Fleet Maintenance: Is Preventive Maintenance a must have in the Truck and Bus sectors?
March 1, 2024
Fleet maintenance is a crucial aspect of ensuring safety, reducing costs, and improving efficiency. Discover how the use of battery torque wrench tools not only streamlines the torque check step but also allows for significant time and cost savings in fleet maintenance. Also, explore the integration of tire management and wheel tightening processes, with an emphasis on the importance of preventative maintenance.
Why is preventative maintenance important for wheel tightening and tire management?
Preventative maintenance is highly important for wheel tightening and tire management. It allows you to ensure the safety and performance of your vehicles and compliance with the standards and certifications. Tire management and wheel tightening are critical operations that require precision, accuracy, and traceability. Incorrect tightening and tire management can have serious consequences, such as:
- Wheel loss, which can cause material damage, traffic disruption, or injury to people
- Wheel damage, which can affect the braking system, the suspension, or the steering
- Fuel consumption increase, which can impact the environmental footprint and the operating costs
- Non-compliance with the regulations, which can result in fines, penalties, or legal actions
5 preventative maintenance tips for managing your tires
Another important aspect of fleet maintenance and safety is tire management. Tires are one of the largest recurring maintenance costs for your fleet, and they can also affect the safety and performance of your vehicles. By managing your tires effectively, you can save money, reduce risks and improve efficiency. Here are some preventative maintenance tips on how to manage your tires effectively:
- Plan downtime instead of coping with costly emergency downtime. By using telematics and machine learning, you can assess countless variables, such as geography, temperature, tire damage already accumulated, and pressure profile, to diagnose and categorize issues by severity, and to assist in cost-effective maintenance planning1.
- Monitor tire pressure and temperature regularly, and adjust them according to the load, speed and road conditions. Underinflated or overinflated tires can cause uneven wear, reduced traction, increased fuel consumption and increased risk of blowouts1 . Implementing a Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) further enhances tire management by providing real-time data and alerts, allowing for proactive adjustments to maintain optimal pressure levels and overall tire health.
- Inspect tires for damage, wear and tear, and tread depth, and replace them when necessary. Damaged or worn tires can affect the braking, steering and suspension of your vehicles, and increase the risk of accidents1 .
- Rotate tires periodically, and balance and align them properly. This can help to extend the tire life, improve the vehicle handling and stability, and reduce the fuel consumption and emissions1.
- Choose the right tires for your vehicles and operating conditions. Different types of tires have different characteristics, such as load capacity, speed rating, traction, rolling resistance, noise, etc. You need to select the tires that match your vehicles and your applications, and that offer you the best performance and durability.
1 Source – Chevinfleet
Wheel tightening: 6 advantages of using a battery-operated torque wrench
Battery torque wrench tools offer you many benefits for fleet maintenance and safety, such as:
- A guarantee of the safety of your vehicles and drivers, by avoiding wheel loss or accidents
- An improvement of the quality and productivity of your work, by reducing the tightening time and human errors
- An ease of use and transport, thanks to their ergonomics, lightness and autonomy
- A compatibility with different types of wheels, vehicles and environments
- A compliance with the standards and certifications in force
- Versatility to be effectively used in both workshops and on roadside assistance
On the field! Here is a concrete example for a bus fleet maintenance manager
During a bus fleet maintenance process, fleet maintenance technicians start by changing the wheels following cross tightening sequences. In the second step, they do a torque check of each nut in a circular sequence. Very often, the bus is sent back to the workshop to proceed to a second torque check one week after the initial tire set-up. By avoiding the manual torque wrench and using a battery torque wrench with a torque check function, they have been able to reduce the maintenance time by 44%*
Another advantage of using a battery torque wrench is that only one operator is needed during the torque check step. Usually, two technicians are requested to pull down the manual torque wrench and to maintain the torque wrench extension on the nut. But with a battery torque wrench, costs are reduced, they can do it in a few seconds with just one technician.
Fleet maintenance technicians consider battery torque wrenches with a torque check function a must-have for any fleet maintenance process. They are efficient, cost-effective, and easy to use. Battery torque wrenches have helped technicians save time and money while improving the quality of their work.
*Calculations based on real customers applications.
7 criteria for choosing the right battery-operated torque wrench
To choose the right battery torque wrench tool for your application, you need to consider various criteria, such as:
- The torque range, which depends on the type and size of the wheel, the vehicle, and the manufacturer’s specifications.
- The accuracy and repeatability, which determine the quality and reliability of the tightening.
- The battery life, which influences the autonomy and the productivity of the tool.
- The connectivity and the software, which enable the transmission and the analysis of the tightening data.
- The ergonomics and the weight, which affect the comfort and the safety of the user.
- The durability and the robustness, which ensure the longevity and the performance of the tool.
- The certification and the warranty, which attest the conformity and the quality of the tool.
We strive to provide innovative solutions that improve manufacturing efficiency. When it comes to wheel maintenance, one of the key challenges is controlling loose bolts without adding unnecessary torque. That's where our CP86 eBlueTork Torque Check function comes into play, revolutionizing fleet maintenance practices. Control loose bolts with precision, without adding torque
In conclusion, preventative maintenance is a method that allows you to optimize tire management and wheel tightening, by ensuring control and traceability of the tightening process. There are many battery torque wrench tools available on the market, but not all of them are suitable for your needs. You need to choose a tool that meets your specific requirements, and that offers you the best value for your money. Consider brands with extensive experience in wheel tightening.
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