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MAINTAINING THE COUNTRY'S BISCUIT SUPPLIES.

24th July 1923, Page 9
24th July 1923
Page 9
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Page 9, 24th July 1923 — MAINTAINING THE COUNTRY'S BISCUIT SUPPLIES.
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

The Part Played by the Mechanical Road Transport Fleet of an Old-established Biscuit Manufacturer Who Makes Use of Petrol, Steam and Electric Vehicles.

JS probably in the establishment of I direct contact between the manufacturer and consumer that, the motor vehicle rises to the height of its usefulness. In the distributive services of the country the value of deliveries by road cannot be determined, unless it be by the assumption of such a negative hypothesis as : What loss would industry sustain if manufacturers who have kept pace with'. the times were suddenly to he deprived of the strong arm of motor mechanical transport? The ubiquitouspresence of Jacob's biscuits in alinost every confeetioner's and grocer's shop, in the United Kingdom is .a triumphant vindication of the value of the motor vehicle for executing biscuit delivery. W. and B. Jacob and Co. (Liverpool), Ltd., have a fleet of 122 . vehicles, which is administered from Liverpool, while W. and B. Jacob and Co. (1922), Ltd., Dublin, also control a fleet of 25 motor vehicles for use in Ireland. The original company became interested in the developments that were taking place in the sphere of mechanically propelled road transport so far back as 1900, when, in the July of that year, they took delivery of a .2-3-ton lorry manufactured by Messrs. Coulthards, ivhose works were at Preston. This probably was.the same machine that was exhibited at a show held at Scarborough about that time. Mr. A. E. Jacob was then a member of the. Liverpool Self

propelled Traffic Association, an organization, now defunct, which originated in 1896.

The Coulthard was an oil-fired steam lorry, and, following the initial experiment with this -vehicle, satisfactory results were obtained from the use of two 6-ton Leyland steam wagons, which were purchased in 1904 and 1905 respectively.

A Start with Petrol Vehicles 15 Years Ago.

The first petrol vehicle that came on the scene was a Thornycroft in 1908, after which time developments proceeded fast and furious, until, in February, 1914, The Commercial Motor recorded the fact that W. and R. Jacob and Co., Ltd., then controlled from their various depots a total of 40 petrol-driven machines, the majority of them being Leylands,. although those of Thornyeroft, StrakerSquire, Napier, .Albion, Panhard, and Belsize make, as well as two Girling paircelcars, were included in the fleet.

It is only by looking backward that one can view the progress which has been made, and this brief glimpse of the past enables one to note the fact that, hi nine iears, the dimensions of Messrs. Jacob s fleet has been trebled. Possibly by the time the decade has been Coinplated, the number of transport units

will have been quadrupled. • • The heavy petrol lorries and steam wagons in the company's fleet are used mainly in bringing raw material from the docks to the factory at Aintree (Liverpool) and, for taking skips or .containers to the docks for shipment overseas. Trailers are employed on dock work in conjunction with the steamers.

One of the latest additions to the fleet, is an electric vehicle, a. Garrett 30-cwt. van. During the short time it has been in serviCe this vehicle has been giving a good account of itself on local deliveries. Maybe, before long it will' be joined by other members oi the same family.

So far as the company's deliveries are concerne& the country is mapped out into areas, each of which has a distributing depot from which a fleet of road vehicles operates Overlapping is thus, prevented, and from the depots at Liverpool, Manchester, London, Southiiimpton, Norwich, Birmingham, Cardiff, Plymouth,. and Bristol supplies of biscuits can be delivered to the_ premises of any retailers in the country. Every motor, vehicle is held, as it were, by an invisible thread to Liverpool, 'and,by the splendid system of keeping se. 'cords, it is. passible to ascertain the history, performances and running data of a vehicle that may never have been operated outside, say, for instance, the Plymouth area, with equal facility as vehicle which has alwaysibeen based on Liverpooi. The biscuits, after being made up in. tins, are packed in skips or containers (about 6 ft. .square), which hold about 250 tins and weigh 24 cwt. These skips • ccmpletely enclose the load and ensure an adequate protection against contamination and other adverse conditions likely

• to be encountered during a 200 or mile journey by road. tp-to-date handling plant at the factory, in the nature of overhead conveyors, .elevates the skips and conveys them to the loading berth of the motor vehicles, where they are .then lowered on to the lorry platform. Three skips generally form the load for a petrol lorry or steamer.

Before dealing with the administrative side of Messrs. Jacob's fleet, attention might usefully -,he devoted to the transport operations of the depots. Each depot is provided with a clear and detailed outline of the system which is maintained by the bead office. A statement is rendered daily by the drivers at each depot showing the amount of work. carded out, and this, after being signed by the manager, is forwarded to the bead office weekly.

Complete overhauls are'carried out at Liverpool or as instructed by head office, repairs being carried out by 'Messrs. Jacob's mechanics or • by local garages; alter the tender has been approved, onless the repairs are of a trivial nature, in which case they may be proceeded

ith forthwith. Where repairs are undertaken by the company's own mechanics a:record of the time spent on each vehicle and the material used for the repair are sent to head office weekly. So far as supplies are • concerned, a

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specified quantity of petrol, sufficient to meet the monthly requirements of the depot, is ordered from headquarters to be delivered to the depot as may be necessary. Delivery notes must be signed by a responsible person at the depot and handed to the suppliers, who forward these, together with the invoices, to Liverpool. Oil, grease, paraffin, and cleaning materials are supplied on demand, the order on the supplies coming. from the head office. All tyres are supplied direct from Liverpool.

Where a breakdown occurs through tyre trouble obviously tynes have to be procured wherever possible, but the administrative department points out that the necessity for such action should 1713 the exception rather than the rule, if a little intelligent anticipation is forthcoming. Indents for parts and accessories are made from the depots. direct to Liverpool, and no purchases are permitted., except in cases of breakdown: or extreme urgency, -without sanction haynig first been obtained from Liverpool.

Transport Regarded as a Factor of Production.

The transport department of W. and R. Jacob and Co., Ltd., is conducted on lines which are worthy of the traditions of a great firm. Transport is not regarded as a side line, but as a factor of production. Like every ther depart

molt of their splendid works, the affairs of the transport department of the company are the pet subject of a committee which is composed of directors and the departmental manager.

Messrs Jacob's transport department is under the surveillance of Capt. J. R. Williams, who, with some of the directors, constitute the motor transport committee. Their function is to be an fait with the latest development in the domain of mechanically propelled vehicles and to bring forward proposals to the board of directors which are calculated to enhance the efficiency of the transport department.

Every service renderedby the transport department is charged against some department 'of the firm. Transport is called upon 1.-o pay its fat quota of establishment charges, and if only an incidental benefit is derived by .this department from plant or fittings Intended tor general service a charge is made. Some of the overhead charges are oilstore, light, power, water, dining-room

for men, etc. • • The system of keeping records has been evolved with painstaking exactitude in order to ensure that every charge incurred by a vehicle is duly accounted for. Overhead charges are apportioned out in the company's offices and allocated in

detail to each vehicle on a monthly and an annual surnInary sheet.

The haais of ascertaining running data is the car daily statement, which is filled in by the driver, who gives date and particulars of the journey undertaken, places visited, mileage, fuel and oil consumed, load outward and load inward, and expenses incurred.

These forms are summarized for the month and entered up in a loose-leaf logbook, in which each vehicle has its own account. Here is given a complete record of the work of each vehicle during the period, including details relating to ail and fuel consumption, tyre costs, total running costs, upkeep expenses, mileage, load--tins in and tins out, and m.p.g. Drivers' expenses, according to scale, are entered up separately and are paid weekly on the completou of the form.

So far as the repairs and maintenance side of the transport department is coneerned, no spares can be delivered from the stares without, an order, made on the proper form, being first presented. These are debited against the vehicle for which they are required, and, with the mechanics' work sheet, pass on to the transport accountancy department, there to be entered up in the maintenance-legbook against the account of, say, car No. 50.

One book gives the 12 months' record of the vehicle's service and the other particulars of its maintenance costs, which; at the end of the year, are dully apportioned in a detailed analysis of establishment and running costs. The records of. every vehicle are set out in this manner and provide abundant scope for comparison.

The item " up-keep," in the log-beak to which we have already referred, deals with such items as the coat of files and other tools; etc., which cannot be debited against any one vehicle and their cost is, therefore, shared by all the vehicles comprising the fleet.

The supplies. stocked in the stores department are 'arranged according to the demand which is'likely to he made for thein. A card record, giving all details as to available parts, their cost and other relevant particulars, is kept for all supplies arid spares which are held in stock. All the requirements of the depots are supplied from here. The advantages of collective purchasing in this manner is to obvious to call for comment.

All the company's vehicles are fitted with mileage recorders. A strong point is made of efficient carburation. Petrol consumption is an excellent indication as to whether a vehicle is doing well ; consequently, the m.p.g. ,records of each vehicle are carefully scrutinized and compared. A standard is fixed, and vehicles which do not attain the figure set receive an early examination. .

Each unit of Messrs. Jacob's fleet is overhauled once every two years or so, and about, 48 vehicles are thus dealt with every year. Arrangements are being made to expedite overhauls in view of the increased, and increasing, size of the fleet. Each machine is reported on in detail at frequent intervals, a special form being used for the purpose.

Messrs. Jacob's commercial vehicle fleet is operated on pleasingly progressive lines, and the esprit de corps that prevails among& the personnel is a tribute to wiae and discreet supervision. Efficient road transport has been idealized, and the fact, that. the fleet is still growing speaks for itself.


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