Redundancy and backup equipment may seem like overkill, like an extra set of chains already made and hanging in the garage for every vehicle, but having to wait for a replacement to be made during a snowstorm is not practical. While there are a few new tools and machines, much of what is used in the garage has been in use for decades. Some things are only used during a particular season and sit dormant for months at a time, but are invaluable when needed.
The garage is bustling with crews coming and going all day. The sounds of hammering, grinding, drilling and motors running echo off the walls of the cavernous structure. And although the faces of the workers and the name of the street the building sits on have changed over the decades, the garage has stayed much the same.
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- Links of chain await a mechanic to size and fit them onto a tire.
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- Two sets of chains for every vehicle in the fleet hang on the walls. They break often enough that in a storm, you don’t want to wait for one to be made. With dozens of vehicles of all shapes and makes in the fleet, there are many similar parts with different manufacturers.
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- Big machines require big maintenance jobs with big tools. Dozens of giant drill bits of all sizes line the shelves.
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- Vendors’ freebies and business cards are a staple of any garage. LPW is no different.
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- Each vehicle has a different personality and so does each keychain that goes to it.
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- Every inch of every shelf of every room in the garage is filled with spare parts, like these for the fleet of sanders.
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- A hydraulic motor for a sander awaits installation on a bench at LPW.
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- Overlooking the Willow Street Garage at Lewiston Public Works Department.
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