The Mechanical Zone of the Roads and Highways Department is responsible for the provision, operation and maintenance of equipment, vehicles and ferries required to undertake the activities of the Roads and Highways Department.
The activities of the Roads and Highways Department have grown rapidly in recent years. This growth has been accompanied by changes in the Department’s operating systems and contract procedures and further changes are to be expected. In order for the Mechanical Zone to continue to provide an effective service to the Department further modifications are now required to the operations of the Mechanical Zone.
This Policy Statement outlines the rationale behind the various activities of the Mechanical Zone. These activities are designed to ensure the Mechanical Zone can continue to provide the mechanical services required by the Department, now and in the future.
To provide cost effective and efficient support to the construction, operational and maintenance activities of the Roads and Highways Department through the procurement, operation and maintenance of equipment, vehicles and ferries in order to provide maximum benefit to the People of Bangladesh. The Mechanical Zone will follow commercially sound practices to realise the long-term goal of becoming a private sector operation.
The main outputs of the Mechanical Zone are:
a) To establish a plant pool in accordance with a defined business plan to hire out equipment at commercial rates to the growing number of contractors working under FIDIC type of contracts including foreign aided schemes.
b) To provide the travelling public with a safe cost effective and reliable ferry fleet.
c) To develop and establish a core fleet of equipment for routine maintenance operations at sub-division level utilising manageable serviceable equipment.
d) Develop a coherent management strategy for the Department’s fleet of transport vehicles including systems for their procurement and replacement.
e) Dispose old unserviceable equipment, ferries, vehicles and spares.
The Mechanical Zone consists of seven Circles each headed by an officer of Superintending Engineer Level. The total proposed staffing for the Wing is 1,518 persons comprising 52 Class I officers, 68 Class II officers, 856 Class III and 542 Class IV staff. The detailed figures are shown on the attached sheet. These numbers do not include mechanical personnel who are in 1st line workshops or ferry operations staff who are under the control of the civil field divisions.
In order to achieve the outputs the following activities must be undertaken.
a) Establish a core equipment fleet for routine maintenance to be carried out using departmental labour equipment and materials. For effective routine maintenance each sub-division must be equipped with essential equipment in a serviceable working order.
b) Establish a Plant Pool for hire of equipment, in accordance with a defined business plan, at commercial rates to the contractors working under FIDIC type conditions. Prevent hire of equipment at sub-commercial rates from other Government sources. The RHD plant hire equipment pool will act as a catalyst for the development of private pools.
c) Phase out the provision of equipment, which is currently under control of field divisions and provided under Form 2911 contracts.
d) Standardise on a limited range of well-maintained equipment and vehicles. Dispose of uneconomic, unserviceable and scrap equipment commencing with all items of equipment over 25 years old and spare parts not utilised for the past 10 years.
e) Implement a Roller Rehabilitation Programme utilising the existing workshop facilities and the manpower of the Mechanical zone. Initially rehabilitate 100 Rollers and distribute 50% to the plant pool and 50% to the sub-divisions for use on routine maintenance.
f) Develop a business plan for operations of ferries and carry out its effective implementation on commercial lines. Review ferry contracts and maximise income generation from leasing without any detrimental effects to the working lives of the ferries whilst offering an improved and safer service to the travelling public.
g) Make representation to the Ministry of Finance and NBR to allow recycling of income from plant hire and ferry operations
h) Implement a replacement programme for obsolete and unsafe ferries.
i) Review vehicle management systems and introduce procedures for procurement, operation, maintenance and replacement of vehicles. Secure budgetary provisions for the effective management and replacement of vehicles.
j) Further develop computerised management systems for equipment, ferries and stores.
k) Undertake appropriate training of personnel and rotate staff within the Zone to ensure retention of specialised technical and management personnel in the Zone.
l) Review of the Zonal organisation and procedures to ensure that it is consistent with the new operational requirements
