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Getting Down to System in Vehicle Maintenance

10th December 1943
Page 24
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Page 24, 10th December 1943 — Getting Down to System in Vehicle Maintenance
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

How Difficulties Which -May be Met Can be Smoothed Out by Rigid Adherence to a Properly

Qrgcinized Policy .

By ,H. L. Millward

A.M.I.Mech.E., A.M.Inst.T.,

Transport Manager to the Commercial Transport Department, Halifax Corporation.

WHEN considering the question of the maintenance of a fleet of vehicles, whether it consists of private or commercial units, it is necessary to bear in mind several points which are bound to make a difference to the running and mechanical efficiency of the fleet as a whole.

In the event of a maintenance engineer finding himself in charge of a mixed fleet, he must try to settle on a scheme which is sufficiently flexible to embrace all makes and types of vehicle. In determining his plan, he must take into consideration the actual working conditions of these vehicles and the type of country in which they are called upon to operate.

He must decide, in his own mind, the types of machine which are best suited to particular conditions of service, and he should always endeavour to standardize on as few different makes as possible. The reason for this can readily be seen, His maintenance staff becomes accustomed to working on one particular make, and, consequently, it gets to understand any peculiarities of the type. What is just as important, from a costing point of view, is that the men are able to carry out repairs and adjustments much quicker.'

Maintenance by Rota an Essential Another point worth bearing in mind is that organized maintenance al/ays pays, because wear and tear are detected in the early stages, and any parts which show signs of fatigue or impending failure can be watched and, if necessary, replaced before fracture or actual greakage takes place. This point alone is bound to save breakdowns on the road, which; no matter how slight they may be, are always expensive, apart from the loss of revenue which follows as a result of a vehicle being out of commission.

It is useless for any transport engineer to think that he can always have 100 per cent. of his vehicles on the road. Surely, it is more satisfactory to be able to keep, say, 95 or 98 per cent. definitelyin service and to have the !remainder in the workshop, in rotation, so that inspections and adjakments can be carried out. In this way it is possible to ensure that the whole fleet is kept in a reasonably sound condition.

In order to arrive at a basis for inspection periods, it is necessary to keep accurate records of the mileage covered by each machine, and this should always be maintained up to date. It is not difficult to arrange for such information to be available, together with consumption figures for fuel, oil, tyres, and so on. From these records, it is possible for the maintenance engineer to determine a basic mileage figure for inspection and overhauls.

He must also weigh up carefully the type of work on which the vehicles are engaged, It will often be found, for instance, that on some vehicles valvegrinding will be necessary more often than on others. This is due to the fact that, although an engine may be running for eight or nine hours a day, the actual mileage covered by the machine may be small. A type of service covered in such a case would be houseto-house collection of refuse, arid similar duties. The' scheme decided upon, therefore, must bemade sufficiently flexible to ensure that this work can be carried out without upsetting the system as a whole.

From personal experience, which covers more than 20 years, I have found that a vehicle must not be expected to cover more than 5,000 miles without receiving some form of attention. Although, at this mileage, the wear and tear of parts may be slight, it is always possible to find some fitting or compnnent needing adjustment. A general " tighten-up ' right throughout the body and chassis often stops more serious trouble from developing. The cost of this "light inspection '' will probably be found to be quite,small, but the maintenance staff should know, very definitely, what points must he watched while carrying out the work.

The Second 5,000 • Miles of Running On the completion of the second 5,000 miles it will probably be found necessary to carry out such work as decarbonizing the engine and _examining the gearbox and differential. Therefore, it is necessary that the tasks laid down for these " heavy inspections " be more exacting than those covering the first 5,000 miles' running. Again, all these points ought to be fairly defined, so that the maintenance staff has no excuse for missing _any vital part which may be the cause of a breakdown, if it be not attended to at this • period.

The next vital point to consider is the question of overhauls. Here, again, it is necessary to make up one's mind ' as to the mileage to be covered by the vehicle before an actual overhaul is . necessary. 1 think that a basic figure of 60,000 miles should be aimed at, because, provided that the " light " and " heavy" inspections be carried out efficiently, there is no reason why a vehicle should not complete this mileage before being overhauled.

The question of reboring' or resleeving an engine and fitting new pistons need not be looked upon in the nature of major repairs, and such work can be carried out preferably at a 'heavy dock inspection, when cylinder-bore wear and .excessive oil consumption justify it. This is a stage when the value of keeping accurate records of fuel and oil consumption will show itself, and these records should be maintained regularl', so that such important information is at all times available, Regular and systematic greasing of the chassis is one of the main factors governing the prevention of premature wear, and I would emphasize the need for this work beinec' efficiently carried out. With a large fleet of vehicles, it has been found far better to organize this operation and to have each vehicle greased thoroughly in rotation by an efficient man provided with up-to-date greasing apparatus than to leave it to the driver to do it in, possibly, a slipshod way with an ordinary hand gun. It is wise to use grease of good quality and it is essential to see that, when applied, it actually reaches the areas needing protection.

Oil Selection and Crankcase Drainage Engine oil is another commodity which requires careful study. Always use a good-quality oil that is suited to the engine in which it is employed, and make a practice of changing the sump oil at least every 5,000 miles. (This is a longer period than is normally advisable; sump drainage at from 2,500 to 3,000 miles is o:tractised by some operators.—ED.) See that the sump is well cleaned and that all foreign matter is removed. It may be mentioned that the oil-reclamation process is quite a cheap one and that oil thus recovered is perfectly safe to use again.

Similar attention must be given to the choice and use of gear oils, except that it should not be necessary to change the oil in the gearbox and differential until the time for overhaul arrives. Always use a good-quality lubricant—one which will not break down under heat and load conditions imposed upon it, as so many so-called cheap grades are prone to do.

To a great extent, the general tendency has been to neglect the tyres of a vehicle and, consequently, their life has been seriously impaired. It should be every driver's duty to examine his tyres each day and to ensure that no foreign agents—such as flints—are allowed to remain in them.

I advise the checking of. tyre pressures at least twice a week and suggest that special observation be kept to see that the tyres are wearing evenly. If in doubt, check wheel alignment to see that the front wheels toe-in to the extent of about in. A record should he kept ' to show when each tyre is changed, so that an accurate check may be maintained of each, and when a cover is at last worn out the total mileage to its credit can then be readily ascertained.

Periodical Painting Helps the Coachwork

Painting is another item which, in a fleet of commercial vehicles, is often sadly neglected. The maintenance engineer must .surely realize that paint is one of the best preservatives it is possible to use for coachwork, apart from the fact that a clean, well-tftrnedout fleet has a high publicity value. With modern methods, it should be possible completely to repaint a machine for a sum of from 26 to 28. This cost may appear to be On the low side, but the writer can prove, by experience, that this is definitely possible. This would include three coats of good-quality paint and one coat of varnish.

Coming now to the organization of the stores, this requires close study. Unless this section be watched carefully, it is possible soon to have a great deal of money tied up in obsolete stock, which is of no use to the operator.

All spare parts and stores which come in • must be properly, checked and, -together with the cost, entered into a stores ledger. The goods should then. be distributed in appropriate receptacles in such a way that they can

readily be found when required. A card must be kept in close proximity to the bin, on which both goods in and goods out are shown.

Avoiding Chaos in the Stores Department No material of any kind should be issued from the stores without a demand note being handed in by the person requiring the material, and this note must show the date, job number, quantity required, and the foreman's

• signature. ' The bin stock should then always tie up with the number of items shown on the bin card.

• At each annual stocktaking, it is always advisable carefully to check over all stocks and to see that no obsolete material is being kept. If any be found it should be disposed of so soon as possible. The writer has also found it helpful to keep a set of key cards, so that, in the event of the regular store. keeper being off duty, it is possible fa anyone in authority -to find any stores item without wasting a lot of time in searching for it.

It has been found advisable always to cost all operations carefully, as labour and material charges can prove most instructive. Such a _procedure certainly allows the maintenance engineer to prove whether his system is correct, or if certain modifications should be made. Further, it is. found to be of great help in building up estimates for the following year's 'work.

In the costing of inspections .or overhauls, it is advisable to separafelabour Charges from material chdrges, and to itemize these under headings of "engine and chassis," and " body and electrical."

If separate data sheets be kept for each vehicle, on which are shown details of the various inspections and overhauls carried out and signed for, preferably by the man who has done the work, together with any remarks upon the wear of certain parts, it will be found that an invaluable check on the mechanical condition of any vehicle is at once available. Additionally, such a record is of great help in deciding when the vehicle is due for a complete overhaul.

This system of maintenance helps considerably in the salvage of material, enabling, as it does, component parts to be changed and reclaimed before they have worn so much as to make salvage an uneconomical proposition.

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