5 ‘Little’ Ways Dealers Can Help Fleets
Sometimes, it’s the little things that make a good program better, even great. However, some little things can haunt fleets unexpectedly, creating disabling problems that can be elusive to diagnose and difficult to correct. We tire people tend to focus on the big issues – proper tire selection, application, and maintenance, with inflation pressure checks
Defining a Tire Strategy
Researching, designing and implementing a “strategic plan” sounds pretty impressive, but I’ve always been a bit confused about such vague terms. In hopes of some clearer understanding, I consulted my dusty college dictionary and quickly learned that the primary definitions of “strategic” are related to warfare, military planning and the like. Further down the list,
The Air in There: Exercising Air Control an Important Tire Life Consideration
Any discussion of tire maintenance centers around proper inflation maintenance. It is, after all, the cornerstone of any well designed program to maximize tire treadlife, casing durability and fuel economy. There is precious little published information available, though, on exactly what should – or can – be controlled when it comes to the type of
Avoid The Big Worries
Sometimes, it’s the little things that make a good program better, even great. However, these little things can just as easily haunt you and even create disabling problems that can be elusive to diagnose and difficult to correct. We tire people tend to focus on the big issues of proper tire selection, application and maintenance,
Technology, Regulations Can Add Value for Fleets
Among the many technology topics on the agenda during the 53rd annual Electric Utility Fleet Managers Conference (EUFMC), a pair of presentations on tire issues was of great interest to fleets operating light- and medium-duty vehicles. “To optimize tire design and performance, tools like finite element analysis (FEA) allow designers to look inside a new
Clean, Dry Air Supply
Discussions on tire maintenance often turn to proper inflation maintenance as the most important cornerstone of a well-designed program to maximize tire treadlife, casing durability and fuel economy. However, precious little information is available on exactly what should be controlled to achieve this pressurized condition inside the tire/wheel contained inflation cavity. Since nearly all medium
Making the Case: Super Wide Tires Being Accepted as Positive Evidence Builds
Any change in truck components, including tires and engines, certainly qualifies as a major item affecting operating costs. And, changes are viewed with considerable skepticism until field proven ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’ Consider that the justice system in the U.S. uses this difficult-to-overcome standard in evaluating criminal cases yet favors a somewhat relaxed standard called
It’s Not Easy Being Single
I sometimes wonder how our industry ever managed the leap of faith it took to convert from gasoline to diesel engines or from tube-type to tubeless tires. Having lived through much of the latter example, I remember several key observations. The performance and cost-savings advantages of tubeless tires were obvious early on, especially to tire
Treadwear 101
There is much to consider when purchasing tires – including brands, tread designs and casing types. Casing types fall into two categories of performance: hard (Tier 1) and soft (Tier 2). Original treadlife and casing durability/retreadability are the basic Tier 1 values, while ride/handling, traction, stone holding, casing size (for retread interchangeability and dual matching)
Growth Opportunities Still Require Vigilance
Lately, there has been a lot of information about the influx of new equipment to the trucking industry. The combination of more stringent 2007 federal emissions requirements and a generally healthy freight volume have produced robust new vehicle orders for both power units and trailers. Certainly, some of these truck orders reflect a pre-buy to
Don’t Miss the Fine Points
The words “training” and “safety” should be closer in the dictionary, since training creates knowledge of new information, and information is the key to safety. This is especially true in a workplace where mechanical items, specialized tools, and a wide variety of equipment is routinely encountered. Trucks and their subsystems, including tires and wheels, provide
Price of Progress: Emerging Trends Heating Up Commercial Tire/Wheel Assemblies
All good tire people know that proper inflation is the lifeblood of tire durability. It’s often taken for granted that modern radials, when properly maintained, perform admirably in demanding high-speed, line-haul service. That hasn’t always been the case, however, as some of the more experienced (read: older) maintenance managers might recall. In the latter days