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Sketchley, Ltd.; Use 75 Vehicles for the Collection and Delivery During the Night of Dry-cleaning Work at 300 Depots in the Midlands and London
By P.A.C. Brockington, A.M.I.Mech.E.
THE dispatch departments at the Hinckley, Notungnam and London works of Sketchley, Ltd., are known as " orchards " because of the visual impression they give. It is here that finished garments are stored awaiting delivery, neatly arranged on hangers, and forming multi-coloured lines that from a distance have the appearance of blossoming trees.
But apart from this impression the word is inappropriate. Every day brings a fresh crop and every climatic variation a change of scene; there is no barren season. The fruits of the day's work are in demand for immediate consumption by impatient actresses, clothesconscious typists, courting males and scores of others who want to look their best.
By 5 p.m. loading will have started; by 6.30 p.m. the last van will have left the works on its way to one of the 300 Sketchley shops in the Midlands or London. By the time the shops open, the clothes will be ready for the customers in the condition they left the ironing table and fully aired during their night ride. No after-treatment will have been necessary, no further attention required. Of the Sketchley fleet of approximately 75 commercial vehicles distributed between the three works, the largest single section comprises 30 Thames 3-ton vans and 20 Guy Vixen vans of the same capacity, which are engaged
on nightly runs ,up to 250 miles delivering the dry-cleaned garments on hangers.
In the London area, two trailer units of 8 tons capacity are employed in addition to two 3-tonners, the 20-m.p.h. restriction on the larger vehicles being unimportant in a congested area where the shops are close together. The tractor of the 8-tonners is a Thames, which is close-coupled to a Carrimore semi-trailer. Five years ago, the processed clothes were packed in hampers for loading in the vehicles and the garments at the bottom of the hampers often arrived at the shops in such a creased condition that they required re-pressing. This was costly
and sometimes delayed delivery to the customers.
Hanging the garments in the vehicles presented the obvioukaolittion, but it appeared likeIrriliat strengthening the body structure of the 3-tonners for this purpose and adding the necessary rails and so on would increase the unladen weight to over 3 tons. The lower speed limit of the heavier vans would have completely disorganized the delivery schedules and the cost of the extra vehicles and staff necessitated by the change would have far outweighed any advantage which might have been gained in the packing. The • transport manager, Mr. H. Wilson, therefore decided that lightweight bodies should be designed specifically for the service, and a design based on a stressed-skin lightalloy structure was evolved in conjunction with Mr. R. Lee, managing director of the local Ford agents, Paynes Garages, Ltd. The bodies
were later built by G. Scammell and Nephew, Ltd. The Thames chassis are of the ET6 type with Baico 45-in. extensions, which enable Luton bodies to be fitted with a floor-level length of
19 ft. 6 in. Extruded light-alloy sections are used throughout, particular attention being given to the design of the floor bearers and the method of joining the bearers to the pillars, which take the load of the roof bearers supporting the four clothes rails. Most of the sections are of top-hat form. Pop-riveting is employed for all the panelling. As the unladen weight of the complete vehicle was near the 3-ton limit, it was necessary to provide thumb
screw fittings for the steel rails so that they were easily detachable and could be included in the vehicle's payload, which is normally about half the rated load.
It may, later, be possible to modify the storage of garments in the vehicle to provide for accommodation Of sections of the " orchard " racks if the necessary works reorganization is practicable. Premounting on racks has already been tried experimentally.
The average number of shop calls for delivery and collection (the soiled garments are packed in hampers and bales), is about 20 on a night's run, and speedy unloading is essential to the strict timetable. Each van has a driver and a mate who carry the processed clothes in their arms when unloading, and to avoid delays they must be able to walk off the vehicle with their arms full. Provision is made for this by dropping the frame to form a
shallow well at the rear of the floor and by fitting a deep tailboard which gives an easy slope to the ground when lowered. The tailboard is covered with corrugated aluminium plate having Ferodo non-slip inserts. High-level swing doors fold back to the body sides.
Because of conditions at one of the works' dispatch bays, provision must be made for side loading, and the body has a wide roller shutter on the near side behind the cab for direct access to the vehicle from a raised deck. At the works a set of interior lights is connected to the mains by means of an external plug and a second set using battery current is employed for unloading.
The space above the cab is useful for storing carpets and other bulky objects.
The Guy Vixen chassis are equipped with bodies similar to those titled to the Thames chassis and also have an unladen weight below 3 tons. Running costs of both types are comparatively low on account of the light payload. The Thames vehicles cover about 10.5 miles to the gallon and the Guys 12.5 miles. The distance run by the Thames betWeen engine changes is approximately 55,000 miles and normally no intermediate overhauls are required apart from routine servicing. The total mileage of the Guy engines is about double this distance if new rings are fitted at approximately 60,000 miles, the cost of replacement also being double. The Thames units can-be changed if required in about 3?,,hours. • Ca rbairol 'upper-cylinder lubricant purchased in bulk, is used during the
entire life of an engine. The sump oil is renewed every 10 days at mileage intervals of 1,500-2,000 miles. Tyres are regularly changed round and sometimes cover up to 80,000 miles before replacement. Other road vehicles in the combined fleet comprise 12 Thames 10-cwt. vans of the laundry type and 10 Morrison battery-electric vehicles. The Thames vans are employed on
branch-to-customer services in London and the provinces and eight of the battery-electrics on collection and delivery in London. The latter are 10-cwt. vans and have proved highly satisfactory for short-journey work. The remaining two electrics are 50-cwt. flat-platform trucks with can
vas canopies which carry the hose traffic in Hinckley between the dye section of the Sketchley works and the various hosiery manufacturers in the town. It is claimed that more than one-third of the nylons produced in this country come from Hinckley. Sketchley dye and finish about lm. pairs of stockings a week. Sketchley branches are selfsufficient with regard to vehicle maintenance, but for some major jobs the vehicles are sent to the main depot at Hinckley where the works machine shop provides facilities for turning, milling and so on. There are four mechanics at Hinckley, and two at each of the other works. Tecalernit plants are employed for weekly greasing, and when the
engines are removed for replacement or overhaul use is made of Red lac mobile cranes.
Whilst the existing speed-limit regulations remain in force, the use of oil-engined vehicles would . be uneconomic on account of their extra weight for a given bulk capacity. As already indicated, the lower average speeds of vehicles restricted to 20 m.p.h. would greatly increase the Sketchley operating costs but a change in the law wouti encourage the adoption of the oil engine. Alternatively, an oil-engined chassis specially designed to reduce the unladen weight of a full-size van below 3 tons would be immediately acceptable, given that it was reliable in service and had a suitable body.