They help you get over a shattering experience
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Windshields replaces over 3,000 windscreens every week. Its 42 regional branches respond 24 hours a day to the control room at Bedford, and David Wilcox has been along to see the operation in action
D MAINTENANCE reduces -isk of breakdowns to a num and if your tyres have ty of tread and their ures are correct the chance )uncture is also minimised. here is precious little you Jo to prevent windscreen ages; it is in the lap of the ing on the back of this ortune is a very competitive ;try — a glance at the Yet'ages gives an idea of the )er of companies only too r to supply a new screen. largest of them is Ishields, replacing over windscreens every week. out 20 per cent of shields' work is for heavy nercial vehicles; the cornclassifies vans such as ;its and so on in its car 9s. Windshields attracts the share of the commercial :le market thanks to credit facilities with many major Itors and discount schemes eet users arranged through load Haulage Association, ht Transport Association, Transcard and many major ance companies.
Windshields' main control room is at Bedford and all telephone calls for assistance on the company's Freefone 3636 number come into here. If a driver happens to have the number of the nearest Windshields branch he may phone direct but 70 per cent of the calls are via the Freefone line to Bedford.
This control room is manned 24 hours a day and when a call comes in the Windshields operator will talk the driver through a set of questions to establish the necessary facts — account number if applicable, type of vehicle, position, etc.
He will also need to know details such as the type of screen fitted — whether or not it is laminated or tinted may vary according to the model and trim level. And he will quote the price, including the fitting charge.
Having found these details the operator will then allocate the job to the nearest of Windshields' 42 regional branches, all of which have their own radio room to keep in contact with the radio-controlled vans working out of them. If a van is in an area where radio reception is poor a telephone paging system is used.
Instead of verbally relaying the job details to the branch a facsimile machine is used, with written instructions fed in at the Bedford control room relayed by a telephone connection to a remote copier at the branch. This is quick and, because written instructions automatically emerge at the other end, more accurate than a spoken telephone message. With this information the branch can dispatch a van with the appropriate screen.
Windshields' marketing director Mike Cornwell said that the amount of emergency screen replacement actually carried out by the roadside is not as great as it used to be. This is due to the increasing use of laminated windscreens. Whereas a stone would go through and shatter a toughened screen it will merely leave a star or "spider's web" on the laminated screen, allowing the journey to be completed.
As a result, much of Windshields' work is now carried out at more convenient places than the roadside — outside people's homes or offices or in hauliers' yards. The company is also perfectly willing to rendezvous with a lorry at a motorway service area or where it is making a delivery so that the screen can be replaced with th,e minimum of interruption to a lorry's movements.
This also helps Windshields because the company can schedule its work to a greater extent. About 20 per cent of the work comes to them, with people bringing their vehicles into the branches for new screens.
The company aims to stock every type of vehicle's screen, within reason, for both cars and commercials. The really rare examples will be located at a few key branches and an individual screen can be ordered from the manufacturer.
All told, Windshields has 40,000 screens in stock, invariably supplied by the original equipment manufacturer and carrying the appropriate safety mark — British Standard, European E-mark, or German or American equivalents.
Mike Cornwell warned that it is not unknown for less reputable windscreen companies to fit poor quality East European glass.
A limited amount of side and rear windows are also stocked although the demand for these is much lower and is usually as a result of vandalism or theft in the larger cities.
Windshields monitors the demand for the various types of screen and compiles a "top 20". Each branch will gear its stocks accordingly and supplement the overall stock position with screens that satisfy a particular local market.
For instance, if there is a strong Volvo dealership in the area the number of Volvo screens at the branch will be higher. Mike Cornwell showed me a Magirus dump-truck screen in the racks at the Bedford branch, there because an operator in the area has a Magirus.
The Windshields fleet of just over 200 vehicles is fairly evenly split between Ford and Leyland; Transits and Escorts, Sherpas and Morris 440 vans. There are also a few Mercedes-Benz 307 vans. So that they can respond to radio calls when already out on the road and away from the branch the vans carry a selection of screens with them. This is based on the commonly-used screens such as Cortinas, Escorts, Cavaliers and so on. Also in the top 20 are Transits, DSeries, Bedford TK and Dodge Commando. The larger lorry screens will fit only in the Transit/Sherpa size vans.
In addition to the screens the vans carry the necessary tools, the rubber gaskets and the selfadhesive pads or glue needed to stick the interior mirrors that are fixed directly to the glass. Also included is a vacuum cleaner and a first-aid kit.
On the subject of first-aid, Mike Cornwell added that it is not advisable to punch out a toughened screen on the move; the zone toughening should give adequate Wsion to pull up safely. Then leave the screen intact for the windscreen company to deal with — and do not slam the door when you get out to phone!
During a typical day a Windshields man will replace five to 10 screens. Lorry windscreens do not necessarily take longer than car screens; in fact some are quicker to replace because they have less trim strips to deal with. It is only the sheer size and weight of a commercial screen that can complicate matters because in windy weather it can act like a sail, although the driver will normally lend a hand.
Screen replacement normally takes 30 minutes to an hour which is slightly faster than the manufacturers' laid-down times, simply because the Windshields men do nothing but windscreens and so are expert at the task. There are some jobs that the company refuses to tackle at the roadside because they are too large or awkward. This includes all coach windows and other "specials" such as RollsRoyces etc.
The coach market is one that Windshields is aiming to penetrate further. It is already the approved stockists and agent for MAN bus and coach screens and is trying to establish links with other British and foreign coach bodybuilders. Because passengers are involved, speed and level of service are vital for coach windscreen replacement.
When replacing screens Windshields does not reckon to renew the rubber gasket unless it is more than five years old or obviously deteriorating. "Some people automatically do this and it is just not necessary," said Mike Cornwell. "It's a rip-off."
The new screen carries a year's warranty just in case you are unlucky enough to suffer another breakage — vandalism is outside the terms of the Windshields warranty.
Direct glazing where the windscreen is glued or bonded to the surround looks like growing in popularity because the result is neater, aerodynamically cleaner and stronger. The Austin Maestro and Ford Sierra are the two best-known examples although some Japanese manufacturers and European coach bodybuilders such as Jonckheere and Van Hool were using the system before. As yet no commercial vehicles are direct glazed but some manufacturers, including Leyland, have looked at the idea.
One disadvantage with direct glazing using high strength urethane bonding is that once the screen has been replaced (the glass is removed and the adhe
sive layer cut back to give surface for the replacemer vehicle cannot be move about three hours to giv urethane time to cure. though the use of lami screens should obviate the for roadside replacement, glazing with urethane rules altogether. The Windsh vans are equipped with the ers necessary to grip the glazed windscreens di installation — first-time, sp positioning is vital.
Windshields' busiest timi generally 9-10.30am and and the company is geared meet this. But the resurfao a stretch of road will ge loose chippings flying and the pattern of calls. Dunn night shift from lOpm to 6a number of telephone ca right down to about 60 per I mostly from lorries. A surcl is payable for out-of-hour vice.
The control centre at BE is manned through the nip, . though the branches are they have a night man or who can be rung at home. I already out on a job his phone pager will let him that he is once again in den A clever piece of elec gadgetry at the Bedford o centre logs each call on and enables Windshields ti lyse the pattern of calls a own response. For instanc day before I visited Bedfor calls had come through o Freefone number. All had answered and the average ing time was five seconds the longest was 16 second: equipment can also s whether Windshields is sli handling a job since its out call to place the job w branch is also recorded. It shows calls that are not we red.
Although Windshields not actively discriminate ap the private motorist in fay( the business user or comm .vehicle operator Mike Cor said that the work can nor be scheduled to keep eve' happy. This may mean repl a private motorist's screen convenience during the while the car is outsidE office, leaving sufficient mc available to give more urgE needed roadside assistan( lorries.
Even though you pay to privilege it is nice to know there is a well-organised sy that is poised to restore vision and get you on the again. After all, until it bi you tend to forget that the screen is even there.