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Spoiling the Shop

8th November 1946
Page 32
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Page 32, 8th November 1946 — Spoiling the Shop
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

for a few feet

IOMITTED in the two previous articles to state that the vehicles used by the operator who asked me to deal with the problem of planning a repair shop are all petrolengined_ That information is necessary, for someone may ask why I have made no provision for cleaning and testin& plant for atomizers.

A piece of equipment which I unintentionally omitted from the schedule in the previous article is a portable welding set. Something of the kind is essential in any properly equipped repair department.

It is one thing to have ideas about planning a repair shop, and another to make a good job of that planning when the space available is insufficient. With the first article of this series (October 25) was included a description of the space available, position of windows, doors, etc. I

had misgivings at the time about the size of the premises, and the attempt I have made in this articl., to dispose of the essential equipment and provide for the execution of

repairs has confirmed that view. I should recall that there are 50 vehicles to be handled.

The first snag was the position of the doors. There are windows available only along the north wall. That being so, the workshop, benches, tools and equipment must be at that end of the building. If I put the workshop section there, one of the two doors in the garage, as originally planned, cannot be used, and I have therefore made the assumption that that door can be moved.

No Room to Manceuvre

Having taken up 12 ft. of the 43-ft. length of the building for -the workshop, there are only 31 ft. left in which to house the vehicles, and, if I am to accommodate three, there will be no room to manceuvre. This brings me to my .second conclusion—that there must be a continuous sliding door extending for 25 ft. along the west wall of the building beginning 1 ft. away from the partition which separates the workshop from the main building, and running continuously to within 5ft. of the other end. If the reader .glances at the accompanying sketch and sees the position which would be taken up by three vehicles, he will appreciate that this door arrangement is inevitable. Each of the vehicles must be driven straight into position for repair and straight out again. No turning is possible.

There is no space for an hydraulic lift or for a lubrication battery. Provision for lubrication must, therefore, be made in the main garage where the vehicles are housed, which is not a good idea, because the arrangements for maintenance and repair are split, and the personnel engaged to deal with those operations are divided.

I am given no indications as to the height of the building, and it may not be possible to put the stores and offices over the workshop. I shall, however, assume that that arrangement is practicable.

A Sunken Workshop It will be noted that I have provided for two pits, open at one end, and have a sunken workshop with benches, the floor of which is on the same level as that of the pits. Access to this sunken workshop is by stairs, as shown, leading up into the main workshop, where the tools and equipment are available.

I have suggested an additional ordinary door giving access from outside direct to the workshop, and another, wider than usual, between the workshop and the rest of. the building. The second door is necessary so that engine units, etc., can conveniently be moved from chassis into the workshop for attention.

In the schedule of equipment I have made sufficient provision for lifting tackle. In a shop of this size, all that is necessary is a floor crane. As regards the location of the.. equipment, 1 have started first with the cleaning tank, which is better, in my view, away from the workshop. I -have put it in a cornet with a partition to separate it from the

rest of the building. . .

The general arrangement of the workshop is planned in accordance with several which I have seen and appears to me to be the most convenient. I start with the battery charging equipment, which is isolated just by the small door giving access to the workshop and backs against the cosi

tion where the original main door was intended to be. The screen shown is necessary to protect the worker, batteries and equipment from the draught which would inevitably come from the often-open door of the workshop.

Having to provide for a door between workshop and repair shop is somewhat inconvenient, as it robs me of a certain amount of floor space. I have taken the next space for the tyre-changer, and close to that I suggest that the vulcanizer should be stood. There is, admittedly, not much room for tyres, but the engine stand shown comparatively near to the tyre-changer is on castors and can be moved farther .up the shop.

The lathe, the sensitive drill and the bench, with such equipment as the bench grinder, are obviously to be located along the end wall under the windows. At the far end of the same wall—in the north-east corner—I'have made provision for the installation of lockers in .which loose tools can be stored.

I am a little diffident about' the position of the air corn pressor. I have placed it alongside the partition between workshop and repair shop, but it might possibly be more convenient to put it in the space marked X in the repair shop, next to the partition which screens off the cleaning tank. The usual type of air compressor needs practically no attention, being self-starting and stopping, and as pipes will have to be carried from it to the workshop where compressed air is required, the actual location of the -equipment itself is not of great moment. I have also made provision for the portable welding set.

I am quite content that I have chosen the right position for the press. As shown, it is convenient to the hand of anyone working in the shops, and there is plenty of room around it to manoeuvre, as is necessary when putting long bars and things of that kind into position.

In my opinion, this workshop, instead of being 30 ft. in width by 43 ft. in length, needs to be not less than 40 ft. preferably nearer 50 ft.—wide and at least 80 ft. long.

If a building of this size were made available, the plan that I have drawn would still be of use. The extra space is needed only to accommodate additional vehicles, and to make it possible to manceuvre the vehicles in and out. The arrangement of the workshop itself, which is my main concern, can stay unaltered, but I would make provision for a lubrication battery and hydraulic hoist, and I would place these next to the second pit, occupying the same relative position underneath the point where I have shown the third lorry to be standing.

Access to the stores and offices above would be by stairs over those steps leading down to the pits.

The lavatory's position is again selected as the outcome of my experience, but a matter of this sort is usually determined by the position of the drains and may well be left to the architect. S.T.R.

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