16 Experiment Station Bulletin 367 



every-other-day delivery, and for the month of July, 1945, when the new 

 practice was in effect. Comparisons were made between the two periods 

 in the labor cost, the output per worker; and the miles of truck travel. 



The 10 large distributors, those handling over a thousand quarts 

 daily, had expanded their total physical output as measured in quarts by 

 3 1 per cent in the four-year period. This greater volume had a large in- 

 fluence on costs. The output per retail routeman increased 27 per cent 

 and the average weekly earnings of routemen increased 48 per cent. The 

 large wage increase was partially offset by greater output per man and the 

 labor cost of distribution per quart on routes had increased only 16 per 

 cent. 



With the small distributors, output per man on retail routes increased 

 28 per cent; but because the operators of these small plants personally 

 took an active part in the actual distribution the costs were not deter- 

 mined. The weekly earnings per man hired went up 27 per cent. 



Truck travel per unit of output on retail routes decreased 49 per 

 cent with the large distributors and 55 per cent with the small distributors 

 under the every-other-day system. 



On wholesale routes of the large distributors the output per worker 

 increased 32 per cent and weekly earnings per worker increased only 5 

 per cent, resulting in a lower labor cost per unit. 



It is difficult to compute the additional cost that would be involved if 

 we return to the practice of daily delivery. Due to greater total volume 

 now, it is doubtful if the industry would return to the situation existing 

 in 1941. Some of the savings in efficiency of greater volume per work- 

 er might be retained. It is evident from the study, however, that addi- 

 tional costs in distribution are involved if the industry returns to daily 

 delivery of milk. 



//. Milk Trucking in Colebrook Milkshed. Data were collected 

 m July, 1945, from three milk plants and from truckers and others con- 

 cerning the operation of the Colebrook milk trucking re-organization 

 plan. Fewer operators were producing more milk. Since this had been 

 the trend for several years the great volume had placed an additional bur- 

 den on the trucking equipment available and also on the plant facilities. 

 However, in 1945, very little difficulty was experienced in meeting the 

 health regulations concerning the delivery of all uncooled milk before 

 10 A.M. 



Because all the producers on two long routes had installed cooling 

 equipment, these routes could deliver milk after 10 a.m. Moreover, self- 

 haulers and short-route trucks were coming in earlier, leaving more time 

 for the unloading of long-route trucks. These changes solved the diffi- 

 culties experienced in the previous year. 



The 18 main routes had not changed materially during the year ex- 

 cept that a larger total weight of milk was carried from fewer producers. 

 Against this creditable operation on main routes, more individuals were 

 handling their own milk. Twenty self-haulers, in 1944, traveled about 

 1C2 miles daily to deliver 9319 pounds of milk. In 1945, 27 self-haulers 

 were traveling 164 miles to deliver 12,194 pounds of milk. Approxi- 



