Facilitating the Loading of
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' BAKERS' VAN L, PART from its load of bread,
a baker's van carries flour,
cakes arid pastries. The amount ;of such items as biscuits, jams, sweets and so on will vary accoding to the probable demand ,of the round concerned, or what has previously been ordered.: The The 'box-van is designed to 'carry bread on the floor and usually on a midway shelf. This shelf is slatted, which saves weight and helps to cool the loaves. The van should be ventilated at or near the roof level, but the louvre panels, or other device, should be protected with wire gauze, or some such material, in order to exclude dust.
Loading for Quick Delivery.
• The roundsman who loads his own. van may probably find without delay a tin or cottage loaf, or the particular variety of brown or wholemeal bread required, but his task is simplified if the shelving be supplemented by a few sliding trays, so that the load may be classified. A sliding tray has the advantage that its contents are at once revealed by pulling it out. It may be plain or partitioned, Shallow or deep, according to requirements.
A van with a loading compartment 7 ft. long measures about 2 ft. from the back of the driver's seat to the front of the wheel-arch. At the latter point there is space for an opening, so that this part of the body may be side-loaded. . The front compartment is separated from the larger portion at the rear by a close-boarded or slatted partition. It is equipped with , angle-iron runners which support a tier of six or more trays.
a40 These trays carry confectionery, either unpacked or in boxes, bags of flour and so on. When setting out the runners of the top fray for an opening with a roller shutter, the position of the bottom of the shutter, when fully rolled up, should be noted in order that sufficient clearance is available for sliding the loaded tray.
The larger rear portion of this van has a midway shelf for bread: As a rule, a full-width opening at the back is unnecessary. By making this open log half to two-thirds of tho widtk of the body, there is a panelled framework on each side which increases rigidity.
These rear panels may have windows, and larger ones are inserted in the upper side panels. This
arrangement improves not only the
natural lighting, but the appearance. These windows are shallow, so as to leave ample space below them for writing display.
Another way of arranging the intenor equipment of a ,small van is for the side opening to give access to the front of the midway shelf. This is particularly convenient at the beginning of the round, when the van. is fully laden, and the loaf required is not easily discovered from the back of the van. Below the midway
shelf the side opening gives access to a pair of trays, having sufficient depth to accommodate large loaves, boxes of Cakes or pots of jam. The trays may extend for the full, Or half, width of the body.
At the rear"there are four trays under the shelf. The upper pair is large and deep, but the lower pair is shallower and narrower, to 'fit between the inner wheel-arch faces.
A larger van has similar shelves and trays, the proportion of space set apart for them being varied according to individual requirements. The distance from the partition behind the driver's seat to the wheel-arch will be large enough for a side opening which will accommodate two tiers of trays. Alternatively, the front compartment may have only bread shelves, all the trays being at the rear.
A baker who hitherto has used only hand carts may consider that a sidecar combination will meet his requirements pending a further ex tension of his business. A box body for a sidecar carries the greater part of its load at the rear, directly above the axle. The height of the front half of the body is restricted so that there is a clear view over the top of it.
The bottom of the sidecar is about 5 ft. long, with the upper rear portion 3 ft. long. The height in front is I ft. 6 ins. and 3 ft. at the rear. The overall width is about 2 ft.
For a baker, the rear portion of the sidecar has a midway shelf and the front of the body has another shelf, or a pair of trays. The front panel may be hinged to give access to these trays, but crosswise sliding trays and a side‘ opening have the advantage of providing a greater measure of dust exclusion.
When a caterer's van is fitted only for sliding trays, loading may be effected at the -back, side and back, or only at the side. The runners may be arranged to take the trays in the direction of their length or width. Some wholesale confectioners prefer a comparatively narrow tray, and four tiers are accommodated in the width of the body.
Wheel-arch Influences.
The height of the bottom line Of runners is decided by the height of the wheel-arch. If the wheel-arches be high, it may be considered desirable to utilize the space between them. With three tiers of runners, the centre tier may have one or more extra pairs of runners so that the bottom ones are close to the floor.
Alternatively, a cross-bar may be placed at the level of the top of the wheel-arch and two sets of runners are set out independently of
thos-,--above the cross-bar. This arrangement is recommended when the measurement between the inner wheel-arch faces is greater than the length of, or more than twice the width of, a tray.
A side-loading van has four tiers of trays with a separate roller-shutter for each pair of tiers. As there is no rear opening, he continuous back framework adds strength to the body and there is a large uninterrupted space for a bold display of writing. Shelves, tray runners and their supports should be easily detachable in order that the interior of the van may be thoroughly cleaned.