During 1980, Polmadie Depot in Scotland took the unusual step of placing one of its Class 08 shunters, 08 173, into departmental stock. Very little seems to have been documented about this event, and indeed, even today the reason, or the locomotives use still remains a mystery. Departmental locomotives of the time were given a xDB xxxxxx number and so this machines simple PO1 again went from the norm. From the photograph on the right, its renumbering was simply a case of covering over the old with masking tape and crudely stenciling PO1 in its place. Even its new allocation seems to have been forgotten about, with ED still remaining from its last location. The locomotive was pictured at its home depot, Polmadie, on 26th June 1981.