After the pit was extended to the full length of the workshop, it was possible to get two eight wheelers on at once. We made a wooden walkway to fit between the pit wall top rails to allow safe movement across the pit saving much time. Ron also had the builder install a smaller pit, a bit shorter than an eight wheeler, centrally, with the roller door at the rear of the workshop. This pit was used for doing in-frame overhauls and such like, thus freeing up the main pit line. When not in use, this pit was covered with 8in x 3in boards.
There is a saying, “there is no smoke without fire” and so it came to pass with the new pits and shift system, Ron introduced his new servicing regime based on what he had observed at the Cannock Street, Leicester, Government Vehicle testing facility, when we had taken our Atkinson eight wheeler there for a test. It would be pertinent here to mention that Ron had built up his business to the extent he was using a roster of 115 other hauliers, possibly some of these were operating using Fletcher ‘A’ licenses as it was believed that AF held quite a number of ‘A’s’. At one time on a Saturday morning, Ron’s company was delivering 2,000 tons of coal to Hams Hall power station in Birmingham for the West Midlands Gas Board.
We operated 15 ‘A’ licensed trucks from Ibstock (that wasbe directed to one of the local pits to drive a de-registered truck on stocking ground duties. The first shift would carry out a full inspection and defects noted on a sheet clipped to a board hung on the front of the truck (the check list was made up by Ron, it was a condensed copy of the test station sheet, this sheet would remain in use until the next due service additional sheets could be added, these were kept on a shelf along with all inspection sheets near Ron’s office, until removed by Ron for filing). As each item was attended to, the mechanic would note down repairs done and initial it in the end column of every heading, all adjustments were done, oils changed and tyres attended to, the swinging rear shackle plates on front and rear springs were adjusted as required and lastly the steering alignment was checked and adjusted using a ‘Dunlop Alignment’ gauge, this was always a two-man operation, as time was short, all members of the workshop staff were engaged, everything completed that day before the late shift finished for the day. Around 4pm when trucks started to arrive after a day’s work, any small job was also attended to. Next day another truck would take its place and so on until all 15 had been serviced. If a truck could not be finished requiring major work, it would be held over to next day and the system stepped back accordingly. Ron’s idea was that fitters would work overtime to get the truck out if possible, but they were not paid overtime, if they worked say two hours over, they would start work two hours later the next morning.
