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GERMAN METHODS IN BUS GARAGING.
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Some Interesting Details of the Practice and System of Working of the Berlin General Bus Co.
ALTHOUGH it is quite possible that the officials of British motorbus undertakings have little to learn from Germany as to vehicle maintenance and storage, it is always interesting to know how such problems are tackled in other countries, and-for this reason we give below some particulars of the latest motorbus depot of the Berlin General Bus Co., which is known as the Helm holzstrasse Betriebshof. We are indebted to Herr G. Quarg, the director of the Aboag concern—as the bus company is familiarly known in Berlin—for the accompanying series of illustrations.
During 1925 200 new buses were added to the Atmag fleet, and it was to accommodate these vehicles that a new depot became necessary. As the new services were chiefly inaugurated in the western suburbs of Berlin, it was decided to establish the depot near the city limits on the western side, the final selection being a site close to the River Spree. This is handy for the drivers and staff in that it is not far removed from their homes, and, furthermore, its position involves the minimum of empty running to and from the starting and finishing points of the services. The depot stands some distance back from the main road, the building being reached by a private track. The depot backs on to a side street and six wide doors are provided here, although, except in case of emergency, these are not used for entrance or exit purposes.
Work On, the construction of the depot was commenced in July, 1925; but, owing to a long builders' strike, it was not completed until October last, although part of it was brought into use in May, 1926. Being near the river, the land was somewhat marshy, and this necessitated the use of special fonndations, thus inflating the coat of building the depot, which, including the sprinkler installation, amounted to approximately 175.000.
The scheme put before the architects was that of providing (1) a building to accommodate from 160 to 200 motorbuses.; (2) ample space for the night washing, overhaul and preparation for the next day's worsk of 200 vehicles; and .(3) a well-arranged repairs department and stores.
The directors decided that the roof of the depot should be of sush a design as to require no intermediate support
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ing pillars, so that the interior should be a clear space in which the buses could be easily manoeuvred. The building eoraprises three sections, the garage proper, which is 295 ft. long and 175 ft. wide ; a bus-washing section, 295 ft. by 61 ft.; and a two-storey repairs department and spare-parts store on the northern side, thi6 being 295 ft. long and 32i ft. wide. The outer wall of the blot-named is constructed of galvanized iron in order that it may readily be taken down when any further extensions become necessary.
At the centre the garage roof is 40 ft. high, the height of he washing department being 27i ft. The floor construction comprises a foundation of nearly 12 ins, of concrete, which is covered with 2 ins, of cement. Oak blocks are fitted round the bases of the roof-sup
porting columns. This prevents the columns from being damaged, for the blocks reach to a height level with the wheel axle earls and the projecting portion of the rear platforms of the vehicles.
The WaslaQ and Oiling Deportment.
The washing department, with the adjoining stores and repairs section, is equipped with all the necessary plant for enabling all-night work on the buses to be carried out. This work starts at 10 p.m. and continues until 6 a.m. As the vehicles conic. in they are first washed, the subsequent operations being on the continuous-chain system ; that is to say, each particular vehicle passes in turn from one position to the following position, the time occupied for each operation varying from three to five minutes, an average of four minutes being at present the mite.
One of our pictures shows a line of buses passing through the various phases. In the first position the buses are swept out and the upholstery of the seats is vacuum-cleaned. The subsequent operation is concerned with the tops and sides of the buses, these being subjected to a shower bath to remove all mud and dust, the side showers being
novable and fed with water from an werhead pipe. In the third stage the nuch harder mud on the wheels and :rames is removed by means of power'ul hand-controlled water sprays, these )eing fed and supported from above. En order 41 economize water, the jets tre equipped with automatic shut-off nelves, which come into action within :wo seconds of the jet being laid down. Phe fourth operation consists of the dryng and polishing of the exteriors of the macs by a gang of men and women, !ad.' of whom deals with a particular nart of the vehicle.
In the washing department below, the vashing stands are formed of two pits, iach 68 ft. in length and.covered in by stout grating. The mud and water 'rem the washed-down vehicles first asses into the pits and then through a iltering and separating pit, where any ;olid matter is collected before the iquid passes into the drains.
The vehicles now pass on to position ive for inspection and lubrication and, ts this usually occupies longer than any me of the cleansing operations, four ;tends have been provided. At present, aowever, it is found that as the vehicles lo not all need daily attention in this firection the use of three stands is autiiAent to enable the inspectors and oilinglp men to keep pace with the washers 'Tad polishers.
While the buses are being inspected
workman attends to the engine sumps, md if the level is falling in any of them 'tattler oil is added from a travelling :rink in which a measuring instrument s incorporated. At the same time the kccumulator batteries are changed, the .eplaeements being brought from a harging room nearby. The four oiling mad greasing pits are connected by a ransverse gangway, which practically akes the form of a big earthenware pipe .xtending to the fitters+ department, a 'urther underground passage connectng the latter with the repairs departnent. In this way any parts, such as nagnetos, dynamos, compressed-air and zigh-pressure oil pumps, requiring attenion can be quickly dealt with. The its are each provided with six 25-watt lamps set in the wall, together with plug-in connections for light, power, compressed air and heating. Following a stay on the inspection and oiling stand, which averages about 12 minutes, it is then decided whether the vehicle shall pass to the T11:Aill galage on the right in readiness for work the next day, or whether it must pass to the left for further attention in the repairs department.
The Electric Light and Power iSystem, The necessary electrical energy for the bus station is drawn from the mains of the Berlin municipal electricity undertaking at an e.m.f. of 3,000 volts, this being stepped down by two 75 kVA transformers to 380 volts for power purposes and 220 volts for lighting, a further 3 kVA intermediary transformer being installed to supply curreut at a voltage of 120 for the hand lamps used in the inspection pits, where naked lights are not allowed owing to the danger arising from the possible collection of explosive gases.
The garage lighting is effected by five groups of enclosed 300-watt lamps disposal along the centre of the building and suspended directly from the roof
for a distance of 36 ft. These five groups—one for each section of the garage—are kept alight continuously throughout the night. In addition, each section has four groups of 200watt lamps. In the bus-washing section groups of 100-watt lamps are used,
whilst over the inspection and oilingup pits an ample number of 40-watt lamps is provided. The whole lighting system is controlled from a main switch: board near the battery charging room.
A special combined system of hot-air and ,low-pressure steam-heating has been installed for warming the building, whilst special provision is also made for promptly dealing with any outbreak of fire. There are 14 sets of wall fittings conveniently distributed about the building, each set comprising two buckets of sand, two tetra-chloride hand extinguishers and a Foam extinguisher.
Following the latest bus-garage practice in England and America, the Berlin establishment is fitted with a fire-sprinkler installation of what is known as the dry-pipe variety—that is to say, only air is contained in the piping when the system is not in operation, so that it is not subject to the dangers of freezing up in extremely cold weather. The system is divided into two groups—one for the main hall and one for the side halls—and is formed .of
a total of 1,378 jets. A supply of water and air at a pressure of 135 lb. per sq. in. is maintained.
Whenever the s rinkler installation comes into operati n, to follow up the cylinder supply, an electrically operated pump, capable of delivering nearly 40,000 gallons per hoar to a height of over 330 ft., is put into operation, and this draws its supply from the Berlin city water mains. As a final resource and as a protection against the possible failure of' the city water supply, plant has been installed whereby water can be drawn from the River Spree. Even the likelihood of the failure of the municipal electric supply service has not been overlooked, and a 100 h.p. petrol engine, which is adapted for driving either a dynamo on the sprinkler pump, is installed.
The motor spirit storage and filling installation was the subject of much consideration. Experience has shown that many of the " ailments" of motor vehicles can be diagnosed by keeping a careful eye on variation in fuel consumption, which can best be checked by filling up the petrol tanks as the buses come in at the end of their day's work. It was decided, however, that any advantages gained in this direction were more than lost by the risk attendant on having 200 buses in the garage each with about 28 gallons of petrol in its tank, or a total of over 5,600 gallons of spirit.
After considering all forms of filling pumps and devices, it was decided to lay down, just ahead of the front of the garage and adjacent to the offiees, three underground tanks each with a capacity of 13,200 gallons, and to arrange an overhead structure from which three petrol pipes could be suspended, thus enabling the tanks of three buses to be filled at a time. The petrol is raised from the underground tanks by means of two electrically operated pumps. The control switch is so arranged that petrol can be drawn from one, two or all the outlets and from any of the three storage tanks as desired, this being a convenience when a mixture of different brands of motor spirit is being utilized.
The pumps are controlled from a special control room adjacent to the petrol-filling station and the efficiency of the installation is such that the tanks of the buses are now being filled with 22 gallons of spirit within 30 seconds. sin addition to the three hanging pipes, a filler pipe is provided for supplying small quantities of fuel to special vehicle g or for workshop use.