Maintenance is a serious business with the St. Louis Po­lice Department.

Two years ago the depart­ment checked its books and found that its maintenance procedures were costing a lot of unnecessary money. Not only had the regular inspec­tions failed to prevent many failures, but untimely break­downs were resulting in serious down time and lost man-hours.

So, under the direction of Maj. Andrew Aylward, com­mander of the department's bureau of services, a new pre­ventive maintenance program was instituted. The program was formulated by Ernst and Ernst, nationwide manage­ment consultant firm with the approval of St. Louis Police Chief Curtis Brostron.

The assigned driver is the key to the new program which went into effect in January 1959. He is responsible for bringing his car in for a maintenance check every 1,500 miles. To as­sist him, every car has a visor card listing the date of the last check and what was done.

According to Henry C. Han­sen, repair service manager, each car has a preventive maintenance folder with a check list so that the mechan­ics and servicing personnel are able to perform the necessary work.

A standard 1,500 mile check consists of an oil change and lubrication plus a check of vital parts. The oil is refilled in the car from a convenient pumping system that originates from the oil drum. The breath­er cap and air cleaner are both cleaned every 3,000 miles with the filter element replaced every 4,500 miles.

Hansen said the department has a "Special D" 6,000 mile inspection that includes brake adjustment, front wheel bear­ing service, tire rotation and balancing and complete wheel alignment. Spark plugs are changed every 12,000 miles and the transmission fluid, dif­ferential grease and universal joints serviced every 18,000 miles.

Brake shoes are simply ex­changed with the local Laher Spring jobber who guarantees 20,000 miles on each lining.

Each car is washed and vac­uumed at least once a week, according to Hansen.

Tires come in for particular attention with the department. Because of the heavy duty and the rough St. Louis streets, tires are replaced approximately every 12,000 miles, said Hansen. Because of the frequency of change, the department car­ries only a $2,200 tire inven­tory.

The parts inventory usually averages about $5,500, Hansen said, with the objective being an "adequate but minimum" inventory.

"The jobbers we deal with provide excellent service and help us to hold our inventory at a low level and still permit efficient operation," said Hansen.

The department's mainte­nance shop is equipped to per­form all maintenance chores, including engine and transmis­sion overhaul as well as body work and painting.

The maintenance staff con­sists of 25 mechanics and three supervisors. Because of the round-the-clock operation, two mechanics are on duty at all times. A jeep is used for emer­gency repairs and a 1 ½ ton truck for towing disabled ve­hicles.

The average yearly mileage turned in by the department's vehicles is 30,000 miles with replacement planned for every 75,000 to 80,000 miles.

"On the surface it might ap­pear we are pampering our ve­hicles, Hansen said, but you must remember that police ve­hicles pile up quite a bit of idling time on the engine."

The department's 438 ve­hicles consist mainly of Chevrolets, Fords and Plymouths, al­though there are a few Dodge, Pontiac, Oldsmobile and Chrys­ler models. In addition, there are 29 tri-cars.

Maj. Aylward said that this year for the first time replace­ment is being done on a stag­gered basis. Deliveries are be­ing made in each month of a four month period that began in December. All cars are pur­chased on a competitive bid basis.

By operating this way, Ayl­ward said, the depart­ment is better able to better prepare the cars for police service.

"Also, by waiting until De­cember, we are assured of avoiding some of the small bugs that sometimes occur in new cars," said Aylward.

Most of the cars used are two door models. All the cars used for traffic work have eight cylinder engines. There are no compacts in the St. Louis police fleet.

Aylward said that he has studied reports from other po­lice departments concerning the use of compacts as police vehicles and has concluded that the economies gained do not offset the uniformity of stand­ard car maintenance.

Each car in the fleet is equipped with a two-way radio, a desk rack and side view mir­ror. Every other car has a spe­cial gun rack and most have a siren-light on the roof. All Chrysler cars have a Leece-Neville alternator; other makes have heavy duty generators with corresponding regulators.

Two licensed radio repair men work each of the three shifts a day repairing and serv­icing the department's 550 two-way radio units. About 25 sets a day are repaired. Units are removed as the cars are re­placed and installed in the new cars.

Both Aylward and Hansen agree that the department's stepped up maintenance pro­gram has paid off in both dol­lar savings and more effective applied working time by the force. They offer proof in the average cost per mile figures for their vehicles. The 1961 cost per mile ranged from a high of 7.25 cents in June to a low of 6.0 cents per mile in July.