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what the CUSTOMER
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WANTS,
sEo will sop!
by David
Lowe, MInstTA, AMBIM
Despite offering a comprehensive standard range of goods vehicles bearing the Commer, Karrier and Dodge insignia with a wide choice of optional extras or alternatives, Chrysler United Kingdom Ltd finds that many customers require vehicles which are not available as standard production units.
To deal with these inquiries for non-standard vehicles a department was established at the Dunstable truck plant in 1969 and called the Special Equipment Operation (5E01. The function of this department is to give more detailed assistance to Chrysler dealers in meeting customer demands for non-standard and purpose-built vehicles. This assistance takes the form of technical advice; consultations on customer requirements leading to the recommendation of a suitable vehicle to meet these requirements; the ordering, approval and fitment of equipment purchased from other suppliers to meet special orders; the approval of bodywork fitted by specialist bodybuilders; and the vetting and approval for warranty purposes of chassis conversions carried out for the customer by other manufacturers (chassis extensions and third-axle conversions are just two examples(.
The need for such a department became apparent to Chrysler in 1969 as a result of increased customer demands for more specialized vehicles to meet the stringent legislation, the effects of which were beginning to be felt at this time, linked with the more professional approach being adopted by goods vehicle users in general towards more cost-effective transport operations.
A staff of 14 are employed in the department under the manager, Mr Roland Browne. The majority of these are sales engineers; in fact the whole department is "sales engineering oriented".
How does the customer benefit from the establishment of SEO? Basically he can benefit in five ways. First in the initial stages when he is considering buying a vehicle, SE0 staff are available to discuss his requirements and depending on the type of operation for which the vehicle is required, advise on the specification most suitable. In this way, the customer can be made aware of more advantageous alternatives which he had not previously considered. This is the advisory service which SE0 offers to any prospective customer at no charge.
The four other advantages apply once an order has been placed, The customer gets quicker delivery, lower total vehicle cost, full warranty on SE0 special options and bodywork installations and legally acceptable chassis modifications and body fitments.
A further advantage is that once a particular. special installation or modification has been approved by SE0 this will be included in the department's Equipment and Options binder and be available to other customers, not as a standard in the same way that the normal production vehicle is standard but as a known, approved and costed alternative.
Costing of special projects plays an important part in SEC. All equipment in options are rigorously vetted by engineers to ensure that they meet both the quality standards of the company and the legal requirements of the country in which the vehicle is to operate. There is little point, however, in offering an engineering-approved option if the cost to the customer is prohibitive. So it is a prime function of the department to try to equate the engineering or production possibilities with the customer's budget. If the order only involves an interchange of standard parts from other models in the particular range then it is a simple task to calculate a price but if more substantial changes are necessary then the financial experts have to produce costings and decide whether the size of the prospective order economically justifies the work involved.
The approval work of SEC may be divided into two main fields, bodywork and chassis and the latter into four further sub-divisions, factory installed options, factory installed equipment, dealer or specialist supplier installed equipment and specialized chassis conversions.
So far as bodywork is concerned, once the customer has taken delivery of a chassis he is free to fit, or have fitted by a bodybuilder, any type of body he desires subject only to the usual considerations of cost, weight and legal requirements.
However, Chrysler does occasionally find that bodywork fitted to vehicles, because of its design or the way it is mounted, invalidates the chassis warranty. For this reason a significant part of SEC's work is devoted not only to vetting and approving bodywork to ensure that the chassis warranty is not invalidated but in certain cases to ensuring that chassis are prepared to include necessary modifications to accept such bodywork. This entails bodybuilders applying for approval for the bodywork they intend fitting to the vehicle and for any chassis modification which may be necessary to enable the body to be fitted. Although approval may be given to bodybuilders to fit bodies without invalidating the chassis warranty this does not imply that Chrysler gives any warranty for the body or its fittings.
The distinction between SEC, approved options and equipment is that options carry the full Chrysler parts back-up and are ordered direct by the dealer as a fitment to the standard production chassis. Special equipment is a more involved process. The equipment specified has to be approved by SEC as being legally permissible and not invalidating the chassis warranty. When approval is given the equipment will be brought in and fitted "in-plant" to avoid delays in delivery of the vehicle to the customer.
If the customer wishes to purchase the equipment himself for the dealer to fit this can be done and provided the dealer notifies SE° the basic chassis will be supplied to a specification to accept the equipment.
A number of manufacturers specialize in third-axle conversions, chassis shortening or extensions as previously mentioned and one of the functions of the SEC is to check that the standard of the engineering work of these manufacturers matches Chrysler's overall standard of quality if the converted chassis is to retain the company's basic chassis warranty. In certain cases SE0 will arrange for chassis to be supplied ready modified to accept the conversion.
Programme planning
Timing and programme planning has to be a serious consideration of SEC. Although the customer may require specially prepared vehicles he may not be prepared to endure excessively delayed delivery dates. In this connection SEO has a standard procedure for assessing the delivery date of a given order. First, the standard chassis •delivery time is known, secondly a lead time is established for the special option or equiPment to be obtained from outside sources or processed within the plant and thirdly, additional time for fitting or special preparation is assessed. These latter two periods of time are combined and then compared with the basic chassis delivery time. If they exceed this then the final delivery date quoted is the chassis delivery time plus the period by which the SEC time exceeds this. For example, if the chassis delivery is normally 12 weeks and SE0 lead time is calculated at 14 weeks then the delivery date quoted is 14 weeks. Conversely if, with the same chassis, the SEC lead time is only eight weeks then the delivery time quoted to the customer is 12 weeks.
When SE0 orders are received, the production control department is advised of the requirements and it advises production programming when the equipment is available so the unit can be programmed on to the "line". If the order specifies only an interchange of parts from another model in the range there is very little delivery delay and in fact it is in these cases where the efficiency of the SE0 in getting the customer the machine he wants in the minimum of time really shows up.
Since its inception SEC has dealt with a very large number of production units covering a wide variety of non-standard specifications. Last year alone it processed some 8000 units which represented about 25 per cent of the Dunstable plant complete vehicle (as opposed to export CKD) production.
The Post Office Corporation contract with Chrysler for vehicles for its engineering services accounted for more than 2200 units of the SEC programme for last year. The vehicles are based on the Commer PB 2500 integral van and this contract specifies internal body fittings such as partitions, racks, and bins, ladder racks and other small items even down to coat hooks. These vehicles are supplied in the new PO Telecommunications golden-yellow livery completely ready for the road.
National Carriers Ltd are large users of the Commer Walk-Thru range and although the contract is again, like the Post Office one, mainly for standard production units it calls for special additional equipment. Automatic chassis lubrication, automatically operated radiator shutters, NCL's own choice of rear-view mirrors, no-loss cooling systems and larger and more protected rear lamps assemblies being the main non-standard equipment.
The "0" licence provisions of the 1968 Transport Act exempted vehicles below 3.5 tons gross plated weight which caused an immediate demand for vehicles meeting this exemption. The nearest in the Commer range was the 3.8-ton-gross KC30 but Chrysler could not just replete this model at 3.5 to catch the increased market without making definite alterations fan MoT requirement) so the rear springs were modified and the vehicle reclassed as a model KC25 of 3.5 tons gvw. Sales of this model have been such that it is to become a standard production unit.
Not all the vehicles dealt with by SEC) are for home customers. They become involved with export orders on the same basis.as home orders if special equipment is required. The Pakistan Bus Company order mentioned by John Darker in his article about Chrysler's export activities is one example. In this case the buses started life as standard Commer VC7 mediumweight goods vehicles chassis which were subsequently given extended wheelbases, had extensive modifications to the braking system, provided with an additional means of supplying air for operating the doors and had the suspension system modified to suit passenger operations.
An order for the Sudan Government required basically light and mediumweight general-purpose open trucks. To meet the difficult operating conditions in that territory special air filtration equipment had to be fitted, the cars had to be insulated against the heat from the diesel engines (the order originally specified petrol engines but Chrysler was able to persuade the Sudan Government to take diesels when given assurances about satisfactory cab temperatures), sump, guards were fitted and single rear wheels (equipped with sand tyres) which tracked with the front wheels were all necessary constituents of the specification.
Approved vehicles
One of the department's specially approved vehicles for home use is the lightweight six-wheeled truckmixer /tipper chassis. This is a 20-ton-gross vehicle based on the Dodge K1050 205m.-wheelbase chassis equipped with a Unipower double-drive third-axle conversion and fitted with an NCK-Rapier truckmixer. It is powered by the Perkins V8 engine and the truckmixer is operated by an independent diesel engine. This chassis is designed for eventual plating at 22 tons gross but is currently restricted to 20 tons gross due to the limited wheelbase. It will also meet the bhp per ton requirement at 22-ton gvw. A fire tender chassis-cab has been approved by SEO based on the Dodge K850 11.5-ton-gvw chassis fitted with the Perkins 185 bhp V8 engine. This combination of light weight and considerable engine power ensures a more than adequate performance for the duties for which it is intended. Special items of equipment fitted include a 24V electrical system with a high-output alternator as well as some standard options such as power-assisted steering.
Among the lighter vehicles, particularly the Commer PB van range, a wide variety of approved body designs are available, supplied by a selection of body-builders.
Rootes Maidstone Ltd offers a 12-seater bus based on the PB 2000 or PB 2500 Model and ambulances based on all three of the PB models, the 1500, 2000 and 2500.
A three-way entry parcels van with walk-through facilities based on the PB 2500 is supplied by Caravans International (Motorised) Ltd of Poole, Dorset, and a "Hi-Fashion" gown van with a Luton-type body is built by Osborn Garages Ltd, of London, on the same model.
A variety of approved truck bodies are built on these models by Rootes Maidstone Ltd and B. Walker and Son Ltd, of Watford.
Reverting to the heavier vehicles, an interesting example of an SE0 conversion is the Corn me r /York 14.4-ton-gvw 6 x 2 low-loader. The vehicle is basically a VC5 chassis with 17in. wheel and tyre equipment fitted with a York swinging-arm trailing axle. The braking system has been modified to provide matched braking of all three axles and a spring brake is employed for parking. This vehicle, designed for the brewery and distributive trades, provides a 10-ton payload and an unladen chassis frame height of only 34 An unusual SEC) conversion is the use of a Commer KC40 Walk-Thru model as a tractive unit operating at 7.25 tons gtw with a Pam boxvan semi-trailer. This conversion provides the operator with up to a 4-ton • payload capacity depending on the trailer used. Full three-line air braking is standard and a Davis Magnet "218" fifth-wheel coupling is fitted.
Vehicles for use by airline companies are further examples of standard chassis converted for special needs. Hydraulic scissor-operated Hi-Lift vehicles on Dodge chassis have been ordered by BOAC, for use with Boeing 747 Jumbo Jets. Twenty-three vehicles made up one recent order received by Warwick Wright Motors Ltd. These are based on K950 chassis with York trailing axles and custom-built tilt-half-cabs or crew-type cabs. They elevate to a maximum floor height of 18ft—some 4ft higher than the usual standard for this type of vehicle.
These examples given, although covering a variety of special operational needs are only a few of the orders which pass through the hands of the SE0 in a year. A vast number of what might be termed "standard" specials is handled, requiring only small modifications or interchanges of equipment such as additional fuel tanks, 24V electrics instead of 12V, the fitting of tipping gear, fitting heavier front axles, changing axle ratios and the fitting of spring parking brakes on the mediumwei6ht Commer models.
The extent of the conversion and modifications possible are best summed up in the words of Mr Roland Browne: "We consider anything, we evaluate the problem and consider whether it is economically viable not only to Chrysler but also to the customer. Within the bounds of economic viability, however, the customer can, by consultation with SEC, arrive at a vehicle specification very near to his operational requirements."