COMPUTERS WILL BOOST PROFITS
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• A series of talks on new concepts in the transport maintenance field included a look at SKF's simple two-piece hub unit for truck wheel bearings.
It weighs less than the usual bearing system, is easier to fit, needs little maintenance and cuts down on purchasing and stock keeping costs, said SKF's Stanislaw Kruk.
Pepsi-Cola International's fleet administration director James McElhose from the United States took delegates through an operator's view of what modern computer software can offer truck maintenance managers.
By keying in maintenance figures from daily workshop record sheets, a modern software program can supply inventory control lists as well as costings comparisons for the parts, labour and vehicle elements of an operation. It should also be able to warn fitters when a component is due for replacement and help with efficient management of tyre and fuel costs.
Cummins explained how their Cornpucheck engine diagnostic system helps prevent expensive breakdowns and Ian Black, senior lecturer at the Cranfield Institute of Technology's transport studies centre, looked at computerised fleet management systems.
Maintenance and fleet management programs help cut costs and are being increasingly — if only very slowly — used in the UK transport industry, he said. "On board systems which would enhance data gathering," he added, "have, however, been slow to come onto the market. The transport industry's innate conservatism must carry some of the blame for the poor rate at which technology is applied. Onboard systems are not considered high priority by vehicle operators in the UK. This is due to a lack of awareness and vision by managers."
ETMC chairman Frank Lem° told the conference that a company he had previously met through his council work had told him it did not need computers. That company is no longer in business.
Ei by Geoff Hadwick