Job Far ity Promotes Efficiency in Doci
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-affic
Family Atmosphere Plays Vital Port in the Efficiency of Notts. Concern
, Specializing in
Docks Traffic: Recent Expansion Has Led to Over Two Acres of Coveredin Area and a Fleet of Nearly 100 Vehicles
by A Special Correspondent
IT is significant that there is a waiting list for driver vacancies at A. R. Marshall and Sons (Bulwell), Ltd., Bulwell, Nottingham, and that, with the active support of the office staff, the two Marshall football teams are showing great promise. This is indicative of the good relations between stall and management that Mr. A. R. Marshall, and his wife and co-director, Mrs. A. R. Marshall, have built up over ihe years. In the fainily atmosphere they have created there is no relaxation of discipline, but sympathetic advice and a helping hand are always available in domestic and other crises.
Oa ;a more mundane level, all the stall, including the drivers:, have the benefit of pension and welfare schemes, and a' newly opened building provides up-to-date canteen 'facilities as well as a modern office block.
The two sons of the family, Mr. Howard Marshall and Mr. Trevor Marshall, are respectively in charge of docks
traffic ex-warehouse and the paint and body shops, as well as being directors. The only daughter, Miss Pauline Marshall, is a confidential clerk in the accounts office. In the Marshall home there is frequently .a get-together of family and stalf to the music of the MarshallMoments band, with the help of two .organs, a grand piano and assorted instruments. Mr. Marshall's claim that " We take
our leisure quietly should not, therefore, be taken too literally. •
The concern specializes in docks traffic, for which the provision of extensive warehouse acciamrnodation is an essential part. It is pertinent. that Mr. Marshall established his first warehouse at Bulwell in 1930, three years after he founded the company. With the latest addition of a new 20,000-ft. warehouse 'in October, the 'total covered,in area on the' concern's seven-acre site was augmented to over two acres. Parallel with this development, the recent takeover of a number of haulage companies increased the size of the fleet to nearly 100 vehicles.
In 1958 B. Keetch (Hauliers), Ltd., became part of the Marshall Group and early in 1960 the company acquired the A and B licensed vehicles of 1. Gamble (Transport), Ltd. Other associated c o inpatties comprise Notts. and Derbys. (Carriers), Ltd.. and Transport Repairs (Bulwell), Ltd., the latter concern being responsible for the
maintenance and repair of the fleet. The Marshall companies now have more than 600 regular customers, and over 1,000 tons of goods are handled daily by the group's vehicles. A large tonnage is also sub-contracted to selected hauliers, and deliveries cover all major centres of the country. • During the nationalization period Mr. Marshall was manager of the B.R.S. Bulwell depot based on the original premises of the company, and after denationalization in 1954 he went back into business as a private haulier with 10 vehicles. Initially Concentrating on traffic to Liverpool docks, an office was later opened in King Edward Street, Liverpool, and a parking area was acquired on the outskirts of the city. Today, the main trunking run of the Marshall fleet is still between Bulwell and Liverpool, on which 14 lorries are regularly employed, supplemented when necessary by extra vehicles. The trunking vehicles have a combined carrying capacity of about 180 tons and operate a night service.
London and Hull
A London office and depot in Victoria Dock Road, E.I6. and similar facilities in Albert Road, Hull, enable nightly port runs to these centres to be organized on the lines of the Liverpool traffic. A total of 10 vehicles with a combined carrying capacity of 100 tons is employed on the London run, whilst the Hull traffic is carried by two 10-ton vehicles. In both cases the fleet is supplemented as required. The availability of additional vehicles for docks traffic is an all-important aspect of fleet operations, as many as 20 extra lorries being frequently employed at one time.
A thorough knowledge of shipping conditions and variables on the part of the traffic clerks, combined with the facilities to hold goods in storage at Bulwell pending boat arrivals, is basic to efficient organization of the traffic. This indicates a principle of operation that Mr. Marshall has followed since the early days. In his view, the wise haulier concentrates on specific types of traffic, so that both the drivers and the office staff gain an intimate knowledge of associated problems, and the whereabouts of all vehicles throughout the day can be precisely plotted. Only in this way, he considers, can "deviation from efficient B26 management be avoided. It is relevant that a member of the Marshall family is always on call night and day throughout. the week to deal with emergencies.
An important example of jobfamiliarity is shown by the • employment of shunting drivers
at the depots who have a firsthand knowledge of the difficulties and idiosyncrasies of docks procedure, and who can be relied upon to eliminate delays if it is humanly possible to do so.
Working on a guaranteed week, a trunking driver handling docks traffic makes an outward and return run to the depot overnight, and driving is the extent of his duties. Shunting drivers and traffic staff are responsible for handling loads at the termini, which, at the depots, includes driving the vehicle to the docks, the supervision of reloading and distribution, and collection of part-loads. The vehicles operate in pairs, so that every driver handles the same type of lorry on the outward and return runs.
In the case of the Liverpool trunking runs, eight 24-ton rigid eight-wheelers and trailers divided into pairs provide a combined carrying capacity of 192 tons and are operated in conjunction with two trailer outfits each having a capacity of 18 tons, two rigid solo eight-wheelers with a total capacity of 32 tons, and two 8-ton four-wheelers. The seven vehicles in each shift have, therefore, an overall capacity of 136 tons. On average, backloads represent 85 per cent. capacity.
Five Trips a Week
Outgoing vehicles leave Bulwell at approximately 7.30 p.m. and incoming vehicles arrive at about 7 a.m. Each driver normally completes five round trips in a week, and there are three spare drivers to help out in emergencies. Goods in the Liverpool area are handled by 16 shunting drivers and two collection and delivery vehicles. About 95 per cent. of the traffic is derived from the docks, the remaining 5 per cent. being smalls, which are collected within a radius of 5 to 10 miles for transport to Bulwell for distribution over an area of 30 miles. Five pairs of 10-ton four-wheelers are used on the London run, giving a total payload capacity of 100 tons. Smaller rigid lorries are preferred to larger vehicles for this traffic in the interests of manceuvrability and easy negotiation of narrow access roads. On this route vehicles travel on Ml, which reduces journey time in each direction by approximately one hour. Motorway operation also provides an appreciable saving in fuel, and it is hoped that it will reduce wear and tear on the vehicles. The Hull fleet comprises two pairs of 12-ton six-wheeled vehicles having a combined capacity of 48 tons.
In the main, the trunking vehicles are of Atkinson manufacture, whilst Leyland Comets are employed for collection and delivery in Liverpool and London. An Albion 6-8-ton lorry is used for collections in Hull. A.E.C. and Albion lorries are also included in the trunking and delivery fleets, and a number . of Thames vehicles is employed for local work in the Nottingham area.
Drivers on trunking operations work to a guaranteed week of 62 hours. In the case of the supplementary vehicles, or "roamers," the driver is guaranteed 68 hours.
A smalls service is operated in conjunction with the trunking service on the London and Hull routes, as well as the Liverpool run. Two permanent bays at Bulwell are employed for the receipt and dispatch of smalls, each bay being divided into sections corresponding with the districts served.
Eight-wheelers
A more detailed analysis of the Marshall fleet, apart from the vehicles operated by the Keetch company, shows that it comprises 24 eight-wheeled lorry-and-trailer outfits, each having a carrying capacity of 24 tons; eight 18-ton four-wheelers and trailers; eight 12-ton rigids; six 16-Wailers; and four I8-ton articulated outfits, the remaining 25 vehicles being four-wheelers with an average carrying capacity of 10 tons.
As reported in the November 4, 1960, issue of The Commercial Motor, features of the new warehouse include a crane bay equipped with a travelling overhead electric crane of 3-ton capacity, and the building is laid out to facilitate the use of fork-lift trucks, the total number of intermediate stanchions being reduced to eight. A fleet of six Coventry:Climax oil-engined fork-lift trucks of 2-ton capacity is employed, and a further two machines will be acquired in the near future. Virtually all internal movements are performed by these trucks.
Pallet loading on vehicles is also an essential part of the work of the fork-lift trucks, about 35 per cent. of the goods carried being loaded in this way. A high proportion of foodstuffs and tinware is carried on pallets, and this form of transport is increasing, in many cases at the instigation of the customer following the mechanization of handling on his Own premises.
The 24 vehicles of the. Keetch fleet are based mainly on Leyland Comet fourand six-wheeled chassis and include platform vehicles and tippers. Operations of the fleet consist mainly of work for the Stanton Ironworks Company, the platform vehicles carrying concrete and spun-iron pipes up to 72-in, diameter on special cradles, whilst the majority of tippers are used for the transport of hot asphalt. These vehicles are fitted with special Sparshatt insulated light-alloy bodies, the floors of which are heated by exhaust gas to prevent solidification of the load during the delivery run. The sides of the body are insulated, and exhaust gas is ducted through a double-skin floor. A sliding-type cover is fitted, and it is normally possible to deliver asphalt up to 120 miles without solidification.
' Every vehicle is serviced at 14-day intervals in a special bay by trained mechanics, a particularly interesting aspect of which is the use of a B.E.N. Saga grease gun. This enables the vehicles to be greased when they are fully loaded, no other type of equipment employed experimentally having given the same advantage. A high-pressure jet of air is initially discharged from the gun, and this lifts the shackle from the pin as well as blowing out any dirt that may be present. A shot of grease-is injected into the shackle in the wake or the air jet.
Drivers are issued with a defects sheet and immediate action is taken to remedy any reported defect by the staff of seven mechanics in the workshop. Major overhauls are authorized as required," engine replacements being in the main decided by increases in 'fuel' and oil consumption. No major overhauls are performed on the premises, replacement units being supplied by local distributors. Only one grade of lubricating oil is employed summer and winter, the lubricant being of the detergent type. Vehicle sumps are filled or replenished with the aid Of a Balz trolley, tank equipped with a flexible feed Pipe. The use of this tank is highly commended on the score that it obviates contamination of the sump oil when filling.
Long Tyre Life.
. Tyre maintenance is supervised by ;the Nottingham Tyre Service, whose staff make a detailecLinspettion, of -ail Covers during the Week-end and ensure:that inflation pressures are correct and twinned-tyres are accurately matched. This is combined with checks of wear and defects, and the value of the service may be judged by the long life of the tyres. Up to 70,000 miles is obtained in the case of the trunking vehicles, and the tyres of tipping vehicles sometimes operate more than 60,000 miles, before replacement. Dunlop tyres represent about 60-70 per cent. of the total, the remainder comprising a number of makes which are being used experimentally.
Accurate costing is regarded as an all-important requirement, and profit-and-loss accounts are prepared monthly. as well as quarterly and annually. The recent introduction of a Burroughs Sensimatic typewriter, accounting machine has enabled the overall output of theaccounts department to be substantially increased without adding to the staff, and the more detailed information obtainable promises to be an important factor in policy making.. Records are prepared covering running-cost details of each vehicle in the fleet, warehouse operations, maintenance work and all routine aspects of fleet organization.. Costing is also applied to vehicles according to type, group and service.
The unit method of documentation is employed which enables a six-part set of traffic notes to be prepared without the use of carbon paper. This represents a valuable time-saving practice.