UNATTENDED SELF-SERVICE

With the growth of self-service by prepayment at petrol stations in Britain, an opportunityto scrutinise the operation of BP's "pound note acceptor" was eagerly grasped by more than 60 senior local authority officials and petroleum officers at a demonstration in Manchester on April 30th. The event -the first of its kind organised by BP in this country-was staged at the Grand Hotel, where a note acceptor and blender pump were set up on a platform and subjected to critical study both at first hand and through questions to senior representatives of BP and the unit's manufacturers.

M_r. J. M. Baker,. a Regional Sales Development Adviser, told the au~1ence that a big increase in night traffic and the mo~ntmg cost of manning petrol stations were two of the chief reasons for the rapid growth of selfservice at garages. "We have nine million cars on the roads today and we shall have 13 million by 1970" said Mr. B.aker. "The R.~.C. tell us that the tendenc'y for motonst.s to travel at mght ~as been steadily growing for five or six years-yet wage nses and the effects of S.E.T. h~ve increased the cost of a typical garage night shift by nme per cent". . Mr .. Baker said that, apart from economic considerations.' it ~as becoming increasingly difficult for garages to obtam mght staff, particularly for isolated stations, beca.use ,?f the "human risk in sitting in a lonely kiosk at mght . Yet coastal roads and trunk roads carrying heavy traffic were busier after dark than they had ever been. "Those stations which do give a long service operate ~ery freq1;1ently .on margi!lal profitability at night and any mcrease m their operatmg espense can seriously affect their via~ility", he said. "In our own group we have seen a reduction over the last few months in stations open at night, and the A.A. tell us that the number of all-night garages registered with them levelled out a year ago and is now in decline". M~. Baker emphasis.ed that safety of operation had been a pnmary cons1derat10n when BP introduced the note acceptors. The risks of vandalism, too were very slight"hool!~ans are l_lOt ~oing to sp~nd a p'ound just to ~reate h~voc .. Hool~gamsm at filhn~ stations-even simple thmgs hke slashmg hoses or breaking pump glasses-was not, in fact, a serious problem. Mr. W. F. Hende~son, North West Regional Manager for BP, said th~t, with 18,000 self-service grocery stores in the United Kmgdom, the public was now "self-service orientated". BP had mad~ a long study of self-service, and had introduced 2,400 com-acceptor petrol pumps at its service stations in West Germany. "In Britain we decided to pioneer the pound note acceptor, which we preferred because of the low denominations of coinage when related to the price of petrol", he said. "Understandably we have encountered resistance from some local authorities to permitting unattended self-service by prepayment, largely because of fears about the flammability of petrol. We believe that, with the collaboration of the unit's manufacturers, the Wayne Tank and Pump Co., Ltd., we have developed the pound note acceptor to an extent where such risks are minimal. "In West Germany, there is a safety record of 16 million refuelling operations and only two incidents, neither of which proved dangerous and both of which could have happened at a conventional station". There were 25 note acceptors in use in Britain and the total would top 100 this year. Mr. George Ashley, of the Wayne Tank and Pump Co., Ltd., explained the note acceptor's built-in safety devices in detail. The cabinet was designed for either wall or plinth mounting, with anchoring points to prevent bod.ily removal. It was formed from heavy gauge steel plate with the door edges formed to prevent jemmying, and with a welded-in pin in the massive, full-depth door hinge. T~e strong door-locking linkage was protected by a ten-pm tumbler cylinder lock for maximum security. The enclosed cash-drawer-inside the cabinet-was protected by a second lock of similar design, but with a different combination. Key changes were never repeated. Each pump housing, and the changeover mechanism from automatic to manual operation, had the same type of ten-pin tumbler cylinder lock, but, again, combinations. The note-acceptor head security device which rejected forgeries and Nevertheless, it was a robust unit which was with diffe~ent was a h1~hphoto-copies. tamper-proof and resistant to external physical damage. The cabinet was fitted with a thermostatically-controlled fan-heater to maintain the electronic and electrical components and circuits at correct working temperatures, and to avoid malfunction due to condensation. Each pump control module was equipped with an electric time-switch. This allowed three minutes from the time the nozzle was removed and the pump switched on for the delivery to be completed. Experience, he said, had shown .that three minutes was more than adequate for the delivery ~f a pound's worth of fuel but the time switch protected agamst the possibility of a hazard if a delivery was not completed and the nozzle not replaced. Mr. R. P. Holdaway, Chief Inspector of Weights and Measures, Shrewsbury, told his colleagues about Shrewsbury's successful experience with the Note Acceptor since it was installed in the town last September. Conditions of Licence had been drawn up after consultation with the manufacturers of the unit and the Fire Service. Siting was all important and, in this instance, the site was a modern one on the fringe of a residential area with a busy well lit road, upon which a fair amount of traffic passes through the night. There had been no reports of vandalism or even incidents on the site since the installation has been in operation, and the local authority is well satisfied in its introduction.

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George Ashley Demonstrates

Mr. Holdaway concluded by saying that a petroleum store is always a potential hazard, one could not pretend that this type of installation was perfectly safe, but the experience up to now in Shrewsbury has shown that it is no more dangerous than a conventional station.

Discussion ...

Mr. J. R. were taken Roberts, Manchester, asked what precautions against customers who inadvertently left the petrol pump nozzle in the car a~ter filling up. Mr. Ashley said that the nozzles used in conjunction with the unit were serrated so that, if the car was driven away, the nozzle unit would grip the petrol tank and break from the pump. No spirit would escape because a valve in the hose closed immediately the break was made. Mr. W. C. Adamson, St. Helens, wanted whether one note acceptor could control more to know than one pump. of note He also raised the question acceptors on forecourts. of the safe positioning

J'1r. Ashley said that there was no reason why as many as six pumps could not be made to operate from one note accep~?r. All t~at _w~s necessary was the addition of five more. modules w1th1i:i the note acceptor unit. On safety, he pointed out that neither the oil industry nor the pump manufacturers could take risks, and would not, for example, recommend note acceptors in a "No. 1 hazard area''.- It was a height of determine its felt that a four feet, proximity note acceptor should be placed at but that site conditions would to the pump. In reply to. further questions on operational safety, Mr. Ashley said. that all pumps used with note acceptors must be fitted with automatic nozzles which would cut off the petrol supply if the tank was in danger of over-fillinl?· Damage b~ vandals to the note acceptor could not accidentally tngg~r off a supply of petrol because a switch operat10n was necessary on the pump itself. direct Mr. N. G operational . Perry, Staffordshire C.C., asked why, if the hazards were so few, pound note acceptors could not be introduced at all petrol stations, removing

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