this operation the piston oscillates through 90 degrees about its axis, whilst the nozzle rises and falls. A resultant peening action takes place, which expands the metal as required, restoring the piston to its correct shape and imparting the desirable ovality and taper.
Applicable to any type of piston, whether having a solid or split skirt, the process quickly effects a permanent repair. For split pistons not exceeding 3 ins, in diameter, the cost is Is. each, whilst 2s, 6d. is charged for treating an unsplit piston over 3 ins, in diameter. TILLING-STEVENS REPORT MAKES GOOD READING
NET revenue of Tilling-Stevens. Ltd., in the 15 months ended March 31, 1940, after deducting all expenses, depreciation and • provision for taxation, amounted to 440,418, the total available, after adding the amount brought in, being 457,328. The payment of a dividend of 10 per cent., less tax, will absorb £22,256, leaving 235,072 to be carried forward.
In the report mention is made of the fact that the company's business has expanded considerably during the period under review, and the large number of orders in hand will keep the works at full capacity for some time ahead.
June Export Totals
DURING June last, the value of new commercial vehicles exported from this country amounted to 4174,479, whilst that of tractors (not agricultural) totalled 420,438. In the case of chassis constructed solely for commercial use, the value of such exports amounted to 495,763.
Hirings to Cease at Liverpool
LIVERPOOL Civil Defence Emergency Committee proposes to discontinue the hiring of vans from private contractors for distributing cooked food to the members of the civil-defence services. By the new arrangements, which await the approval of the Ministry of Home Security, 10 second-hand cars are to be pur
chased and converted. When these vehicles are put into operation the hire of private vans will cease.
Wild-Barfield Goes to Watford WE are advised that, as from Monday next, August 12, WildBarfield Electric Furnaces, Ltd., will be in occupation of its new works and offices at Elecfurn Works, Watford
By-pass, Watford, Herts. The new works, the erection of which was expedited through the war, are necessitated by the expanding demand for the company's heat-treatment plant, which had already caused much congestion at its old works before the outbreak of war.
June Registrations Make Sad Reading
DURING June last, the number of petrol and oil-engined goods vehicles registered for the first time was 1,248, contrasted with 5,177 in June, 1939. In the category covering the limits of 12 cwt. and 1 ton there were 320 vehicles licensed, whilst in the 2-2i-ton division, 413 machines were registered. In the case of electric goods vehicles, there were 87 registrations in June last, compared with 92 in the corresponding month of the previous year.
Hackney vehicles have also been hard hit by present conditions, and the 286 registrations in June last have t be set against 940 in the comparable month of 1939. SAVING METAL BY REBUILDING FORD UNITS
BY thoroughly rebuilding engines and other parts, instead of supplying new units when repairs are required, the Ford-Motor Co., Ltd., Dagenham, is making important savings in the use of iron and steel.
Facilities for this work were
• developed before the war, and these are now proving of still greater value, particularly as the fitting of a unit can be carried out with relative ease; whereas the repair of the original unit requires considerable skill.
Every effort has been made to maintain an adequate output of these units. They are not merely overhauled but are entirely rebuilt, the• tools and equipment being, in many cases, similar to those used in the process of manufacture, whilst, after reconditioning, the engines go through the same checking and inspection processes as do new products. " The trust placed in them by the company is indicated by the fact that they carry the same guarantee as new parts.
Death of Scottish Pioneer
ON July 30, the death occurred of Mr. Harry Prosser, one of the pioneers of the motor trade in Glasgow and the West of Scotland. A native of Gloucestershire, Mr. Prosser went to Glasgow as a young man, and was a founder of Rennie and Prosser, Ltd., which was one of the first concerns in Glasgow to specialize in motor engineering. Before the 1914-18 war he established the business of H. Prosser and Sons, motor engineers and distributors,
As president of the Scottish Motor Trade Association for a period, Mr. Prosser was well known to members of the industry throughout the country. He gave valuable assistance in the promotion of the annual motor show at Kelvin Hall, Glasgow.
N.F.U. Growing Rapidly
QINCE the start of the war, the mem
bership of the National Farmers' Union has been growing steadily. For example, in North Warwickshire and Lincolnshire, about 200 new members have been enrolled this year. As recently as last year Warwickshire had an intensive membership drive, when non-members in every parish were canvassed, with the result that 622 were added. This indicates that farmers who were content to run along independently in peace time have decided that they can no longer afford to remain outside their national organiza tion. • Inalentally, our costs expert, " S.T.R.," is doing useful work in conjunction with the N.F.U. in obtaining more economic rates for various classes of agricultural transport by road.
New Wages Agreement for Scotland?
THE Scottish Contractors' and Horse
1 Owners' Association has entered into an agreement which purports to regulate the wages and conditions of labour in the carting industry in Scotland. It stipulates that tho wages of one-horse carters shall be 62s. per week, and those of two-horse carters 68s. per week.
These rates are actually higher than the wages due under R.H.4 to drivers of motor vehicles of from 1 to tons pay-load capacity.
The Scottish Carriers' Haulage Contractors' Association is contesting the right of this Horse-Owners' Association to make an agreement binding the whole of Scotland, It is pointed out that this scale is equivalent to an increase of 4s. per week. This policy will most likely result in demands for increases of pay for motor-vehicle ,drivers in Scotland.
Incidentally, in the aforesaid agreement is a paragraph headed Extra Payments " which reads: " All flour carried by carters shall be remunerated at the rate of 8d. per ton.Payment of this extra amount would seem.to be " in the bag."
Dunlop Representative
WE regret to learn that Mr. B. E. Craigie, a representative of the Dnnlop Rubber Co., Ltd., at Nottingham, whose interests were largely in .connection with commercial vehicles, died suddenly while returning from a holiday. He joined the Dunlop concern in 1920 and went through the 1914-18 war. as a lieutenant. He was 44 years of age.
EQUIPMENT ON HASTINGS TROLLEYBUSES
WE have been asked by the Equipment and Engineering Co., Ltd.. 2 and 3, Norfolk Street, Strand, London, W.C.2, to point out in connection with our article published-on July 13; concerning the latest A.E.C.English Electric trolleybuses for Hastings, that the air-brake equipment was supplied by the Westinghouse Brake and Signal Co., Ltd.. The Equipment, and Engineering. Co., Ltd., is selling agent for that company. it also supplied the destination-indicator gearing and screens, the Whipple Turnicathrs, ..and Notek lamps (of which there are two per vehicle).
Defence Taxes on U.S. Hauliers A DDITIONAL .taxes on petrol, oil, tyres and other requirements will cost the road-transport industry in the United States about another £7,000,000 annually. The extra levies are part of the National Defence taxes recently enacted by. Congress.
A Scottish Haulage Acquisition
WE learn that the Star Express Co., Ltd., Glasgow. has been purchased by Messrs. Young's Express -Deliveries, also of Glasgow. It may be remembered that the late ,Mr. David Wright was manager of the former concern. On his death, Mrs. Wright took control. She has now, however, for personal reasons, decided to sell.,