670129 Public Utilities Appraise Medium and Heavy Duty Trucks and Equipment John F. Dooley, Jr. Cincinnati Gas and Electric Co. THIS PAPER is not of an engineering nature, but the points to be presented certainly require a great deal of engineer- ing to have them corrected. Also the problems raised are a result of a product being engineered and manufactured. The public utility fleet managers have felt for a long period that their suggestions have not been heeded by either the truck or the equipment manufacturers. Their efforts, even though common, have been on an individual basis. This paper is being written in an effort to inform both groups of manufacturers of the areas that are considered trouble- some. The ensuing comments may seem critical, but it is sin- cerely desired that they be considered constructively. It is further desired that these items may be incorporated in future designs. The information to be presented here is a compilation of many well-known problems. However, for simplicity and expediency the companies that responded to a small survey sent out to get this information are listed at the end of the paper. The public utility fleets can be proud of the progress they have made in the past ten years and a lot of it cer- tainly can be credited to the truck manufacturers and thebody manufacturers. The industry has expanded with such leaps and bounds that here again some problems are created. From figures compiled by the Automobile Manufacturers Association, the public utility industry has approximately 7% of the total number of fleets, of ten or more in the United States. However, the number of vehicles involved is approximately 13% of the total units. This is exclusive of passenger cars, and any further discussions will be with regard to trucks only. In 1961, The Cincinnati Gas & Electric Co. fleet con- sisted of 520 trucks with an investment of $3,500,000. At the present time there are 738 trucks and associated equip- ment in the fleet at an investment of $6,380,000. Most fleets have probably increased in the same manner, since we are all in the same proverbial "boat." In size, the fleet has increased approximately 40%, whereas the investment has increased approximately 800/0. The only reason for drawing on these figures is to indi- cate, that as an industry, there is a lot at stake and the pub- lic utility fleets represent a good portion of the total fleet picture. Our one big problem has been that as an individual dealing with a zone or regional truck representative, we have not been able to get the answers to our problems, many ABSTRACT Many troublesome areas exist in the public utility indus- try with regard to trucks bodies and equipment. The prob- lems presented are a result of a survey conducted by the author; they include: inadequate space for mounting PTO's on Allison MT-40 transmissions; gearshift linkage trouble;poor accessibility to engine components, battery, radiator, and so forth; lack of space on dual wheel units for tire chains; and inadequate capacity gas tanks; to name a few. The material is presented with the hopes of creating a better un- derstanding between the public utility, the truck manufac- turer, and the body or equipment manufacturer. 1Downloaded from SAE International by University of New South Wales, Sunday, August 19, 20182 of which continue year after year. Possibly in the future, a lot of our present problems can be taken care of through some liaison group for handling such matters. However, let us get into some of the items that you gen- tlemen have submitted for consideration by the truck and equipment manufacturers. The first item to be discussed is inadequate space for mounting PTO's on Allison MT-40 transmissions. This is of great concern to the body and equipment manufacturer, but it certainly ends up in the users lap. On cab over installa- tions the gear shift linkage is very critical. Several in- stances were mentioned that the linkages were so far out of adjustment that