Small Users in Large Towns (No. 14).
Page 18
Page 19
Page 20
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
In Historic Shrewsbury.
Examples of Local Motor Transport of Trunks, Beer, Firegrates, Millinery, Vegetables, Furniture, Meat, Pianos, Grain, Scaffolding, Bread, Chimney-pots etc.
This Collection ot Users and their Vehicles, is Designed, so far as is Possible, to Include Variety of Machine Types as well as et Trades, but it must not, el course, be taken as Complete in either Sense, as it often happens that many different makes of Chassis are E,mployed in the same Trade or that several Trades Employ the same Typeset Motorvans.
T is most appropriate that this issue, dealing fully as it does with the " _Royal, which opens next week on the 30th inst. at Shrewsbury, should include Salop's county town as representing the 14th of our " Large Towns " series.
Situated on the Welsh borders, Shrewsbury possesses many points of historical interest, and up to the reign of Edward the First, A.D. 1272-1307, warfare, on which often rested the issue of the English crown, was not infrequently brought to its very gates.
The town, to-day, is the centre of a thriving community, chiefly concerned in agriculture, and, although attractive to strangers principally on .account of its proud history and antiquities, it must by no means be inferred that the inhabitants are unprogressive; on the contrary, the public buildings and institutions are adequate to meet all requirements of civic and industrial life, and proof of the enterprise of the trading community is forthcoming in numerous handsome shops to be found in the principal streets.
Shrewsbury being the principal town situate in a wide and fertile district is a distributing centre for Irish and store cattle, and also of the world-fanied breed of Shropshire sheep. It is a busy scene which is enacted in the town on market-days, which are fixed for Wednesdays and Saturdays, the country folk assembling from miles around to dispose of their dairy and other produce. Big sales of wool, cloth, butter and cheese are held in the market square, the principal edifice of which—the old market hall— was built in the year 1590.
The tradespeople of Shrewsbury have long since conic to the conclusion that to mm e with the times means to use motorvans, and the interesting testimonies which we have been enabled to gather from some of the principal owners of this modern means of goods transport will be read with much interest, affording as they do conclusive evidence as to the unique business advantages which accrue from the possibility of being able to speed up deliveries from stores to door by means of the industrial vehicle.
A Case of Horse-supersession.
The testimony which we have received from the enterprising firm of Shuker and Son, the wholesale ironmongers of Pride Hill, furnishes one of several instances in Shrewsbury in which horses have been superseded by motor. A couple of horsed vans at one time constituted their means of delivery of the various articles of trading, but Messrs. Shuker move with the times, and so the horses had to go in order to make way for more speedy means of goads transit.
A one-ton Belsize chassis was purchased ; this was three months ago. The body, it is interesting to record, was built on the firm's own premises, and an exceedingly fine example of industrial coachwork it is too. The builders are also to be commended upon the style of the lettering scheme adopted on the body, and we can quite understand their attaching considerable advertising value to the equipment. We reproduce a photograph of the complete machine in our grouped picture. The owners inform us that the van is responsible for carrying consignments of corrugated-iron sheets, cooking ranges, gas stoves, fencing, bar iron, etc. D12 The body will accommodate a ton load of building material of a most variable nature.
" Some of the builders' ornamentation work which we trade in," say the users, " requires very careful handling during its transit across country to some outlying mansion or other building in course of construction, and we are pleased to say that since the use of the motor breakages are fewer in number, and, moreover, we do not have to spend so much time in packing as heretofore."
On making inquiry as to the number of deliveries the Belsize enables tnein to make in a day, the owners succinctly reply, " One to forty, just as business demands. We find the machine most handy during an extra stress of business, and it is a great time-saver."
What Messrs. Shuker are particularly pleased about is, that the use of the vehicle enables them to trade much further afield than when they used horses.
"Another advantage we experience," they tell us, " is that we get the driver's assistance in other directions when the machine is not out delivering goods, for upon his return he simply runs the van into the garage, and no further attention is necessary beyond the usual daily replacement of the tanks. We are also enabled to make use of part of the stables as a stores, because the motorvan, of course, takes up less room than horse-plant."
Furniture and Drapery per Foden and Star.
The business owned by R. Maddox and Co., Ltd., is probably one of the oldest and best examples of Elizabethan half-timbered buildings to be found in Shrewsbury. It was originally built in the year 1592, hut whilst the old exterior has been retained, the interior has been modified and brought up to date to suit the ever-increasing trade which Maddox and Co. experience. A modern touch is also given to the undertaking in that the management, six months ago, resorted to mechanical means for transporting the various goods traded in.
Maddox and Co. favour both petrol and steam propulsion ; this is probably accounted for by the fact that the concern does a considerable amount of business in house-furnishing, decorating, and drapery goods ; removal contracts are also undertaken. For transporting furniture a five-ton Foden was requisitioned, whilst the lighter class of articles usually associated with house decoration are very conveniently handled by a one-ton Star van. Through the
use of these two machines Maddox and Co. can send off to customers a houseful of furniture and the necessary accessories in a most expeditious manner, it being usual, of course, to dispatch the steamer in advance of the van in the case of any long-distance delivery of this nature. The management is at present unable to supply information regarding actual running costs, mileage covered, or average fuel consumption, but that general satisfaction is experienced is evidenced by the fact that the company has dispensed with its horsedplant.
"Quicker and Direct Delivery to Customers."
Whilst our special representative was in Shrewsbury securing suitable information from users, he was particularly fortunate in obtaining a photograph of Messrs. W. Timmis and Co.'s Burrell five-ton steam tractor on its way delivering a load of flour from the Mytton Mills, just outside the town. A reproduction of the photograph is included in OM' feh-page composite illustration.
" For five years and nine months we have had the tractor rurwing," Messrs. Timmis inform us, " and its duties eonsist in hauling, by trailer, five-ton loads of grain, flour, meal, etc. ; six separate loadings of these respective commodities arc. delivered daily. We are quite satisfied with the service it affords us— so much, so, that we have entirely dispensed with seven horsed-lorries.
" Week in and week out the tractor covers as many as180 miles, and the "supply " cost during the week's work amounts to about 1s. 6d. Ease of emergency deliveries, sin ea using the equipment, is a feature which we experience, and its use also has a very favourable bearing on our business."
In conclusion, Messrs. Timmis tell us that the use of the Burrell enables them to effect quicker and more direct deliveries to customers.
Twenty Per Cent. Saving by Motor Haulage.
Interesting testimony is forthcoming from a very enterprising furniture remover and haulage contractor in Shrewsbury—in this instance Mr. Alick Low, 50, Wyle Cop. Mr. Low, in addition to being an expert in all matters appertnining to the removal of costly articles of furniture, is a hauling tractor to H.M. forces, and is also a shipping agent. The part of his business methods which will appeal to our readers most is that mechanical transport enters into the daily regime, and a Tasker steam tractor is used. Mr. Low takes pride of place among our Shrewsbury users in that he has now run the machine for upwards of six years.
"It is." he says, " reliable and quick in service, and I find it particularly useful for the ease with which it enables me to effect urgent deliveries. In a place like Shrewsbury, possessing as it does ma-ny large residential places round about, as the seasons change and holidays come round, there is a considerable amount of quick removal work to be done. I generally load the trailer up to about three tons, and can credit the tractor with about 200 miles in a working week. The special advantage T experience is that the steamer is more reliable than horsed pantechnicons; my business, through reliable and punctual haulage, has increased considerably ; in fact, I should say I now do quite three times as much, and very well does the Tasker handle it."
Mr. Low's final testimony is : "Through the use of mechanical transport, I save 20 per cent. This, of course, is a very desirable asset in business."
"My Motor is doing the work of two horses, and much more on some jobs."
We are pleased to include first-hand impressions from a Shrewsbury builder—those of Mr. G. 11. Bickerton. whose yard and joinery factory are situate in the Horse Fair. Mr. Bickerton, until 15 months age, relied solely upon horses and carts to accomplish the delivery or the various productions which he turns out, hut. found that. this system did not give him satisfaction, so the horses had to go, and Mr. Bickerton bought a 25 h.p. Mercedes chassis and fitted a suitable body to it. The machine can handle, with every satisfaction to its owner, loads up to 25 cwt.
it is responsible for the transport of all classes of building material, including window-sashes and frames, chimney pots, slates, tiles, etc., and oftentimes has to depositits load at sonic outlying building-site where there is not even the slightest suspicion of a road. The owner finds that the Mercedes does the work of both the discarded horses, and, to use his own words, " the machine does much more at some jobs.
" One veal advantage derived from its use," he says, " is the long-distance journeys made possible. Simplicity of packing is another feature, and I also find that I get a lower percentage of breakages since using it. You are, of course, aware," he continues, " that the building-trade fluctuates considerably during the year. Here again is where the advantage of my motor comes in, in that, with the exception of the capital charge, at slack times, when it is not in use, there are no upkeep costs."
A Steam-wagon Does the Work of Four Horses in Half the Time.
When gathering information for this series, we invariably hear something good concerning mechanical transport from users in the brewing business. This time the favourable opinion comes from the owner of a Mann steam wagon, Mr. W. T. Southam to wit, who is the, proprietor of the Old Salop Brewery, Shrewsbury.
For two years the steamer has been in use day in and day out, and has given its owner every satisfaction ; its use has enabled him to dispense with four horses. Through the use of the machine Mr. Southam can supply houses situated in outlying districts direct, thus saving cost and delay through
transit by rail where very often the commodity is left to stand in a siding all night, much to its detriment as regards quality. The wags:m handles a three-ton load at a time, and delivers beer in cask and bottle over a considerable area in and around Shrewsbury.
Mr. Southam finds—as do many other brewers with whom we have come in contact -that there are fluctuations in the demand for the liquid refreshment, and during harvesting, a spell of hot weather or some social event, the calls for extra deliveries made upon tlw Old Salop Brewery are very satisfactorily met by the use of the wagon. As a rule, the week's log of the steamer shows about 150 miles.
The outstanding advantage which the user places to the credit of the Mann is that "it enables him to do in one day as much work as his horses used to accomplish in two." By getting rid of the four horses, there is, of course, a saving effected on the stabling account, and Sunday work on the part of the stablemen is done away with.
A Shrewsbury Butcher Relies upon a Belsize.
There are, we should imagine, no better examples forthcoming of the utility of the express-delivery van than those cases in which it is brought into use for delivering household commodities. More particularly, perhaps, does this apply to the butchering business, a class of trading in which it is of the utmost importance that the housewife and the retailer receive fresh daily supplies with unvarying promptitude and punctuality. We are enabled to bring forward businesslike testimony which will bear out these remarks from Mr. W. Whittall, the high-class meat purveyor: his shop is situate at 33, Pride Hill.
Nine months ago," Mr. Whittall tells us, "I was desirous of speeding up my daily deliveries. At that time I used a couple of horsed carts, and after a little consideration I came to the conclusion that, did I possess a speedy light type of motorvan, I might dispense with horses altogether and yet cover a good deal more ground.
"My choice eventually fell on a Belsize five-cwt. van, arid I am very well pleased indeed with its results. During the nine months that it has been in my service the vehicle has given me complete satisfaction. The man can get away quickly early in the morning, and he is able to return in a remarkablyexpeditious manner in order to effect another series of calls. I soon found I could rely solely upon my speedy Belsize for punctual delivery, to my customers, so got rid of the two horsed-carts." This gentleman continues to inform us that with the Belsize his man is now enabled to make as many as 50 calls in a day. most of which are executed before noon, and the machine can be credited with covering about 200 miles per working week. Mr. Whittall's final impressions as to the utility of the machine are : "She is extra good for emergency deliveries, and is responsible for an all-round improvement of my delivery system."
"Motors Increase Daily Radius."
The smart-looking Dennis van which we illustrate on page 413 is employed by Messrs. Bagnall and Blower, the well-known wholesale grocers. of Pride Ha The machine was purchased by them 12 months ago, because they found that the horse-drawn van. which was used up to that time, could not satisfactorily carry out. the full number of deliveries which had to be effected day by day. This particularly applied to customers situated in the outlying districts of the town, and a certain amount of delay was often experienced in getting goods from stores to door.
With the Dennis the firm is now, however, enabled to effect deliveries over a considerable area in and about Shrewsbury with a degree of punctuality that is most satisfactory to all concerned. On an average, we are informed, the machine covers about 240 miles D18 each week. It can account for a load of 30 cwt. at a time, which generally comprises parcels of grocery, sides of bacon, hams, wines, spirits and mineral waters. The commodities are usually delivered within a, radius of about 25 miles of the town.
For effecting deliveries close at hand, Messrs. Bagnall and Blower still resort to the use of horses, but they are particularly pleased with the expeditious manner in which the motarvan enables them to execute customers' urgent demands, and it is quite on the cards that in course of time a light type of express-delivery van will be requisitioned to cope with local trading.
Messrs. Bagnall and Blower inform us that the maelline does about 9 miles to a gallon of petrol, and the total cost. is given as about ld. per mile. " The Dennis," they say, " is particularly advantageous in that it has enabled us to increase our delivery radius, and, moreover, saves time considerably."
A Greater Number of Deliveries in a Shorter Time.
Messrs. J. Della Porta, and Son are the proprietors of a well-appointed general household-supply and travellin-goods emporium situate in The Square and Princes Street. The high-class quality of the goods obtainable from their comprehensive stores accounts for the quick trading and increase of business which Messrs. Della Porta are continually experiencing.
The multiplicity of trading commitments necessitated the purchase of a couple of express-delivery vans ; one is a 15 cwt. Star, and the other a Studebaker, which accommodates 10 cwt. loads. The Star has been running for two years, and the Americanbuilt machine has 12 months service to its credit.
Messrs. Della Porta trade somewhat far afield, and it was found that horsed vehicles could not cope with this side of their business ; the expeditious manner in which long-distance deliveries can be effected by the inotorvans places the owners on a very sound business Footing. The Star is generally sent on comparatively long journeys, the Studebaker being mostly responsible for town work. The weekly mileage of each vehicle is somewhat on the high side, which is only to be expected with such a business as that run by Messrs. Della Porta and Son. "On an average," they tell us, "each machine can be credited with 300 miles per week.
"The outstanding advantage which we experience from the use of motors," they say, "is the greater number of deliveries which we can effect in a shorter time. People who visit our shop to place orders very often find upon their return home that the articles required are awaiting them. "Emergency orders in the shape of travelling trunks, sporting goods, presentations, etc., are quickly delivered to our customers through the use of these speedy vehicles. Simplicity in the packing of the parcels for transit is also a feature ; this means, of course, that we get our men away quickly with the loads."