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Making Profits in
Page 80
Page 81
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AGRICUL TURAL HAULAGE
AGRICULTURE presents more opportunities to the haulier than does any other industry. The work is more varied. It is, taking every branch of it, continuous, for, whilst individual classes of agricultural haulage Way be seasonal, there is something for every season. As regards some phases of it, at least, it can, moreover, be made profitable.
The most extensively exploited branch of this side of the industry is undoubtedly the conveyance of livestock. That subject, however, will be dealt with separately in next week's issue.
Next in order of importance is probably the haulage of sugar-beet. That, indeed, is work of a seasonal nature which has nothing in agriculture to balance it throughout the remainder of the year. So extensive is the business of beet haulage that there are many ,operators who keep vehicles for that work alone, laying them up during the off season, overhauling them and preparing them for the next.
Again, those who do not follow this practice use the same type of vehicle during the summer for municipal and county-council contracts, for the haulage of sand and gravel, tarmac, roadniaking materials and the like. Sugar-beet haulage is discussed from time to time in The Commercial Motor and, apart from this passing mention, it is not proposed to deal with it in this article.
• 'The 3-tonner the Favourite.
With the foregoing exceptions, it is frue to state that the vast bulk of haulage contractors who cater for farmers use 3-ton lorries. There are exceptions, of course, and reference will be made to these as the need arises. It will be useful to consider a 3-tonner as a haulier's machine and to indicate his costs and show what he must charge really to earn a profit. Following the usual procedure, these operating costs can be set out on the basis of standing charges and running costs.
The all-in running costs for a petrol-engined vehicle of this type total about 3-id. per mile, made up of lid. for petrol and oil, Id. for tyres, Id. for maintenance, and id. for depreciation.
The standing charges, assuming the vehicle to be housed in a rural area, but, for a reason which I shall give, allowing Grade 2 wages for the driver, will total £4 10s. per week, comprising tax at 12s., wages, 0$s. 6d., insurance, 8s., garage rent, 4s. 6d., and interest, 2s. Taking £1 per week as establishment ex
na8 penses, covering all kinds of contingent cost, and £2 per week profit, the operator must obtain revenue of £7 10s. per week to cover those fixed charges and profit, plus 311d. per mile to cover running costs and a small margin of profit on each mile run. In other words, his charges must be calculated on the basis of 3s. per hour, plus 32d. per mile.
I have taken the Grade 2 figure for wages because, in the case of many examples of agricultural haulage, one end of the journey terminates in a town where, at the least, that scale of wages is payable. Of course, under the conciliation agreement the driver must be paid the higher rate of wages on any day on which journeys of that description are made.
Considerations of Poultry Haulage.
The collection of poultry from poultry farmers and the delivery of these birds to central markets is an important branch of agricultural haulage in many parts of the country. There are frequently, in connection with this class of work, partial back loads of meal and feeding stuffs, as well as other farming requisites destined either for the poultry rearer himself, if he be engaged on mixed farming, or for farmers other than the poultry-breeding customers.
On this class of work it is quite customary for fairly long weekly mileages to be covered, from 600 or 800 to 1,000, and in at least one case within my knowledge, 1,400 miles per week. A day's work covering 120 miles should bring the operator a total revenue as follows :Eight hours at 3s. is 24s., plus 120 miles at 3id., 37s. 6d.; total, 23 is. 6d. The amount necessary to cover his costs, including provision for establishment charges, will be eight hours at 2s. 3d., which is 18s., plus 120 miles at 3-id., 35s.; total, £2 13s. These two totals are important to the haulier. They indicate the margin of profit, which, it should be noted, is only 6s.• 6d. per day.
If his day's work covers 180 miles, the figures become 24s. for the eight-hour day, plus 180 times which is £2 16s. 3d.; total, £4 Os. 3d., and his bare cost is £3 16s. 6d. Any haulier engaged on this class of work, knowing his revenue, should set it against these figures if he wishes to know whether, persisting in his present rates, he will eventually find himself in difficulties, or whether he is actually making a net profit.
There is a fair amount of haulage of artificial manures from town to country. Sometimes this traffic comes as a part or full back load from poultry haulage, or in connection with other transport from the countryside to the towns. More often, however, the distribution is over short distances. Hauliers are generally asked to quote for 1 ton to 6 tons over distances of 1-20 miles. The material is usually in sacks and a fair average period for loading and unloading is 15 minutes pet. ton
for each operation. That period applies, of course, where there is no provision for loading from a chute and wise e no help is given. Incidentally, those are the usual co ditions.
Most o the loads offered are within the 3-ton limit, so that t e figures quoted above as the basis of charges are appli able. The minimum profitable rate must be calculate at the rate of 3s. per hour, plus 31d. per mile, co pared with the bare cost of 2s. 3d. per hour and aid. per mile.
Takin first the case of a full load on a 3-tonner and a imum radius of a mile, the time occupied will be 1 hour 36 minutes, made up of 14 hour for loading and unloading, and six minutes for travelling the two miles (out and home). The charge for time should thus be 4s. 10d., to which must be added the two miles at 3id. (71d.), making a total of 5s. 51d. or is. 10d, per ton for' the first mile.'
Each additional mile haul adds six minutes to the ti e, which is equivalent to 31d., and 71d. to the mileage t (two miles at Sid.). That is 11d., or Md. per ton. or a two-mile haul, therefore, the price should be 2s. lid., probably 2s. 2d., and for a three-mile haul, 2s. 5-0. or 2s. 6d. per ton. Over three miles the time per extra mile can be reduced somewhat, as there is the opportunity of speeding up a little, and for each successive mile it can be taken as four minutes, instead of six, costing thus 2/d. for time plus the same amount, JO., for mileage, which is 9id., or 3fd. per ton. For a four-mile lead, the proper price should he 2s, 9d. per ton, for five miles, 3s. Ofd., and so on, Difficulty always arises in dealing with part loads, such as the conveyance of a ton of this material in a 3-ton lorry. With this problem, among others, I will deal in next week's issue. S.T.R.