The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1912-11-12
In Motor Truckfleld.

In Motor Truckfleld.
From the beginning persons who
have been following the commercial
motor vehicle industry have been con-
vinced that there was not the ieas (.
SINH arity in the future development
and promiSe of that branch OF the
industry with the other end, the tour
ing car line. The passenger car bus
mess is diVisih,e into no such de-
partments as is the commercial car
line. Passenger cars are either tour
ing or Limousine bodies, or their va
riations. such as read ter. limousine
and coupe. They cater however, to
one general line of business, and
that is the transportation of persons,
as - rule NOT faE. hire. ...s.444. sss.....
In the commercial vehicle world
these who look ahead can forsee a
time when separate makers of COM
mercial vehicles Will devote them
selves to distinct lines of bus ness and
Will not attempt Ia cover the whole
Geld Of building business vehicles
That Is TO say there viii be some
who will build exclusively for brew
ers, others who Will make street clean
ing apparatus only, stiil others who
will attempt TO build nothing but mo-
tor fire apparatus and some VINO VIII
put IN line Of agricultural motor
driven stuff alone There are many
subdivisions called for by the trade
of grocers, dry goods men. contrac-
tors iron founders ana a hundred
other lines.
In 'other words. 1t is to be the age
OF the specialist In the making of
commercial vehicle bodies because ii
win be a case of body building on a
certain variety of chassis each adapted
particularly TO the rype Of work for
which ii Is advertised. Out of the
work Of such specialists would grow
particularly efficient type of corn
mercial vehicle. That IL to say n
concern which has made a very COM
piete and thorough study OF the needs
of the brewing business, for instance.
can develop chassis and bodies enough
10 fiji every requirement. of that line
Of business and TO do that and moth
ing else so completely and consis-
teatly that the brewers WIFI have COM
piete confidence in the goods as turn
ed cut.
There will be no wasting of energy
by applying effort over a very great
number of lines OF business, as is the
case row. 1t takes n good deal of
knowledge OF great number of trades
ana businesses 10 he prepared to sell
trucks of all kinds for ali purposes.
lnasmuch as there are plenty of con-
Germs in every line for truck houses
that are attempting to do a national
business this specialization will not by
any means mean a curtailment of bus
mess, and Will probably mean an econ
envy OF production coupled at the same
time with really greater success from
the output
There are now TO be sure, certain
firms which specialize in certain lines
but that is more the result of acct
dent than design. For instance, u
good many firms which used to build
fire apparatus to be horse drawn haze
simply substituted motor fer the
horse and have gone on specializing
as of old The same il the case Wit,
some who make agricultural tractors
and in a few other lines this also is
true. But those who have gone into
the business with the deliberate in
tention of supplying only a single line
or motor driven apparatus are rare
and in fact are not readily to be found.
The commercial vehicle business
holds forth SO great promise that its
possibilities cannot now be eonjectured
even by those persons who believe
that they can see a good way into its
future. Even though 1t is considerable
and motor vehicles in the large cities
are being used in very great numbers.
so much so that the proportion of
them to horse drawn vehicles is much
& eater than ii seemed possible 1t
would M d few years age tho, surface
has truly been no more than scratch
ed. and II Is a pretty good Indication
OF he possibilities of the business
when ii is realized that there are firms
which could afford to reduce their
lines SO as to attempt to feed only one
branch of business and still find
enough to make manufacturing ex-
tremely profitable.
Long before the age of the special
list in manufacturing such automobiles
comes along 1t is likely that we shall
have the salesman who is a specialist.
In other words. no man ought to be
know so much about SO
man. different types Of business that
he could sell trucks successfully to
any person who comes along. A man
who makes sufficient study of on
line OF business is better able to Sc
trucks in that line. and his study To