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Pipeline Project for Manchester's Multitudes
Page 38
Page 39
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By Ashley Taylor, A.M.I.R.T.E.
THE people of Manchester are fortunate in possessing an excellent water supply from the Lake District. The city sought and obtained powers in 1879 to procure water from Thirlmere and the work entailed was completed, but it was not until after the 1914-18 war that further proposals were made for drawing upon Haweswater, the highest and most easterly of the lakes.
Some work on this scheme was done during 1929-31 before the financial crisis caused it to stop. Later, an aqueduct was brought from Haweswater to Garnet Bridge, a distance of about nine miles. Garnet Bridge was a convenient point for linking with the Thirlmere aqueduct. After the 1939-45 war, however, it became urgent to use the Haweswater supply more fully and it was necessary to construct an entirely new aqueduct. This work is now being undertaken.
Because of improvements in tunneldriving technique, the new line is straighter and shorter than-the old and the tunnels will permit a flow of approximately 100m, gallons a day. Where pipelines are 'necessary, four of 4-ft. diameter will afford a similar capacity.
Three Sections The project is divided into three sections for administrative purposes— northern, middle and southern. All the constructional work in the northern and middle sections is being done under contract,. but Manchester Corporation is employing contractors for the tunnel-driving and using its own labour for the pipelines in the south..
The direct-labour section was formed in 1948 and was equipped with plant for laying large-diameter steel pipes. The resident engineer at Great• Harwood, the centre of operations, told me that it began work at Worsley in the style of a circus, the men packing up their dwellings and moving away when the work was finished.
134 Their second site was near Bury and they later moved to the present Great Harwood site. An A.E.C. Regal coach is an important unit in the road transport fleet, for some 30 key men have their homes in Manchester and have to be carried to their work every day. A.E.C. Matadors have proved especially efficient in hauling the 4-ft. pipes, the longest of which weigh 41 tons. The pipes arc unloaded by crane at the railhead and are placed on Taskers pole trailers to be towed to the side of the trench.
Utmost braking ability and highpowered engines are required in vehicles as many hilly roads are encountered and much of the haulage is across country. Five Matadors are normally employed on this work. Two have been fitted with steel tipping bodies by Bromilow and Edwards, Ltd., and can be used for either towing or tipping.
Among other vehicles in the fleet are four Austin 3-5-ton side-tippers for general purposes, three ex-Army Chevrolet four-wheel-drive machines (which, after four years' service, now require to be cannibalized), three LandRovers, an Austin A70 and an Austin A40. A Jensen platform lorry is mainly used for moving stores. One Chevrolet, which carries a 180-gallon tank, distributes fuel and lubricants to plant on the line of works. Special appliances in the fleet include two Aveling Barford 4+-cubic-yd. dumpers. a Muir-Hill 3-cubic-yd. dumper, a Dyson 25-ton 18-ft.-long low-loading • trailer and an ex-W,D. 18-ton 12-fllong trailer.
Lorry-mounted Cranes
Four lorry-mounted cranes are continuously employed on arduous work. They comprise two ex-U.S. Army Loraines, a Thornyeroft-Coles eightwheeler and a Michigan TLDT20. These machines have to be able to handle large-diameter pipes of lengths up to 30 ft. and to place them up to 22 ft. safe working radius. Although extreme economy is not a prime consideration in this type of work, every attention must be given to operational savings, and for this reason the Michigan crane was recently converted from a petrol-engined machine into an oiler by Regent Diesels, Ltd., Leeds.
Both the prime mover and crane engines were changed. The prime mover was a Hercules six-cylindered unit and this was replaced by a G.M. six-cylindered two-stroke engine. The Chrysler eight-cylindered crane engine was exchanged for a G.M. threecylindered two-stroke. As rebuilt, the crane has ample power for dealing with 7-ton loads. Standard G.M. parts were used, but they were specially assembled by Regent Diesels, Ltd., as the space for the prime-mover engine was limited. An extension of 3 ins, was necessary at the front before a new radiator could be fitted.
The vehicle engine now gives
125 b.h.p. at 1,700 r.p.m. The propeller shaft was not shortened, neither were the driving controls altered. The original gear change and transmission hand brake continue to be employed. The crane engine is now a composite unit with a radiator, and the whole assembly, including the clutch, may be drawn out from the rear for overhaul.
Excavators for digging trenches and tractors for stripping top soil, backfilling and reinstating make up the fleet, which is under the supervision of a qualified plant engineer for maintenance purposes. _ Surprisingly good servicing facilities are available in view of the nomadic nature of the project. All the buildings employed are temporary transportable structures of the Romney or Nissen type. Concrete floors have been laid at Great Harwood and the equipment includes electric drills, grinders, valve grinders and welding plant. Inspection pits are built-in on the site. Routine maintenance, including overhauls, is undertaken here, although specialized tasks are sent to outside contractors. Fuel pumps and injectors receive the attention of Injection Maintenance, Ltd., Burnley, a few miles away. Maintenance and operating costs are probably high because hauls are extremely short and machines are largely worked at peak capacity. However, a mobile fleet is a necessary part of the organization and the criterion is not the expense of day-to-day running, but the cost of operation in relation to the yardage of pipeline laid.
Each section foreman has a jobbing lorry available at a moment's notice, and each gang is provided with a pneumatic-tyred caravan as a headquarters. The paint shop is still maintained on the site at Bury. Frequent attention to the finish is called for as machines are exposed to the elements throughout their lives. The vehicles were painted turquoise blue, the colour of the waterworks fleet, for a long time until battleship grey was found to be more economical.