february2023 - 32

retread plant, it's clean; it's well lit; it's organized.
That impression is reality. If they're clean, well lit,
and organized, the chance of you getting a better
product is much higher. "
First impressions on the plant and organization
aren't the only thing to bear in mind when touring,
Hough continued. He suggested learning how
that plant is performing their casing inspections
and believes that shearography (a non-destructive
inspection that looks for separations in the casing
without having to disassemble the casing to do so)
inspections are of much higher quality than just
visual inspections.
Furthermore, this relationship building is an
ongoing process-one not sustained through
only an initial plant visit. And the continuous
face time and communication will yield results,
Hough continued.
" Our team visits on a monthly basis, " he said.
" We look at every tire that they couldn't recap, and
we understand why. What happened? Was it something
that our customer did? Was it something
we did? Did we run it too low for some reason?
We want to understand, and they are very good
at helping us understand exactly.
" And, from time to time, we will tweak our parameters
a little bit, " Hough said. " During those visits
with our tire team, we work together very closely.
And if Bridgestone has something new or something
they think we can do better, maybe stretch
a parameter or our specs, we do that. We're going
with their advice because they're the tire experts. "
" And lean on those guys, " Roanhouse concurred,
speaking on supplier relationships. " They are
resources. They're consultants. They're there to
educate on how to use less of the product, because
it's time over money. Those good commercial tire
dealers that are out there with their expertise-
» Penske Truck Leasing, operating a fleet of more than 415,000 vehicles, retreads close to
half a million tires annually. Nearly all the fleet's drive and tire replacements size 19.5 and
up are retreads. In 2020, this resulted in a decrease in tire waste of 11.5 million pounds.
Penske Truck Leasing
lean into those folks. Their job is to maximize the
return on your tire investment. "
Uys concurred on the importance of relationships,
saying that fleets should leverage frequent
communication with dealers, particularly in the
forecasting process. " This is more important now
than ever to ensure they receive the right products
in this unprecedented environment, " he said.
And, when purchasing a new tire, fleets should
consider it as two purchases, Bandag's Roanhouse
suggested. The casing, he said, is the asset to be
managed-the raw material. The tread is the other
piece of the purchase, and it is designed to be
replaced and perform the functions it needs to-
whether that be traction, wear or fuel efficiency,
driver confidence, etc.
" Tires, like anything else, are return-on-investment
items, " Roanhouse emphasized. " You
don't check your oil by hitting the engine with a
hammer, and tires are much the same. You don't
check your air pressure by kicking it with your
boot or using your highly calibrated sledgehammer
to hit the tire. It just doesn't work that way.
You have to manage the program; you have to
manage the tires; you have to invest, like Penske
does, to get the return on investment of what
you've purchased initially. "
Roanhouse added that the management of the
tire program is multifaceted. A fleet must consider
the corporate initiatives around tire maintenance,
as well as working alongside the maintenance
department to focus attention on tire monitoring
and proper maintenance.
Maintenance considerations
for retreads
There are not many changes for the maintenance
team regarding tire maintenance when it comes to
servicing retreads, but the emphasis will be placed
on prolonging the life of the casing.
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32 Fleet Maintenance | February 2023
1/20/23 11:38 AM
" The integrity of the casing is key to retreading, "
stressed Tommy Bazzell, director of national
account, truck stop & trailer OEM sales, Yokohama
Tire. " Proper psi, proper matching of duals, proper
mounting techniques, proper casing repair practices,
alignment of equipment, and operational tire
awareness of drivers (i.e. safe driving techniques)
can prevent impact breaks and reduce flat spots
due to excessive braking.
" Proper brake adjustment practices can
help prevent flat spotting. This condition can
reduce or prematurely end the life of the casing, "
Bazzell continued. " Maintaining proper psi
through technical means or through pre-, in-,
and post-trip inspections will ensure the integrity
of the casing. "
In-shop activity and establishing strong maintenance
practices for a fleet's tire program will
help get the best TCO out of the tires.
" When that truck is in for an A, B, or C preventive
maintenance-really pay attention to what
those tires are telling you, because spending
a little bit of time looking for different, irregular
wear patterns will really help you understand
how to maximize what you get out of it, "
Roanhouse said, continuing that tire rotations,
matching of tread depths, and inflation monitoring
are critical.
" Pressure. Pressure. Pressure, " he stressed.
" Tires are expensive; air is free; keep some in
'em. You don't have to be perfect about your tire
program, but find an inflation pressure that that
aligns with your typical loads and run that pressure
and you'll eliminate the vast majority of the
issues that you face. "
Penske's maintenance team will immediately
pull a tire from service for repairs if it reads an
inflation pressure at a 15% loss below the recommended
level, Hough explained.
Timing is everything, and keeping a tire operational
for retreading down the road is different
than maintaining a tire until end-of-life.

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february2023

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