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This tipper workshop will cut costly downtime
Page 59
Page 60
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by Eddie Torr, Installation and Service Manager, Kismet-Dynaflex
COMMERCIAL vehicle prices and running costs have risen so much over the past few years that now the most profitable standard of servicing is higher than that required just to comply with the law and keep an operator's licence. How much higher this servicing standard has to be depends on each business's costs and operating methods.
The cost of each hour of a routine service is the vehicle's fixed cost (depreciation, road tax, insurance and capital cost), which is usually about £2.50 per hour for a tipper, plus wages and other employment costs for the mechanic. The cost of each hour of unscheduled repair of a breakdown will be higher with the probable addition to the fixed and mechanics' costs, of the driver, parts and perhaps lost revenue.
Other factors which make servicing important are the need to obtain the longest economic working life from vehicles and the need to make the best use of skilled labour. In addition, the operator cannot ignore his responsibilities for the safety of i,*s employees and the public.
Tippers pose a greater servicing problem than other types of commercial vehicles and so the facilities for servicing them must be planned with particular care. To show the type of facilities which tipper operators require I have designed a workshop for a fleet of 15 to 20 tippers. I have assumed that the service schedule would be a safety inspection every three weeks/ 2,500 miles and a service every six weeks/5,000 miles.
This will enable me to explain in more specific terms the benefits of the equipment and layout and that operators with different sized fleets and existing premises will be able to amend my recommendations to suit their own particular circumstances.
Four bays
Assuming an ideal site, I would suggest a four-bay building with an adjacent hard-stand wash area. One of the bays houses the stores, office and toilet facilities and the three working bays are for inspection and service, repairs, and body work; each bay being 16ft x 40ft for averagesized tippers. The height of the building and its doors should allow for the tipper to be driven in and out and lifted with its body raised.
The first requirement of any inspection or service is for the tipper to be thoroughly cleaned before it is brought into the workshop. For this Kismet recommends the use of a high-pressure hot and cold water wash. This unit's cleaning action can be boosted by pumping detergent irito the water, enabling mud and grease to be removed quickly from the chassis and body.
The inspection and service bay is primarily intended for all routine work and the cleaned tipper will be brought into it for inspection. The main feature of this bay, and indeed of the whole workshop, is a 16-ton capacity twin-post lift. I recommend this lift to most commercial vehicle repairers and in this particular applica tion its features compared with other lifting methods make it particularly suitable.'
In my experience it should reduce by up to 40 per cent the time a vehicle stands in a workshop because it enables a mechanic to work comfortably, away from draughts and with the work at the most convenient height for each stage of the job he is doing. The physical effort of handling heavy items is reduced and he tends to work less at awkward angles.
Below-ground lifts are generally preferable to the above-ground type because they are a much more flexible workshop tool. The twin-post lift gives immediate wheelfree lifting and, when not in use, leaves a virtually unobstructed floor so that the bay can be used for any type of work. The lift's minimal obstruction of access is a great advantage during the inspection as it enables the mechanic to get as close as possible to the components.
Above-ground lifts tend to be massive constructions with bulky platforms monopolising the bay, making it difficult to manoeuvre vehicles and obstructing access for the mechanic.
The versatility of the twinpost lift will again save a considerable amount of time during repair work, particularly when it is used together with chassis stands and a unit lift. For instance, by raising the tipper and supporting the chassis on stands, major subcomponents such as axles can be lowered on the lift rams.
Convenient height
When replacing springs, the ramps can be used to push upwards to spread the springs and enable them to be bolted to the shackles with the minimum of effort. In addition, the lift again enables all the work to be done at a convenient height.
Tippers are particularly prone to chassis damage and wear and breakages in the suspension and steering. Spot ting many of these faults requires the components to be moved so that any free play can be detected.
The traditional means of doing this has been somewhat haphazard with one man using a crowbar and another looking for the faults. To speed this operation and make it more thorough, a new piece of equipment is on the UK market. This unit comprises a pair of plates which are moved by pneumatic rams laterally and longitudinally to the axis of the vehicle. These plates are installed on either side of the lift's front ram which is then used to take some of the tipper's weight off the wheels.
The controls are mounted on a hand lamp so that the inspector can move the plates in either direction while he looks for movement caused by wear or breakage in the suspension. The crowbar-wielder is thus dispensed with entirely and one man can do a more thorough job in a quarter of the time previously taken by two men. Apart from the obvious safety considerations, using this machine also cuts down the chance of undetected faults causing vehicle breakdown between services and makes it easier to time the replacement of wearing parts at the routine service.
Lubrication
Another major item in the routine service is lubrication. Oil changes are best carried out leaving the tipper raised on the lift after its inspection and using a mobile waste oil unit placed underneath the drain plugs. When full this unit can then be wheeled off for emptying into a bulk storage tank. Oil is most economically bought in bulk and the oil store should, therefore, have an engine oil storage tank, a 45-gallon hydraulic oil barrel and a 45-gallon gear oil barrel. Air operated pumps mounted on each of these supply metered hose reels in the workshop. By mounting these reels in the roof between the inspection and service bay and the adjacent repair bay, maximum flexibility is achieved.
Greasing is best done in this type of workshop by a mobile greaser with an air-operated pump and mounted on a trolley. This enables the greaser to be wheeled round the vehicle anywhere in the workshop within reach of an air line.
The other main item of equipment for this bay is a headlight tester mounted on rails.
The purpose of the second working bay is to carry out all repair work other than minor adjustments so that the regular routine inspections are not interfered with. It can also be used as a reserve lubrication bay. The equipment in this bay is a cleaning tank, a press, an engine crane, and a work bench with a grinder and vice.
In addition, overhead girders for a chain and pulley block could ideally be installed to cover both this bay and the body repair bay. Although it would not be economic to have a lift in this bay for 15 to 20 vehicles, doing the necessary excavation at the time the building is being erected will save money should the work throughout increase in the future,
Tyre replacements
Minor body repairs are carried out in the third bay, which requires welding and cutting equipment and axle stands.
Tyre replacements can be a relatively frequent operation an tippers, so at the front of the stores bay is an area for changing tyres as well as for off-loading deliveries. This small tyre bay has an air gauge, 10-ton trolley jack, axle stands and tyre cage.
The workshop is fitted with a lin ring air main with On drops and connected to an air compressor in an enclosed area within the oil store. The size of the air compressor required depends on the long-term plans for the business : a 40 cfm unit will cope with current needs but a 68 cfm unit will allow expansion in the future.
Other items required by the workshop include hand tools, exhaust extraction facilities, air tools and trolley, body props, and perhaps a smOke meter.
The final facility for the ideal site is a diesel island. As well as the diesel tank and pump, an air reel with a gauge, a water reel and a pedestal oil meter with a hose control for topping up will be useful.
Figure 1 shows my ideal layout in conventional plan and figure 2 shows how this looks in three dimensions using the new model system I have developed to help we non architects visualise how the workshop will look. This new system is particularly useful in showing how equipment can be located to achieve the best results in existing non-ideal situations.