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The Economics of Municipal Fleet Operation

The Value of Any Saving in Manhours, the Need for the Tools .for. the Job from Spanners to• Vehicles, and the Case for Work Study Are Among Points Discussed in this Expert Analysis of Some of the Issues Relating to Municipal Fleet Economics by A. G. Davies, M.A.P.H.I., A.M.Inst.P.C.

(Public Health Inspector, Woking U.D.C.)

IT is common practice to express the economics of any fleet operation in terms of columns of figures. indicative of the recorded cash cost of purchase and maintenance of the vehicles under control. Such figures make a useful basis of comparison and can be of much value, providing the actual circumstances of operation are takeninto consideration. However, they do not portray the background story of the incidentals which, in total at least, have a marked influence on costs.

There are always full stories waiting to be told around many of these individual items: for example, motor tyres and the influences on life and cost, or the influence on cost of the trend towards the use of reconditioned units as opposed to direct repair.

As a change to the mere presentation of figures, the author has chosen on this occasion to delve at random among some of the issues which are closely related to the economics of vehicle operation.

In these days of higher wages and shorter, hours of employment it is essential to keep in mind that any saving in man-hours, however slight, will have a marked effect on total cost. This applies particularly to items of a regularly occurring nature, such as refuse-collection "rounds," routine maintenance jobs, and so on. The fact that overheads are often applied on a man-hour basis adds to the importance of cutting times to the minimum. .

In modern thinking, the answer lies in the efficiency of the tools for the job, ranging through the whole sphere from spanners to vehicles. Indeed, the high cost of labour has been largely responsible for the emphasis during the past decade or so on mechanical development. The labour market is one of continually increasing expense with no likelihood of any early alleviation from the trend. It has long since been realized in the municipal industry that any increase in wages is followed closely by other buyers in the labour market. Rather than serving to provide a labour force, such increases merely aggravate the cost issues and overheads continue to rise. The only answer lies in reduced labour forces made possible by increased mechanical efficiency.

Herein lies the real strength of the case made out for 0. and M. and Work Study, new occupations made very profitable by the times in which we live. But cleansing officers make the best work-study officers in their own industry, because they know it so well. They should be prepared, in the interests of efficiency and ultimate economy, to get out the stop-watches and time some of the familiar jobs. This is a worth-while occupation and the results can be most illuminating and profitable..

Vehicles, buildings and plant of all kinds represent considerable capital outlay and are depreciated over varying periods. 14 is poor policy to look at first cost only, with the idea of not being able to afford the best niece of equipment for a particular job. Outlay, whether

a loan is obtained or not, should be spread over a conservative estimate of plant working life.

In this fight the best is usually the cheapest. Not to be able to afford a thing today sometimes means having to afford it another day. The period of depreciation should not be ridiculously low, for it is not good accounting to deceive oneself, whether by overoptimism or pessimism. .

It often follows that if capital outlay has been pared to the bone, maintenance expenditure will be unduly high. Municipal operating conditions call for very robust vehicles, preferably made for the particular purpose rather than by adaptation.

Standardization is almost an essential policy these days.

It has been said that if there was one standard model of vehicle, whatever its purpose, costs could be reduced by one-third. This may be an exaggeration, but it is certainly safe to assume that if cleansing officers (and for that matter fire officers, transport undertakings, and so on) would formulate a common policy of requirement, the saving on first cost could be considerable.

Standardization of the cleansing vehicle, however, remains a remote prospect while cleansing officers retain such a varied and individual approach to the needs of the job. There is no uniformity of thought as to the type of vehicle best fitted for the job of refuse collection, cesspool emptying or street cleansing, and even less uniformity as to the individual furnishings on any given type of vehicle. Tradition, idiosyncrasy and salesmanship all play a part and, even allowing for necessary variations owing to geographical circumstances, there is much for which one cannot account.

In fleet maintenance every use should be made of facilities offered by manufacturers (some have exceptional service arrangements).

There has been a tremendous development in arrangements for service exchange units and every workshop administration should include full details of every possible replacement unit available, together with the costs involved. One or two makers will, for a reasonable fee, provide service engineers for the maintenance of their own items of equipment and, however old the particular unit in question may be, advice on repairs and adjustments can be readily obtained.

There are two ends to the maintenance scale: the large fleet systemized methods, when everything is done by numbers and dates in typical army fashion, and the " run-it-till-it-stops " method, where nothing whatsoever is done until the necessity is vital.

Between the Extremes

Obviously, the true aim should be somewhere between these extremes. Regular lubrication and oil changing are essential, and to neglect these is folly; but if in real doubt about complete stripping-down of an engine, it is right and proper that the cleansing officer should be able to defer a decision pending further evidence of need.

Some authorities profess to be unable to afford maintenance, but a salutary lesson would be obtained by correctly assessing the cost of lack of maintenance. Even comparisons between direct-labour activities and contract work provide illuminating information.

Nevertheless, there is obviously a point at which the facilities of commercial garages should be enlisted. Some cleansing officers are fortunate in having excellent local lirms looking after their vehicles on a regular basis; others adopt a " fair-for-all " policy of allocating the work to different garages in turn, so that all have a share of the income to be obtained. Such a policy is fair to all except the authority who own the vehicles and the company who manufactured them.

Indeed, it is one of the hazards of the cleansing vehicle manufacturer that he has to design a vehicle which will work equally satisfactorily under circumstances of adequate maintenance and the other extreme of gross neglect. In few other spheres of industry do vehicles receive such hard use as in public cleansing, and reasonable standards of maintenance are essential if a vehicle is to give of its best for any length of time.

The progress of the diesel engine in its application to public cleansing has been almost meteoric, and certainly the subject does not provide the controversy that formerly existed. Not so many years ago the technical Press was absorbed with tabulations and. comparisons of mileage costs. Next came reference to the operating disadvantages of the diesel engine, as, for example, an ascending scale of maintenance charges and the necessity to use expensive oils, temperature control problems, clutch wear and high rate of cylinder wear. Now even these matters appear to be thoughts of the past.

The Diesel Accepted

It thus seems reasonable in a treatise of this nature to dismiss the diesel engine as having withstood the teething troubles, and sometimes perhaps unjust criticism, and as having become an accepted part of public cleansing because of its proved economy and efficiency.

Where bodywork is concerned the refuse-collection vehicle suffers considerably more than the commercial vehicle by reason of the abrasive action of the material which is constantly being carried, more particularly perhaps during loading and discharge. Such wear and tear is very much in evidence where vehicles of the rotating-drum type are in use.

Ever conscious of the requirements in this direction, the manufacturer has devoted much research to the use of new materials, and aluminium alloys are now very much in evidence. Work with glass-fibre materials has not as .yet brought an extensive application in This field. Such material, whilst sharing the advantages of alloys in eliminating the need for expensive painting maintenance, has the additional advantage of providing a method of reducing vehicle weight, and thereby the tax to be paid.

Abrasion in some designs of bodywork provision is made for ready renewal of parts most likely to suffer by abrasive action, some also having a double thickness of material in the floor of the hopper. Abrasion is a factor incapable of full assessment, being influenced by the varying characteristics of refuse. Complete vehicles, even including chassis frames, can now be made from aluminium alloys, but the cost is heavy and a degree of compromise is necessary, the initial outlay having to be considered carefully in relation to operational savings over the working life of the vehicle.

Capacity is one of the all-important features of the modern refuse collector, although the possibilities in this direction are limited by the need for manceuvrability and legislative restrictions. Rapid loading characteristics are a .necessity, with facilities for at least two men to operate at the rear of the vehicle at any one time. Costs often appear to be high, but judgment in this respect must be tempered by a consideration of the life of the vehicle and the amount of work which will be undertaken before renewal becomes necessary.

Unfavourable Cost Comparison

Costed on a basis of loads carried, the modern refuse collector must bear favourable comparison on an expenditure basis with any other piece of modern machinery or equipment. This, again, is a consideration which should be resolved when comparing the initial costs of vehicles.

Often it is known that an authority will settle for a particular machine which it admits does not meet its needs so well as another, merely because of a difference in cost of, say, three or four hundred pounds. Initial costs should be assessed in relation to operational costs and achievements.

For transport of refuse a large load capacity is essential. as this has an influence not only on loading facilities, but also on the number of journeys involved to the disposal sites. The vehicle should be designed to permit speedy discharge with trouble-free action. There should be a full width and height opening in the rear of the body when it is raised to the discharge position, with the interior surface of the body and the floor, in particular, devoid of obstructions.

Tyres involve a substantial first cost and the wise cleansing officer will ensure a first-class system of control and record keeping. Life varies greatly due to damage on tips and abrasion on 'side walls and shoulders through constant riding of kerb edges, and there is a substantial wastage from this cause. Broadly speaking, the bigger the tyre the better for tip work.

In urban areas shrewd cleansing officers have eliminated the carrying of spare wheels on vehicles, the small cost of replacing punctured tyres from a service van being considerably outweighed by the saving in tyre costs. As in every other type of vehicle fleet, correct tyre pressures are of extreme importance and there is very good reason to follow the Army practice of painting tyre pressures on the wings.

Standing Charges Whatever the stage at which they are mentioned, standing charges have to be watched carefully, for they are a very significant part of fleet maintenance costs. The changes which have just been announced in motor taxation rates bring a substantial percentage increase in the amount of money to be found for this purpose.

Close attention should be paid to unladen weights, elimination of trailers where possible, and special taxation rates available in certain circumstances.

There is value to be obtained in the checking of the ratio of payload to unladen weight, both for existing and proposed vehicles. Spot checks on the payloads being obtained should be a regular feature of the maintenance routine. It was always the intention to include these statements in the present review; since Budget Day, however, they have assumed a new significance and it is more than ever necessary that these factors should not be overlooked.

And so ends a review of some of the influences on economic municipal fleet maintenance. It is a review which in no sense is regarded as being comprehensive, either in the number of points to which attention has been directed or in the detail in which they have been discussed. Each cOuld be analysed still further to provide full-length material of interest and even provocative thought for people concerned in municipal operation.

Immense Scope

Nevertheless, it is felt that at least the present contribution has the merit of indicating the immense scope of investigation which it is necessary for a cleansing officer to pursue if he is to be in close command of the service for which he is responsible.

For the most part the English cleansing service is efficiently administered, and expert investigation has resulted in many expressions of opinion to the effect that it is at least as efficient, if not more so, as its industrial counterpart. That is not to say, however, that improvement is not possible. The overall expenditure involved in the transport section of this service (approximating in many cases to about 50 per cent. of the total cost) is such as to demand that we give constant attention to this very necessary task.