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STARTING LIFE AS -A HAULAGE CONTRACTOR.

13th March 1919, Page 8
13th March 1919
Page 8
Page 9
Page 8, 13th March 1919 — STARTING LIFE AS -A HAULAGE CONTRACTOR.
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Some Advice and Hints to Demobilized R.A.S.0 Men Who Intend to Set Up in the Haulage Business.

IN SELECTING his new sphere of civilian activity, the demobilized officer or soldier will naturally have a predilection for the particular work which he may have been engaged upon in the Army. Our own industry is, in this manner, to have the benefit of many new recruits, the R.A.S.C. man naturally desiring to make good use in civilian life of his mechanical transport experience.

• Our letter basket, for some months past, has' been a striking indication of this tendency, and the series of articles of which this is the first is written with the intention of assisting all those who are looking to the commercial motor as a means of obtaining a livelihood.

Obviously, the first thing that such a man wants to know is : "What is the scope of a haulage contractor's business, and what are the possibilities of my being able to make such a business pay ? Is there an unfilled demand ? "

The reply is clearly in the affirmative. A haulage contraoLor's business, large or small, when properly conducted, in a businesslike manner, has generally been found to pay, and to pay well. We can conceive of no present condition, which is likely to militate against such businesses continuing to pay : rather the reverse. We consider that conditions are likely, for some time, to become more and more favourable, to success of the energetic haulage contractor, and the demand, already exceeding the supply, will most likely continue to be ahead of the supply for very many years.

Increase in the productivity of the industries of the, country is essential for our welfare, and it will surely take place notwithstanding the somewhat disturbed condition of labour which exists as we write. The demand for transport will increase in proportion. But railways are considerably below their pre-war effici-. ency as carriers, and it is estimated that at least two, 'and most probably three, years will elapse before they can be put into serviceable order once more. During that period, the motor haulage contractor will be provided with opportunities for becoming established, and it is a fact that once a user of motor haulage, always a user of motor haulage.

In many cases, the returning soldiers with these ideas are men of comparatively small capital, and it is natural that they should ask "can the small man succeed in competition with the big firms ?" .

In the first place, the big companies cannot do all the work. If a large motor haulage company is in existence in a district and is successful, then it.is sure to be expaziding its business. The fact that it is expanding proves that there is more work available. An energetic and businesslike newcomer has always a good chance, for the small customers often feel that their interests will be better served and that they will receive more individual attention at'the hands of a small contractor, and as to the number of such firms who will have business offering, there are always ninny who have loads at intervals, regular or irregular, which are not sufficient in themselves, either as regards bulk or frequency, or both, to justify the purchase and operation of a vehicle.

e30 From another point of view, too, the small man has advantages of reduced expen.ses to bear, thus offsetting any special advantages which can be offered to customers by the large organizations. He can, for example, curtail his overhead charges if he is only running one wagon, by driving himself. Even if he does not do this, and has one or two wagons, with a driver for each, by the closer attention which he can give to the details of his business, he can eliminate certain items of waste which are inevitable with larger concerns. He can thus balance, by these economies, any advantages due to the better buying capacity of large firms.

Generally, it will be found a paying method of working for two friends to collaborate ; one, who has, perhaps, the mechanical knowledge and aptitude, to attend to the maintenance and running of the vehicles ; the other, a man with transport and commercial experience, to manage the business side.

Choice of Locality.

A man's choice will readily fall upon that locality in which he is known and which he himself knows with its trade and peculiar local custom ; where references, presumably, can readily be obtained from responsible people. He will, if he selects his home town as a centre, be able, through friends no doubt, to influence business, even if this is only in a small way, and, as a beginning, is friends will be able to help by making independent investigations for him as to.rates charged in the district for various classes of work, so that he may know beforehand with what. he has to compete, and he can thus better estimate his chances of success. He will also be more likely to be aware of what competition he will have to face ; and in what line of work he can specialize in order to avoid that competition.

As to the actual location of his business premises, circumstances will be found to differ in every case.' If the intending haulage contractor has no -convenient premises of which he may be either tenant or owner, he may find it convenient to put up at a local garage, in which ease, he will choose one centrally situated with regard to the sources which he proposes to tap. He will be well advised, before, determining upon the proprietary garage, to investigate the owner's intentions and aspirations towards commercial motors. He, m'ay find that the garage proprietor is also intending to embark upon a haulage and contracting business, in which ease, of course, it will hardly be advisable to work from the same centre. If, on the other hand, the garage proprietor is aetually an agent for commercial motors, his assistance in various directions will be very valuable, particularly in the case where the haulage contractor has only one vehicle and suffers a breakdown. He would thea undoubtedly expect the agent to provide him with a machine to enable him, temporarily, to carry on, and this provision would naturally be at special rates in view of the business relations already existing.

As another alternative, our budding haulage contractor may prefer to discover and rent some shed or building which be can obtain at a specially low rate, and by the exercise of a little ingenuity can adapt to his own requirements. This last-named course will, undoubtedly, appeal to many on account of the-independence which it affords. He will-have to remember, however, that although his rental is low, this fact is offset owing to the need for separate insurance, for equipment of the place with various necessities, and also on account of inconvenience as regards the obtaining and storing of petrol, etc., particularly if it is not his intention to have someone permanently on the premises to receive telephone calls or messages, and to accept delivery of parcels and goods.

Choice of a Vehicle.

For general purposes, particularly for town and city work, the 3-tonner has proved to be the most useful all-round type •of vehicle in which to invest for the purpose we have in mind. If, however, the intending contractor can see, at once, work fully to occupy a. 3-tonner, and if he does not for some time intend to invest in a second vehicle, then he should hay a 4:-tonner. In the industrial districts of the Midlands and the north, and especially in Yorkshire and Lancashire, a chassis of even bigger capacity than this will be t.dvisable, and very likely, if his experience ha,s largely been with steam vehicles, this is the type on what his choice will fall.

For carrying cotton and woollen goods, iron and steel ware, where the loads will generally be heavy or bulky, a five-tanner will be required, either petrol. or steam. The steam wagon, usually, is more suitable for use with a trailer, and this affords opportunities of occasionally carrying very heavy loads under pressure of exceptionally busy periods. In any case, we recommend the user to specify rubber tyres, whether he intends to use a trailer or not.

In country districts it. may happen that a threeLonner will prove to be too large, and, often enough, the two-tonner has proved to be the right vehicle for the countryman. An increased call for transport facilities will, undoubtedly, be experienced in the near future, linking up villages with a neighbouring town of importance. Goods, passengers and mails will all require to be carted on such -services, and we anticipate that the composite type of vehicle, part char-A-banes, part mail van or goods van, will come very largely into favour in the near future. The country carrier will undoubtedly be wholly motorized. There is prospect, too, of the increased use of the commercial motor for the conveyance of milk. All these possible sources should be investigated by the intending contractor, each according to the locality for which he has a preference, and for this class of work, as we have stated, the two-tonner will probably prove to be best suited.

It is a golden rule in this regard to purchase a chassis wsize larger than that which it is at first anticipated will be needed, as, obviously, it is intended that the business should expand. Before :purchasing a returned military lorry, if the machine is British in manufacture, the prospective pnrchaser will do well to ascertain what model it is. Get to know the engine number, and write to the manufacturers, asking them to give him a clear state_ ment as to the position for spare parts for that type of machine.

If the vehicle should be of American manufacture, the purchaser should go more warily to work. Army lorries will Probably be of reliable make, from ina,nufaeturers of long standing in the States, who have agents of repute well established in this country. In such cases, the circumstances as regards spare parts \ will hardly differ from those which exist in regard to vehicles of English make. If the vehicle which is offered, however, is not one of the well-known makes, as. might happen if it is not an Army machine, then great care should be exercised. .During 1915, and 1916 a large number of American chassis were imported into this country, of which some had been made almost solely to cater for the unexpected market which this country then afforded. Not only are there now no agents dealing with thote vehicles, but, in many cases, the manufacturers have also gone out of business, and spare parts will not be available at all.

If in doubt, the purchaser should enquire for the representative in this country to whomhe should write, as in the case of English vehicles. -If there does not appear to be an English agent, the chassis is best left severely alone. • Of some of the old Second-hand War Office vehicles the best thing that can be said about them is that they are not likely to be bargains at the prices which are being paid for them. British vehicles of later construction, those which have been built during the war and have only been used sine° the M.T. organization for the repair and upkeep of its vehicles was perfected, are likely to be in very fair order, and it is to these that the attention of budding haulage contractors should be directed.

From time to time, there are being held in various parts of the country, auction sales where perhaps the reader may find just such a vehicle as that for which he is searching. A word of advice here will not be out of place. If the reader has been some years in the R.A.S.C., with technical experience, then he will no doubt be capable of " vetting" the chassis himself. Otherwise, he will be well advised to arrange for efficient inspection by some qualifiedengineer.

Second-hand vehicles of all kinds are continually being advertised in our columns. Prices, of course, vary largely, and generally they are to some extent an indication of the condition of the chassis. The following are indications of what second-hand machines are fetching at the present time by private sale: 15 cwt. vans, £200; one-ton lorries, £260; two tanners, £300; three. thrillers; 2500 ; four tonners, 2700; five-ton steamers (rubber tyres% 2900.

As regards new vehicles, the proper course, and one which the buyer will be well advised to follow, is to communicate with the principal manufacturers, aaking them to quote prices and to give definite delivery dates. For the names and addresses of these makers, we refer interested readers to the advertisement pages of this journal, where all the makers of repute are accustomed to advertise their wares.

. As regards the tyres, an entirely new situation has recently arisen, as all the solid tyre manufacturers, with one exception, have announced that in future the customary policy of guaranteeing such tyres for 10,000 miles running is to be discontinued. The actual prices of tyres vary from week to week almost, and the ordinary catalogues which makers issue are usually not satisfactory guides, as there is in most cases an allowance for quite appreciable discounts. Here, again, readers would do well to communicate with makers in order to obtain definite figures.

To sum up, there are, on the whole, good prospects of remunerative businesses for haulage contractors, small and large. Much depends on the locality, and we rather imagine that most of our readers will have selected the locality first, and they must, therefore, each investigate the -actual conditions before coming to a decision as to whether there is a demand for such business in the locality which he has in mind. The choice of a vehicle depends on the class of work which ,P3, expected to offer, and a golden rule is first to estimate requirements, then to buy a vehicle a little larger than appears to be necessary.

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Organisations: M.T., Army, Second-hand War Office

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