OPINIONS and QUERIES HAULIERS' GROUP MOVEMENT AND SECRETARY S.E. AREA
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A.R.O. MAY I be allowed to correct a statement made by "I" S.T.R." in his excellent article in "The Commercial Motor" of July 7, which correction in no . way alters the value of the article or the correctness of the deductions he makes?
I am not, in fact, secretary of the North and East Kent Transport and Trading Co., Ltd. What happened was that the operators concerned in it decided on what they wanted and then sought the guidance of Associated Road Operators on the procedure to be followed to form their company. In effect they took a ,decision, sought the assistance and guidance of the Association in implementing it, and the Association dropped out of the picture once the company was formed.
I want to stress that the decision was their own. Only in an indirect way, and on a long-term view, can it be said that the Association had any responsibility for
bringing it about. P. S. WOODHOUSE, Secretary. (For Associated Road Operators, South Eastern Area.) Chatham.
SELLING OUR VEHICLES OVERSEAS REFERRING to your leader, "British Machines for Overseas Markets,which appeared in the issue of f' The Commercial Motor" dated June 30, hide-bound regulations in this country may be a handicap to export trade, but they are by no means the only, or even the principal, cause of the prevalent unpopularity of British vehicles overseas.
There is no obvious technical reason why a truck which gives reliable service with a specific load in a particular district in this country should not give equally reliable service under similar conditions overseas. What does not seem to be generally realized is that a truck which gives reliable service with a specific load under one set of road conditions (i.e., a combination of surfaces and gradients) will not give the same satisfaction with the same load under different conditions either in this country or abroad.
Admittedly, some trucks overseas have to work on bad roads, but the majority operates in and around metropolitan areas, where conditions are comparable to those in this country. Both here and abroad condilions vary according to locality, and to such a degree that they should be taken into account when rating a chassis, e.g., to obtain the same relative performance from a chassis the gross weight must be considerably less when it is operated on poor roads in a hilly district than when it is operated on good-surfaced roads in a flat district. In spite of this fact, British chassis are usually sold on a fixed-tonnage capacity• irrespective of the conditions under which they will operate ; consequently, there are misfits when the conditions are more arduous than those Upon which the rating of the chassis has been calculated.
This antiquated method of rating the capacity of a chassis is one of the primary causes of the unpopularity of vehicles, whether of British or other origin, and the principal reason for the unpopularity of British chassis is that the British manufacturer has made no effort to assist the overseas operator to get the machine that will "do the job and keep on doing it," whereas his successful competitors have done so.
Another primary cause of the unpopularity of our vehicles overseas is the practice of laying down stores of spare parts only after selling a number of chassis, which results in the first customers being dissatisfied with the service and thereby creating a bad reputation. Such a shortsighted policy is not confined entirely to the British manufacturers, but the important point is that practically every British maker subscribes to it, whereas his successful competitors have followed the more rational policy of laying down adequate stocks of parts in anticipation of chassis sales.
With regard to price, as most British chassis available in the export market are mass-produced, there is no obvious reason why chassis from other sources should be cheaper; in fact, in a number of territories British chassis are actually lower priced than those having comparable mechanical specification which come from other sources. Even when the British manufacturer has a price advantage over his competitor, his product is still unpopular because of the difference between his and his competitor's spare-parts service. In territories where conditions are arduous the price difference may be markedly in favour of the British manufacturer, owing to his competitor adjusting capacity ratings to suit the conditions.
The overseas operator is no fool and invariably profits by his mistakes. He is also a -keen enough business man to realize that it does not pay to allow sentiment to interfere with his judgment, and he buys the chassis , that will keep on doing the job, irrespective of its origin.
Any manufacturer who wishes to develop an export trade would be well advised to consider these criticisms, to study_ carefully each market he wishes to enter, and discard fallacious ideas about "bush roads," "overloading," "mass production," etc. If he follows this advice he will help himself to a fair share of the overseas business and put British vehicles in the position they rightly deserve, which is second to none.
Kingston. OLD TIMER.
ROAD TRANSPORT NEEDS NEW SPIRIT AGREAT many people in the commercial-vehicle trade and amongst hauliers are wondering how the distributive road organization is going to function in the post-war world. Certain it is that much of the over
lapping and the problems of wasted loading space must be solved if road haulage is to play its part. In this, as in every industrial area, a new spirit of " give " to replace " get " must be the basis on which the new haulage world can work. The distinction between capital and labour based on whether one buys or sells the latter must be broken down. It must give way to a union of capital and labour on the basis of the common service they render to the Nation.
In May an important assembly was held in the State Theatre, Washington D.C., to see an M.R.A. play, • " The Forgotten. Factor," a play for the promotion of industrial teamwork. Amongst the audience of 1,700 were cabinet ministers, diplomats, nearly a third of the members of the Senate and House of Representatives, Field-Marshal Sir J. Dill, and Sir Gerald Campbell, British Minister of State in Washington.
At the end of the performance Rear-Admiral Byrd said: "It is the spirit of teamwork we all know we have got to have to win this war, and we must have the same spirit of teamwork to win the peace: That sane spirit' will keep our way of life." LESLIE MACE, Director.
Horsham. (For Rice Bros. (Horsham), Ltd.)