WHEELS of INDUSTRY British Electric Traction. Trading Results.
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During the year ended March 31 last the British Electric Traction Co., Ltd., made a net profit of £245,123, a slight decrease on the previous year's figure. A final dividend of 2i per cent. is recommended for payment on the deferred ordinary stock, making 5 per cent. for the year, and the directors propose to capitalize £40,578 of the profits and distribute a 10 per cent. bonus in deferred shares on the deferred stock. The new shares will subsequently be converted into stock. This distribution will entitle the 6 per cent, preference stockholders to a further dividend of 2 per cent., and, after making provision for this payment, £21,135 remains to be added to the undivided profits account, bringing it up to £1,209,279.
Mans&lds' Bedford and Chevrolet Rally at Eastbourne.
As a result of the success and popularity of the Bedford and Chevrolet Rally staged at Eastbourne in July last year by Mansfields, Ltd., 17, Cornfield Road, Eastbourne, this event will again be held, the date being Saturday, June 24. It is hoped that, this year, the event will be even larger, because many inquiries from owners of these types of vehiclehave already been received. In addition to the sports, the proceedings will be enlivened by a concert party under the title of Mansfields' Merrymakers," which will give performances during the afternoon.
As before, the venue will be the Royal Parade, the vehicles then proceeding in procession to Frowd's Field, King's Drive, where the mechanical condition will be judged by experts and prizes awarded.
Armstrong-Saurer's New Service Depot.
The new service depot being built by Armstrong-Saurer Commercial Vehicles, Ltd., on the Great West Road, Brentford, is now nearing completion. In this new building the company has concentrated on the question of service, and it has impressive showrooms and wellequipped engineering shops. The ceremonial opening has been arranged to take place on July 4, when the lit. Hon. Baron Rochdale, the Lord-Lieutenant of Middlesex, will officiate. Major-Gen.
G. P. Dawnay, C.B., D.S.O., M.V.O., chairman of Armstrong Whitworth Securities Co., Ltd., and Lt.-Col. P. D. Ionides, chairman of ArmstrongSourer Commercial Vehicles, Ltd., will hold a reception during the morning.
Tradesmen's Fears of New Bill.
A committee of Abergavenny tradesmen, acting with the local Chamber of Trade, has considered the new Road and Rail Traffic Bill and has framed a list of suggested amendments.
Special exception appears to be taken to the proposal to empower the Commissioners to consider applications in private. This is held to be a particularly dangerous clause to tradespeople.
B18 It is pointed out that the public sittings of the Traffic Commissioners have been invaluable. The reports enable comparisons to be made of procedure in various areas.
Clarity is sought on the Commissioners' powers and relief from the great burden of keeping comprehensive records imposed by the Bill.
Alliance of Owner Drivers' Meeting.
The inaugural meeting of the Alliance of Owner Drivers will be held at 11 a.m. on Sunday, June 18, at the New Inn, Westminster Bridge Road, London, S.E.1, when all small hauliers will be welcome. Although admission will be possible on application at the doors,.fthose desiring to reserve seats should write to the organizing secretary, Capt. E. H. B. Palmer, 6, Norfolk Mansions, London, S.W.11, as early as possible.
The following owner-drivers have agreed to serve on the first advisory board of the Alliance :—Messrs. A. Dawborn. N. Lachlan, C. A. Plowman and S. Stratford. The organizing secretary asks us to advise small hauliers that the enrolment fee of 20s. is payable in four equal monthly instalments.
Brush Accounts for 1932..
For the year 1932 the Brush Electrical Engineering Co., Ltd., made a trading loss of £13,652, against a profit of £15,251 a year earlier. After providing for general charges, maintenance apd depreciation and interest on debenture stocks, there is a deficit of £6'7,091, which has been deducted from the general reserve, now, standing at
£153,529. The undivided profits account remains at £54,940.
The Scammell Mechanical Horse.
We are asked to point out that the rear axle of the Scammell Mechanical Horse, although made by Kirkstall Forge, Ltd., was designed throughout by Scammell Lorries, Ltd., and is made entirely to satisfy that company's requirements.
Severe New Goods-transport Regulations in New Zealand.
Road motor goods services throughout New Zealand came under severe licensing restrictions, as from June 1, according to a report from Wellington. The issue of a licence is conditional on two main points :—
(a) Goods must be carried for hire or reward ; ancillary users are not subject to the licensing system. (b) The goods must be carried for five miles or more along a main or secondary highway, outside boroughs, town districts and certain " exempted " areas.
It is estimated that of the 33,000 motor lorries in the Dominion, about 26,000 are operated by ancillary users and 7,000 by contractors, etc.
The second requirement will be most important in actual practice. At the end of March last, there were 10,846 miles of main and secondary roads in use. After deducting the 778 miles that lie within the boundaries of boroughs, town districts and " exempted" areas, there remain 10,068 miles of highways over which the control will extend.
The carriage of goods entirely on the 38,732 miles of formed roads, other than main or secondary highways, will not require a licence. Steps have, however, been taken to ensure that the licensing system does not throw traffic from the main highways on to the other roads which, in their present condition, are not capable of carrying it.
"C" Licences for Millers.
When motor lorries are used for the delivery of goods sold ex mill, does this constitute carrying goods for hire and reward within the meaning of the Road and Rail Traffic Bill? This question has been raised by certain Liverpool milling concerns with the local area committee of the Commercial Motor Users Association.
Mr. C. Dudley Whitnall. the secretary of the committee, states that an assur= ante has been obtained from the Minister of Transport that the practice of making a collection or delivery charge would not be interpreted as carrying for hire and reward, so that millers would be able to operate their rolling stock under the C licence.
A Booklet on Dunlop Tyres.
The Dunlop Rubber Co., Ltd., has pro= duced an interesting and instructive booklet giving instructions for the iis'e and repair of giant pneumatic tyres. It contains notes on how to get the best out of the equipment, and there are sections on recommended prenure gauges, -inflation pressures, instructions far ,fitting and removal (these being ,particularly well illustrated), the mounting. of (HO ,wheels, repairs (including vulcanizing)i the conversion of existing equipment, and other important matters. Applications for the publication should be made to the Dunlop Rubber Co., Ltd., St:James's House, St. lOints's 'Street, LondOtt,'R.W.1. A New Trojan Model.
A new Trojan van, the weight of which, for taxation purposes, is under 12 cwt., although the load capacity is 740 cwt., is to be announced by Trojan, Ltd., Purley Way, Croydon, Surrey. The body capacity ía 80 cubic ft.
Although the bore and stroke of the engine remain at 2f ins, and 48. ins., the acceleration is claimed to be better and the road speed greater. The twospeed epicyclic gearbox now has a preselective control, operated by a small lever fitted on the steering Column, and worm drive is substituted for the familial chain transmission; a differential gear is incorporated.
Success of A.E.C. Four-cylindered Oil Engine.
The launching of a new four-cylindered 70 b.h.p. high-speed oil engine by the Associated Equipment Co., Ltd., has been attended with such successful results that the first production programme has now been completed, and no further deliveries can be effected for some little time. This unit supplements the company's well-known six-cylindered model, which can be fitted into older types of A.E.C. vehicle and certain current models of other makes of chassis.
Building Bodies to Taxation Limits.
The latest additions to the fleet of motor vehicles run by Alfred Bird and Sons, Ltd., are not only distinctive in appearance, but denote a high appreciation of the value of mobile publicity, as is indicated by an accompanying picture. The vehicles—two of them—are claimed to be the first oil-engined vans to be licensed under 2f tons.
The chassis are Mercedes-Benz L02 Miracles, their net weight being slightly , in excess of 1 ton 19 cwt. Nevertheless, the Duramin Engineering Co., Ltd., Willesden, London, N.W.10, was faced with a big task in building bodies and cabs of elaborate design (each body being required to carry a load of 3 tons) without exceeding the 50-cwt. limit. The weights of the completed vehicles are 2 tons 9 cwt. 3 qrs. 17 lb. and 2 tons 9 cwt. 2 qrs. 13 lb. respectively.
Much skill has been used in the de sign and construction to obtain strength and durability without unnecessary weight. The, entire vehicles were cellulosed, including the lettering and decorative designs on the panels, by P. W. Lucas (1922), Ltd., Brixton Hill, London, 8.W.2.
A Well-compiled Instruction Book.
Morris Commercial Cars, Ltd., Adderley Park, Birmingham. has issued a comprehensive instruction book covering the new Morris-Commercial 30-cwt. to 3-ton C-type range of vehicles. In the compilation of this book the chief aim has been to present the matter in an interesting manner, a special endeavour haying been made to ensure that operators will closely peruse and digest the contents.
It is a new development in instructional literature, and provides detailed guidance for operation and maintenance, the main routine recommendations being clearly summarized in an early section of the book. Then follow well-illustrated sections covering all the individual units and assemblies of the chassis. Finally, there is a troublediagnosis chart, together with a threecolour chassis-lubrication diagram. Personal Pars.
In the Birthday Honours List, recently published, two names are of interest to our readers, these being Lt.Col. A. Matheson, D.S.O., principal, Ministry of Transport, and Mr. L. J. Veit, F.S.I., city engineer and surveyor to Westminster City Council, both of whom receive the O.B.E. (Civil Division).
Mr. A. Forster, general manager of Stockton-on-Tees Corporation's transport department for many years, has been appointed consultant. It is intended to advertise for a DOW general manager to succeed Mr. Forster, who recently had a serious breakdown in health, and was unable to carry on his management duties. It was then that the council decided to retain his services as consultant.
Following the election of Mr. P. W. McGuire to the board of directors of Armstrong-Saurer Commercial Vehicles, Ltd., as mentioned in our issue for last week, Mr. J. Janes, formerly area sales superintendent for London and the southern counties, has been appointed to the position of sales manager, with headquarters at Thames House, Westminster, London, S.W.1,
Mr. Jane, whose portrait appears on this page, has had over 20 years' sales experience in the commercial-vehicle trade part of which was spent with the old,daurer concern, with which he commenced business in 1924. Mr. Janes was, at one time, sales manager to that concern.
Leyland's Southward Trek.
A thousand employees of Leyland Motors, Ltd., will make their seventh' annual trip, to Bristol, on June 17. The party will be conveyed in two special trains, which leave Preston at 2.30 am. and 2.45 a.m. Breakfast will be served on the train. On arrival, a number of coaches will convey the party to various places of interest, including Cheddar Gorge. After lunch, the trippers will sail down the Avon, into the Severn, and Bristol Channel, afterwards returning to Weston-super-Mare, journeying back to Bristol between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m., which allows the party to see the extensive illuminations staged for Bristol's " Brighton Week."
New Lighting Scheme on a By-pass.
A new form of directional lighting has recently been installed an a section of the Watford by-pass. It is effected by the use of a special opaque type of directional reflector, known as the G.E.C. Wembley non-glare directional asymmetric reflector, which has a positive light cut-off occurring just below the horizontal.
It is claimed to be particularly suitable for use along such roads as the Watford by-pass, where the surface to be illuminated is not too polished and where it is not necessary to light farther from the edge of the kerb than the extent of the footpath.
In its commercial form the reflector consists of a silvered glass, oval in section, cemented into a cast-iron housing. A 160-degree two-way asymmetric distribution, suitable for a staggered arrangement of posts, is obtained by placing the lamp out of centre in the reflector.
Tillotson's Trading Results.
A net profit of £6,181 was made by Oswald Tillotson, Ltd., in the 13 months ended January 31, 1933, as compared with £14,597 for the previous 12 months. A dividend of 2i. per cent, is recommended for payment, and the sum carried forward amounts to £6,152, as against £4,371 in the previous year.
Welsh % Transport Business Sold.
Under an order of the High Court, an auction sale of the old-established bus and tar-spraying business of Messrs. John Bros., Grovesend, was recently conducted, when the undertaking was sold for £9,310, plus a valuation payment for certain goods, to Mr. J. L. John.
A temporary sanction from the Commissioners enables Mr. John to carry on the bus services between Grovesend and Llanelly, Grovesend and Neath, etc.
Trade Commissioner from Jamaica in this Country.
Mr. H. Massie-Blomfield, T.D., officer in charge of His Majesty's Trade Commissioners' Office at Kingston, Jamaica, is now in this country on an official visit. He will be available at the offices of the Department of Overseas Trade on June 12 and 13, and from July 10-14, for the purpose of interviewing manufacturers interested in the export of United Kingdom goods to Jamaica, the Bahamas and British Honduras. He will also visit a number of provincial industrial centres during his stay in this country.
Those concerns desiring an interview with Mr. Massie-Blothfield should write the Comptroller-General, Department of Overseas Trade, 35, Old Queen Street, ' London, S.'W.1, and reference 2379/33 should be quoted.
Angola's Import Duties Reduced.
The duties on lorries weighing up to 1,350 kilogs. (about 27 cwt.) complete, and chassis up to 1,000 kilogs. (1 ton) imported into Angola' have been reduced from 20 per cent. to 15 per cent, of the c.i.f. value. On goods vehicles weighing from 1,350 kilogs. to 1,750 kilogs. (27 cwt. to 35 cwt.) the reduction is from 25 per cent. to 20 per cent.
We regret to announce the death of Mr. G. T. C. Edwards, for 40 years resident engineer to the Bristol Tramways and Carriage Co., Ltd.
• Petrol from Woad.
It is learned from Stockholm that two Swedish engineers, MM. Hilding Bergstream and Karl Cederquist, have invented a new system for the chemical decomposition of wood, through which petrol can, it is reported, be obtained. The Government has instructed two experts to make investigations and report on the value of the discovery. According to the papers, about 40 per cent, of the wood treated is transformed into liquid fuel.
More Work for Welsh Ambulances.
During 1932 the Priory of Wales ambulances travelled 166,446 miles, carrying 8,070 patients, an increase of 654 patients and 24,632 miles over the 1931 figures.
French Government and Petroleum Monopoly.
A vote of confidence in the French Government was passed by the Chamber, last week, by 359 votes to 200, when the Chamber adopted a compromise text recommending the appointment of a commission to study conditions for the Organisation of a petroleum monopoly and submit a report to Parliament.