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Keeping the Licensing Authority sweet

18th July 1975, Page 42
18th July 1975
Page 42
Page 43
Page 44
Page 42, 18th July 1975 — Keeping the Licensing Authority sweet
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

by Johnny Johnson

FOR something like six years, operators have been trying to meet the standards of vehicle maintenance implicit in the Transport Act 1968. The success which has attended these efforts cannot be judged by the number of prohibition notices served or the appearance of operators at LAs' public inquiries alone for there are, inevitably, some defective vehicles on the road which seem to remain permanently undetected.

Nevertheless, the penalties which might be attached to the issue of a number of prohibition notices against a fleet can be stringent. It is obviously more economic to invest money in limiting GV9s to a minimum ; the operator who can eliminate them completely is indeed fortunate.

It is difficult to judge, however, just how much money can be devoted to improving and upholding maintenance standards before this becomes counter productive. The choice between contract maintenance and providing own maintenance facilities is not easy because maintenance costs vary as the units in the fleet become older or are replaced with more modern vehicles. Contract hire with maintenance included gives some stability to the maintenance budget, but this might not suit the operator's particular requirements.

How much can economically be invested in preserving the 0 licence from revocation, curtailment or suspension under section 69 of the Transport Act 1968 is very much a matter for the individual operator. There are some, however, who consider that the condition of their vehicles reflects on the good name of their company and they are prepared to go to quite considerable lengths to preserve both.

Reorganised

One such company is the Tate and Lyle Transport group which has just completed a reorganisation of its maintenance arrangements including appointing its own mobile vehicle examiners. So successful has 'the new arrangement been that the moment is fast approaching, according to group engineering manager Bob Foskett, when the system vvill be issuing GV9s instead of :he vehicles attracting them.

About two years ago, the lumber of prohibition notices )eing earned, notably among :he Silver Roadways fleet, was giving the group cause for concern. At that time, the group's engineering organisation—then called Central Engineering Services—was based at its Croydon headquarters to provide a code of engineering practice and advice which related to a nationwide fleet of 1,000 vehicles.

This arrangement, it was felt, made the vehicle engineering supervision too remote from the units on the road and in the 22 depots scattered throughout the country.

The first step, then, was to decentralise the day to day vehicle inspection and maintenance responsibilities. To this end, the country was divided into three regions. The Northern region was terminated at its southern boundary by a line from Aberystwyth through Birmingham to King's Lynn and the remaining portion of the country divided into a South Western region and an Eastern region by drawing a line from Birmingham to Brighton.

The regional engineering offices are located at Liverpool. Avonmouth and Croydon and each has a similar management structure. This comprises a regional engineering manager, a project engineer, an administration clerk and a regional vehicle examiner.

All the regional engineering managers are responsible directly to the group engineering manager whose own organisation comprises an accident supervisor and vehicle purchasing officer, a development engineer who looks', after vehicle specifications, cost trends and performance standards, a project officer who also deals with livery and cleanliness standards, and a secretary responsible for liaison with the regional managers.

Thus, the regional management is left free to get on with the routine inspection and maintenance and provide specialist regional services while the group Management deals with overall engineering policy and procedure, liaison with the operating divisions assisted by regional feedback, central engineering information for all transport operations and engineering consultancy.

Prohibitions

Since the new system was introduced in March, last year, the cost of materials and labour has either taken a downturn or been contained and the amount of repair and maintenance work done outside the group organisation has declined.

At the same time, the number of prohibition notices issued against the group's vehicles ha § been reduced dramatically and these now represent an issue of GV9s against 0.03 per cent of the fleet a year.

Perhaps the most unusual innovation has been the appointment of regional vehicle inspectors with a function very similar to that of the DoE vehicle inspectors.

The job of the inspector is largely to ensure that the condition of the vehicles and the maintenance standards are upheld to the criteria laid down by the company and that legislation is complied with. He does, however, have other duties which provide valuable management information.

The 'inspections which he might carry out could be at the request of his regional engineering manager at the depot or at the roadside. He may also make roadside checks on his own initiative. For these he uses the same check list as the workshop procedure for preventive maintenance.

Should he detect a fault, the inspector will issue a defect notice and, if necessary, a company " stop " notice which has the effect of prohibiting the use of the vehicle until the defect has been rectified.

As well as the inspection function, the inspector carries out tests on vehicles and equipment and attends breakdowns and accidents as might be required.

From these activities, he is expected to feed back information to the regional management such as drivers' or fitters' reactions to vehicles or modifications and to make 'suggestions about the provision of equipment.

Training

This way, the inspector can have a considerable influence on vehicle and equipment acquisition and replacement.

To complete his duties, 'the inspector is also expected to undertake 'staff training when the need arises.

For his work, he is provided with a service van which contains, among the usual tools and gauges, a 6-ton lift and a brake test meter.

The appointment of ,such an operative might be considered, at first sight, to be an overelaboration but, in the case of Tate and Lyle, the result has more than justified the decision.

Public criticism has been allayed, breakdowns reduced, the number of prohibition and defect notices from the DoE staff have become 'significantly fewer and costs have been contained or reduced.

"I want our vehicles to be called into DoE roadside checks, these days," Bob Foskett told me. "It is just as useful to know the number of times they have been checked and no defects found as to be thankful that 'they were not selected for checking," he said.

Tags

Organisations: Licensing Authority
Locations: Birmingham, Liverpool

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