Staff-car Fleet Problems
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Provision of Personal Transport for Representatives and Executives is an Added Responsibility for Many Industrial Transport Managers, Which Should not be Underrated.
INVARIABLY in transport operation the time element is a prominent and vital factor. The consequences of inadequate organization are therefore self-evident to all parties and the extent of such shortcomings can be precisely measured against a common and indisputable standard—the clock. This is in contrast to corresponding evaluations of much of the goods carried by transport services when judgment as to their all-important quality is often little more than a matter of opinion. Inevitably, therefore, the standards expected of transport services are often more exacting and, as a result, earnings are at a lower rate than in other industries.
Failure to make adequate provision to meet known requirements can be particularly vexatious when it concerns personal transport. Although this responsibility may not normally be considered to come within the sphere of industrial transport management, there is nevertheless a large and increasing number of concerns where this does in fact apply. Unfortunately in such circumstances it is all too easy to' underrate the extent of these additional responsibilities.
As with the growth of the commercial fleet, it may well be that initially only one or two cars were run by the company concerned, so that little or no problem arose. What maintenance and repairs were necessary would no doubt be fitted in as soon as they became necessary without undue dislocation to the main work of keeping the commercial vehicles in running order. Also, because of the small number of cars involved, the initial purchase and eventual disposal would be a relatively simple matter.
IF the size of the staff-car fleet were to grow considerably, however, this satisfactory state of affairs would soon deteriorate unless adequate planning of car purchase, maintenance and disposal was not carried out, and particularly the relationship, in relative importance, with the operation of the commercial fleet agreed beforehand.
The extent to which problems of staff-car maintenance and control have grown in post-war years is reflected in the numbers of new cars registered in successive years relative to the total car population of around 5,irri. Whilst no agreed proportion of this figure can be allocated to cars used solely for business purposes, it is reasonable to assume that a substantial percentage of the 24m. new cars licensed in the past five years are used largely for this purpose. Moreover, as the provision and use of cars for industrial and commercial purposes is likely to grow with continued industrial expansion, the related problems justify reassessment in their own right, rather than as an
ancillary, and even unwanted, job additional to the transport manager's main preoccupation.
When the control of both private cars and commercial vehicles is being considered one fundamental difference must be appreciated at the outset. Whilst a transport manager has complete authority over the drivers of commercial vehicles, this would seldom apply in the case of staff cars. But, where driving standards were such that they had an adverse effect on maintenance, tyres and overall operating costs, he would be in a position to take positive action where this occurred in the commercial section of his fleet.
Personnel provided with staff cars, however, will probably he in no way under the transport manager's jurisdiction and other means of exercising control will have to be devised if a staff-car fleet is to be run economically. If the transport manager's authority does not extend to taking action in the event of misuse of staff cars, he should at least have the assurance of ready access and full support from a senior executive or director if such misuse did in fact occur. Otherwise the transport manager will find himself in an intolerable position and the expense of running the staff-car fleet will inevitably increase as a result.
T DEALLY, when both staff cars and commercial vehicles arc 'operated by a company in substantial numbers, their resinctive maintenance should be completely segregated and carried out in separate buildings by staff specializing on one or the other type of vehicle. It is appreciated, however, that this would not always prove practicable except with large companies. Moreover, even in much more limited circumstances, it may well be that even though a large fleet of staff cars, in aggregate, are operated, these are disposed throughout the country. As a result it is seldom a practical proposition to carry out their maintenance at one central point.
When considering the provision and maintenance of staff cars, and particularly where nationwide coverage is involved, the close interrelation of several of the items of operating cost is particularly niarked. Whilst maintenance of a static fleet of staff cars raises one set of problems, there is also' the factor of maximum availability to be reckoned with. Admittedly this must always be the economic ideal for any type of vehicle, but it has particular significance relative to the provision of executive and, sales representatives' cars.
It is common practice when organizing the maintenance of a commercial fleet to make allowance for a small margin of surplus vehicles to be substituted whilst other vehicles are being maintained. Alternatively, in some instances, it can be arranged for the vehicles concerned to be withdrawn from service and maintained overnight. In many cases, however, these two methods Of insuring practically continuous service are not adaptable to the maintenance of staff cars. Almdst invariably such vehicles would be taken home at night by the staff concerned, so ruling out any possibility of overnight maintenance.
Whilst substitution of staff cars for maintenance purposes is practicable in sonic instances, the opportunities which do occur are not so frequent as with commercial vehicle operation. This is partly because the number of staff cars involved and, moreover. centred on one base, is seldom large enough to justify both a practical and economic margin of reserve vehicles.
These and similar problems peculiar to staff car operation have compelled many transport managers responsible for their control to consider and adopt policies of replacement and even ownership quite different to the Method they consider best for their commercial fleet.
No matter how efficiently and economically maintenance is organized, it must inevitably involve periods when the vehicle is not available for service and which must increase with age. To avoid such lost time, or at least to substantially reduce it, an increasing number of users consider it worth their while to replace their staff-car fleet more frequently. Whether or not the admittedly higher depreciation costs thereby involved are largely offset by reduced maintenance costs, they consider that the extra availability and the resulting favourable repercussions throughout their organization justify such a policy.
Following on the adoption of such a policy a secondary advantage may arise. In cases where a well-organized commercial fleet is already in being, including the existence of a comprehensive and efficient repair depot, there would be an understandable reluctance on the part of the transport manager to contract out any major repairs in connection with staff cars, even though they may be based at some considerable distance from the central repair depot. In such circumstances, difficult decisions may have to be made not only to whether any dead mileage involved bringing a car back to base is justified but also reconciling the understandable desire of representatives to have urgent repairs done on the spot by an outside garage.
If. however, vehicles are replaced frequently, say at yearly or similar intervals, the need for major repairs is virtually eliminated. The servicing tasks as laid down by the manufacturer will be all that will need to be done, and such work could be readily left to the local garage especially if it happened to be the agent for that particular make of car.
As an example of the practical application of such a policy by a large manufacturing and distributive organization with branches throughout Great Britain, the following details are given. Having considered the respective merits of the outright ownership of vehicles as compared with hiring, they have decided that ownership best meets their particular needs. Yet despite a distribution of staff cars and the branches which they serve over the widest possible area in Great Britain, they insist that each vehicle shall be initially purchased by, and delivered to, headquarters. About 100 per annum are so delivered when they are licensed, taxed and insured.
The opportunity is then taken for the transport controller to meet each of the representatives, who reports to headquarters to collect his new vehicle, bearing in mind that in some instances this may well be the only personal contact until the time comes round again for another vehicle replacement. In this particular instance, use is made of the British School of Motoring to provide an independent check on driving standards where this is considered necessary on the engagement of new representatives. The opportunity is also taken to hand over instructions on safe driving and similar literature. It has been found that this positive approach to thc need for continuous attention to all aspects of safe driving has paid dividends in reduced accident claims and lost time.
Having returned to his respective base, the representative himself is then responsible for delivering his vehicle to the appointed agent for successive servicings as and when due. To ensure that these are in fact carried out, he is notified by headquarters immediately prior to the appointed day.
It is also their policy when negotiating Milk purchase of staff cars for delivery at specified intervals, to arrange simultaneously for repurchase after whatever interval is agreed. The price of repurchase is also predetermined and in this particular instance allows for a rate of depreciation of 13 per cent.
Apart from knowing in advance the total cost of depreciation the advantages of having made prior arrangements for the ultimate disposal should not be underrated. Even when only one vehicle is involved, the time and expense necessitated by first determining the best medium for advertising the sale of a used vehicle and then making appropriate arrangements for its insertion, followed by subsequent interviewing of prospective buyers, can be substantial. Where a fleet of vehicles is involved, this procedure would have to be repeated at regular intervals unless similar arrangements as just described were employed or, alternatively, the disposal of staff cars was placed in the hands of a sales organi zation set up for that purpose. Not only is the transport manager thereby saved the loss of time, which he could otherwise ill afford to lose, but possible snags as to the prospective customer's financial standing or subsequent legal action as to the roadworthiness of the vehicles is avoided. S.B.