If the engine is the beating heart of the truck, and the telematics system is its brain, then the tires are the legs, allowing a truck to run efficiently day in and day out.

One of the top priorities for a truck owner or fleet manager is to reduce vehicle operation expenses and eliminate emergency repairs that can create significant financial setbacks with downtime. Thompson shares this goal and we are committed to finding solutions to lower the total cost of ownership. One simple way to do that is through comprehensive tire management programs. Below are a few tips to help with reducing those costs:

Fuel & Tire Costs:

Fuel and tires are the two highest expenses in trucking. With raw material price increases and rising freight prices, many manufacturers have instituted price increases over recent months and years. This only adds to customer costs. Unfortunately, we cannot control pricing inflation, but Thompson Tire & Retread CAN take an active role in helping customers maximize a vehicle's tread life. Using some of the following best practices to preserve tire casings is a start:

1. Check tire pressures and make the diagnosis and repair when pressure loss is much different than other tires on the same axles.
2. Check tread depth regularly and note any abnormal wear when it begins. Delamination of steel belts of tread rubber usually shows up as cupping on the tread or the tread edges peeling away from the casing. Thompson Tire & Retread adheres to the highest quality standards when retreading tires, but catching these indicators early can help to save the tire before too much damage is done.
3. Rotate and balance. Some experts recommend fleets to rotate tires when they’re one quarter of the way through the tires’ expected mileage; others recommend rotating when halfway through. The key is that you should rotate at least once during the expected mileage of a set of tires or as abnormal wear appears and is addressed. Thompson has all the necessary tools to rotate tires efficiently and provide on-vehicle wheel centering. Our team is trained to detect and prevent any installation errors that can cause vibration and abnormal tire wear issues.
4. Provide a wheel alignment audit and adjustment on steer and all drive axles. To keep tires wearing evenly, the ATA’s Technology & Maintenance Council suggests vehicle alignment should be checked every 80,000 to 100,000 miles or every 12 to 18 months. Thompson has alignment machines in Cedar Rapids, Davenport, and Dubuque. The machines are equipped with the top technology to keep your truck running efficiently and maximize your overall tread depth.
5. Check the suspension for wear and excessive movement on all truck axles and never forget the trailers. Commercial truck suspension wear and movement often cannot be seen with just a static visual check because unacceptable movement and misalignment may take place only under heavy load shift. A good suspension check technique is to perform “dry park checks” with the wheels on a solid surface and the steer axle slowly turned left and right while a second technician performs a visual inspection. Look for wear on metal and around bushings that indicates movement. Again, make sure the entire suspension is checked properly before alignments are performed. This check is often more effective when completed by experience tire technicians.Schedule with Thompson today.
6. Keep a close watch on trailer tire conditions, air pressure, brake performance, suspension wear and tandem axle alignment. Something that's often overlooked is that trailer misalignment can cause driver handling problems, vehicle pull and accelerated wear on steer tires that can often look like front camber and toe wear, even though it is instead caused by trailer tire conditions.

These are a few of the checks and maintenance that you can do to keep your tires running longer, and in turn, reduce fuel costs. Thompson also offers comprehensive Tire Management Programs, customizable for fleets of all sizes. Contact Usto learn more about these robust programs, and how we can help reduce your fleet's total cost of ownership.

Article Source: TireReview.Com