Refuse Disposal That Is Dustless from Start to Finish
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Huddersfield Cleansing Departincnt Makes U se of Karrier Cob Tractortrailer Outfits on Refuse Collection. Highly Organized System Makes for
Hygiene
DUSTLESS refuse .collection is a feature of Huddersfield Cleansing Department's 'work; and the use of Karrier Cobs fitted with Converta tops—the latter being the patent of Mr. H. Neaverson, superintendent of borough cleansing and general transport—makes it an interesting example of both economical and efficient operation.
In such work, there is little to be gained by the employment of highspeed vehicles, owing to the rare opportunities for fast travelling. Although ample capacity is needed, it has been found that units of modest power give every satisfaction and, at the same time, keep down the standing charges on the fleet.
Thirteen Cobs for Refuse Work.
Altogether, 75 vehicles are supplied through the municipal haulage system to the various departments and, of these, 13—all Karrier Cobs—are devoted to the household refuse-collection section. Particularly interesting is the fact that , this little fleet accounts for about 42,530 bins every week, which means that throughout this town, with a population of 125,000, there is a weekly collection.
Bins are of standard size and are supplied free by the corporation, thus facilitating the use of the dustless-collection methods by means of which refuse is kept under cover from the time it leaves the bin.
B22 Every one of the collection vehicles carries three containers, each of which is of 32-cubic-yd. capacity. Earlier, only two containers were carried by each semi-trailer, but increased capacity was tested and proved to be quite practicable. It has, therefore, been extended to the whole collection fleet, with a consequent reeuction in vehicle miles and relative costs.
The refuse-disposal incinerator, which is claimed to be the most effective steam-raising refuse plant in existence, is the governing part of the system, -for it is at the depot that much time is saved. A vehicle comes in from its round. Three full containers are re
moved, Three empties are placed on it, and it is off again almost at once.
Incineration goes on all day and night, but collections occupy only about a third of that period. Thus, on arrival, the containers may be lifted by a telpher and carried to the top of the building for direct discharge into the incinerator, or a travelling crane may drop them on to bogies in the store at the back of the premises. By means of light rails with turntables, these 'bogies and loads are parked until required at times when the incinerator's demands' are not beiag net by incoming' loads.
When the telpher has lifted a container to the top of the building, it is dropped into a hopper in which it fits exactly. Doors at the bottom of the container are opened mechanically and the refuse is dustlessly discharged into the separator and incinerator.
So as to minimize depot delays, every vehicle is scheduled for certain duties and the rota enables all the machines engaged on the work to deal with an average of 80 loads a day between them. The 13.9 h.p Karrier Cobs, pull-' ing semi-trailers and three containers with refuse approaching 2 tons, must consequently be running for the greater part of n hours a day and each must
make up to 3,000 stops and starts every week.
The nature of Huddersfield makes it possible for journeys to be arranged so. that, in the main, laden vehicles take downward gradients towards the depot. Over 13,000 acres are covered by the borough and in the course of a day's journey each unit travels from 25 to 40 miles. The average is about 29 miles, this distance covering seven or eight collection rounds, with, of course, returns to the depot, on each occasion, for the purpose of discharging the loads_ Special bodies with Converta tops, as previously mentioned, avoid the scat tering of dust and, on special tests by the department, were shown to occasion no loss of time, as compared with opentop vehicles. Bins are not put out on the pathway by householders, every receptacle being carried from its normal storage place by the vehicle's crew.
On each side of the collector, at rather less than shoulder height, are three collars, one for each container. The mouth of the bin is pushed forwards into one of these collars; noise is reduced and a snug fit ensured by a thick rubber lip inside the ring. Each collar is mounted in a sliding cover that runs on rollers and at the bottom position there is a shield beneath the moving c-over.
How the Mechanism Operates.
When the bin has been put in place, a push does all that is necessary to carry the cover and bin to the top position, the action being assisted by powerful springs. At the limit of the movement, the collar registers with a similar aperture in the undershield and the refuse falls into the body of the container. As the bin is pulled down again for removal, so, of course, is the interior completely shut off once more.
Huddersfield being a town with many narrow streets and cul-de-sac terraces, maneeuvrability was an important feature when the use of three-container trailers was under consideration. However, the employment of the Karrier Cob made possible a virtual right-angle turn and facilitated operation -even in most congested areas. Driving is full-time work and crews of seven men devote all their attention to loading so that the vehicles make steady progress. Each crew operates one of seven districts into which the borough is divided and the loading team is supplied with vehicles as required by the intensity of activities.
This type of work is carried on by 11 of the Cobs and semi-trailers, leaving one spare set and another which is largely occupied on removing furniture and other articles for disinfestation, and on general work. Both the latter units• have quick-release couplings and, while disinfestation is taking place it is possible to switch over the tractor unit to different duties, so that it is always profitably employed.
All vehicles in the haulage department are completely maintained at the depot, which is now in the course of extension. Facilities are available for all normal repair work and routine jobs are speeded up by the use of the spareunit system.
Statistics show that, although odd vehicles dating back to the early 'twenties are included, the average maintenance cost for the whole fleet, taken over a period since 1920, is no more than. ,95d. per mile. In addition to maintenance, all necessary bodybuilding is carried out at the transportdepartment headquarters.
The whole fleet of three-container vehicles was put into service just over a year ago. A typical set of costs shows that, in the year, one vehicle, which covered 8,192 miles on this work, with its many stops and starts, averaged 8 m.p.g. of fuel; tyres cost .325d. per vehicle-mile, and the oil-consumption rate averaged 900-1,000 m.p.g. During the year, repairs and renewals totalled only £10 Is. 7d.
28,000 Tons of Refuse.
Over the 12 months, the vehicle mileage for this section of the fleet has averaged 6,000-7,000 and the weight of refuse collected has amounted to 28,000 tons. From this quantity, the incinerator steam-raising plant produced 123,416,000 lb. of steam, or 21 lb. of steam per lb. of refuse.
The efficiency of the work, both at the depot and in the streets, is clearly noticeable to the visitor. It is obvious, that the department benefits considerably from operation in conjunction with the centralized transport system, and from the expert knowledge obtainable through the thorough costing and exhaustive records of working that are available.