The greasers lubricated the engines, while trimmers shovelled coal out of the bunkers and delivered it at top speed in heavy barrows to the firemen who then shovelled it into the furnaces for seven minutes, cleared white-hot clinkers for seven minutes and then raked the ashes for a further seven minutes. The firemen rested every 21 minutes until a gong sounded and the cycle started again. They worked in four-hour shifts, twice a day.
