Cabs by Road with New Outfit
Page 47
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MORRIS-COMMERCIAL oar" engined tractor and two Hands USW 8-ton semi-trailers, recently purchased by the Willenhall Motor Radiator Co., Ltd., Neachells Lane, Willenhall, Staffs, have given such good service in the delivery of cabs to various vehicle manufacturers that orders have been placed for three further units of the same type. Later, the cabs will be mounted on stillages and loaded by a fork-lift truck, which will increase the speed of handling and enable a larger number of components to be carried by each semi-trailer.
The deck of the trailer is 27 ft. 34 in. long by 7 ft. 51 in. wide, and it is claimed by the makers that the platform length is as great as that of any trailer in the country built to comply with a total unit length of 33 ft. Coupling is by means of a Hands Safelock fifth wheel fitted to the tractor and a standard S.M.M.T. kingpin on the semi-trailer. A Davis screw support gear is provided.
Present deliveries include two runs a week to the Morris-Commercial works in Birmingham carrying five cabs, a daily delivery of five cabs to the Commer factory at Luton, a weekly run to the Scammell works at Watford with six cabs, and fortnightly deliveries of E.R.F. and Dennis cabs. The semitrailer platform is drilled to receive bolts for the direct attachment of the cabs. This method ensures that no possible damage can be caused to the cabs in transit.
When fork trucks are available for loading, the bodies will be mounted on double stillages with one cab inverted and located above another. This will increase the useful capacity of the semitrailers to 10 cabs. It is probable that battery-electric trucks will be employed.