DESIGNING LAI_
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.1DRY VANS
for accessibility
THE load of the laundry van is carried in hampers, parcels and bundles of various sizes. 'Although many boxvans are employed, the tilted type of van of light construction is in the majority. Wheel-arches, when built up to form shelves on the inside, may not be a disadvantage if the load consists chiefly of small packages, but when ' there are several large hampers art unobstructed floor is to be preferred.
In order that such hampers may be handled conveniently, there should be at least 5 ft. 6 ins, of headroom ftom the floor to the underside of the roof. With 2-ft. 6-in, diameter wheels the floor is about 3 ft. 2 ins. from the ground, so that the overall height of the vehicle is seldom less than 8 ft. 8 ins. With wheel-arches and the floor supported on light cross-bearers resting directly on the chassis, the same amount of headroom is maintained, but the overall height is reduced to about 7 ft. 6 ins.
A Luton-type Front.
The headroom of the loading portion is greater than is necessary for the driving compartment The top line of the roof slopes down to form a peak, or a Luton-type front. This part of the body is seldom used for packages, because it is not regarded B36 as readily accessible when frequent calls are made.
Access between the driving compartment and loading portion saves time, particularly when the vanman is working single-handed. The sliding door of the partition extends from the cant-rail level to the floor, or it may reach only to the seat line.
A Folding Seat.
In the last-named instance the seat may be fixed throughout and it is stepped over. With a full-height door the near-side portion of the seat folds towards the off side. On the other hand, by arranging the parcels beforehand, many of them may be lifted through the partition without raising the seat
The sliding door works smoothly now that it has similar equipment to that of the coach door, It is ,hung flanges of which are screwed to the floor.
The other method of hanging the moving part of the partition is by means of plain wood guides at the top and sash rollers at the bottom, which work on hardwood runners.
The van is about 5 ft. 6 ins, wide overall, but only 3 ft. 6 ins, wide at the dash. This contraction in width is effected in various ways. It is not desirable to make the cab much narrower than the loading portion at the partition or bulkhead, because this reduces the width of the opening in
it. ' Inswept Cab Sides.
The sides of the cab may, however, converge towards the dash, so that the overall width at the front-door pillar is some 12 ins. less than at the: rear pillar. The width of the cab • may also be reduced at the front of
the seat. In this instance, the doors are recessed.
This type of construction is often adopted for a cab with doors reaching only to the waist line. If there be a wide transverse panel above the waist, between the outside of the body and door, it should have a small window, so that the view forward is not obstructed. In plan, the doors are flat or with little sidesweep and the need for thick framework is thereby avoided.
In order to save weight, the inside of the van is often slatted at the sides from floor to roof, with no close boarding below the waist. The tailboard is comparatively high, because there are only waterproof curtains above it.
It is unnecessary to lower the tailboard for all packages, because many may be lifted over it, especially if there be an assistant inside the van. When loaded hampers have to be dealt with, however, it is considered that a dwarf, and, therefore, lighter, tailboard is an improvement, with a pair of doors above it.
Doors of Light Design.
These doors may be of light construction and panelled only on the outside with waterproof material. It is. perhaps, evident that a tailboard is too heavy for frequent handling if the van often be running with the unloaded tailboard in the open position.
Shelving and partitions may be introduced to improve the design of a
van which is to carry a mixed load of hampers and parcels. This scheme may be adapted to various sizes of body. The loading portion is divided transversely by a partition. On each side of the partition there Is a midway shelf.
The front half of the body is accessible from each side of the van and is protected by a roller shutter. The floor of this half is intended for hampers and the upper shelf for parcels. This shelf, being unobstructed for the full width of the body, will accommodate several packages without undue waste of space.
A Roller Shutter at the Side.
At the back of the van there is also a midway shelf. The lower compartment is again for hampers, but the upper shelving is subdivided. The rear half of this upper shelving is accessible from the rear and the forward half of it from each side of the vehicle.
The side opening has a roller In keeping with the trend of design, the sides of the laundry van are extended below the floor level. When there are no wheel-arches inside, the bottom line of the body conceals the cross-bearers and chassis liners which are necessary to raise the floor above the rear wheels. Even when the floor is close to the chassis, a Win, extension of the body side S improves the appearance, because the side members of the chassis are concealed.
A moderate amount of streamlining may be introduced into the laundry van. The front of the roof is flush with the windscreen. At the rear, the radius of the curve of the roof should be restricted, otherwise the line of maximum headroom will be some distance from the back of the van. The vehicle has facilities for side loading, or at the back there is a tailboard with a roller shutter above it. The front wings have flowing curves and the rear wheels are paddle-boxed.