HEREIN the author points out, as a preface to a description of the preventive-maintenance system which he describes, that any system of maintenance is only as good as the men behind it and the honesty with which they use it. The personnel must be convinced that if the system is followed it will help the men to better themselves by pointing out their mistakes. The workers must be made to realize that the thing which really counts is not so much who made the mistake but what the mistake was and why it was made.
Daily, weekly and general inspections are practised in accordance with this preventive-maintenance policy, and details of the procedure with regard to records are given by the author. The company's repair and overhaul program is designed to eliminate guesswork to the greatest possible extent by providing instruments and standard testing-apparatus for determining the actual condition of the various motorcoach units both before and after repairs are made. An outline of the nature of the three classes of inspection is given, together with details of the shop organization, the major items of shop equipment and shop methods.
A well-balanced supply of repair parts is maintained, and the parts record-system is of the perpetual-inventory type. In the author's belief the fundamentals upon which the system is based can be applied with equal success to other types of motor-vehicle maintenance.
In the discussion the value of foremen's meetings is emphasized, and opinions on the subject of operating costs are given. Methods that tend to eliminate road testing are mentioned, and the practice of one company with regard to defective spark-plugs is stated.
