Tyre management for mass transport

Max T Solutions was present at the 2014 South African Bus Operators Association (Saboa) National Conference, promoting its Total Tyre Management (TTM) philosophy. Not only is TTM suited to truck fleets, but it also holds clear benefits for bus operators.

When fleet owners want to reduce costs it is important to focus on improving the overall cost per kilometre (cpk) in their fleets. This is not always easy to incorporate and is why Max T Solutions introduced the Total Tyre Management (TTM) philosophy. It provides fleet owners with the ability to manage their fleet, as well as with the appropriate resources they need to improve on their overall cpk.

With today’s harsh road conditions, it is extremely important to select the correct tyre that will be able to meet the underfoot conditions that the operator may encounter on a daily basis.

This means that the correct tyre pattern should be selected, and the correct casing construction should be considered as well. Other factors that will influence the performance of a tyre will be the distance that will be travelled, the amount of stop-starts and the amount of turning that will be undertaken. These are just some of the aspects touching on the science of Total Tyre Management.

The focus then shifts to maintenance. To ensure a decrease in the possibility of any operational failures, one must have a hands-on approach when checking inflation, rotating tyres and correcting wheel alignment. Max T Solutions offers these services as part of its Total Tyre Management philosophy.

Being able to measure your maintenance costs has also become a major factor in fleets today. Tracking the tyres with proper reporting allows fleet owners to measure improvements and the reduction in cpk. Max T Solutions offers a unique management program called Tyre Maximizer v2. An upgrade on its previous version, it is now web-based, meaning operators can access their data from any internet connection.

This tyre management system assists the operator to track every tyre from cradle to grave, with a wide spectrum of reporting options ranging from tyre performance, remaining tread depth, surveys and scrapping data. This allows fleet owners to make tyre procurement decisions much more easily.

Another component of TTM is its Compressed Retreading Process, which compresses around six percent more rubber onto a casing, thus improving the performance, durability and resistance to cuts and punctures of the tread.

All the company’s manufacturing plants adhere to South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) standards to ensure that a quality product is produced. Retreads have also proved to have an enormous cost advantage when focusing on cpk and considering the total lifecycle of the tyre.

Max T Solutions supplies only the best Bridgestone and Firestone products to the market. As part of the company’s TTM philosophy it introduced the Casing Confidence Pledge. Usually, the TBR manufacturing warranty expires once a tyre has been retreaded. With its Casing Confidence Pledge, should a manufacturing defect cause the original Bridgestone or Firestone casing to fail before the second retread reaches the end of its useable life, Max T Solutions will refund the value of the remaining tread, plus the predetermined value of the casing. All you have to do is have the casings retreaded with the company.

It is not only on the operator’s doorstep that tyres are damaged and that is why its breakdown service plays an integral role in Total Tyre Management. With a fully integrated call centre, Max T Solutions is able to track every relevant piece of information for the successful resolution of a breakdown incident; from the initial call, through fitting the tyre and up to the time it takes to get the vehicle rolling again.

Dedicated call centre staff, with the specific role of handling and tracking breakdowns, are available to Max T Solutions customers twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Vehicles can be pre-loaded onto the system for fleets, which makes it easy to verify the tyre size requested prior to dispatch of the breakdown crew.

From start to finish, Max T Solutions can assist all fleet owners with their tyre management requirements – now that’s Total Tyre Management.