Bridgestone distributor Nasser Bin Abdullatif Alserkal Establishment has helped keep the wheels of business moving even more smoothly over the last year for National Readymix Concrete Company, through its innovative tyre management service.

The UAE company implemented Bridgestone's Total Tire Management Program (TTMP) for the readymix operator in 2001, and the initiative has proved a great success, according the company, which is the sole distributor of Bridgestone tyres in Dubai and the Northern Emirates.

"The TTMP is designed for commercial fleet customers in order to achieve the maximum tyre life with the minimum efforts and at no extra cost," a company spokesman says. "Bridgestone understands that the operating cost has to be continually reduced to increase its clients profit and that tyres are the customers investment and they should get returns on their investment. TTMP ensures this, as it is based on thorough studies of the customers operations."

The TTMP process starts with analysing scrap tyres to find out common tyre damage in the past and thus rectifying the causes.

Weight studies are then conducted to find out actual carrying loads, with Bridgestone's unique 'Dyne-A-Mat' weight scale, which is completely portable and can check loads acting on an individual tyre as well as axle. This service is free to all Bridgestone customers and the scale can check up to 15 tonnes per tyre.

Operating conditions - which include on/off road surfaces, cruising speeds etc - are then investigated.

Based on the above studies, the right size and pattern and tyre specification are recommended to the customer to achieve the maximum mileage with minimum cost.

Once the selection process is done, tyre monitoring activities come into force. "Although monitoring tyre performance till the end is a tough job and needs patience, this is where customers come to appreciate the meaning of tyre performance," the spokesman says.

During this period, the tyres are constantly kept under vigil, and a maintenance programme is given to the customer, which includes seminars on maintenance (Bridgestone's key phrase for this seminar is SMART), correct tyre pressures, tyre rotations methods, and thorough monthly inspections of tyres. Reports are generated at every stage of the TTMP, explaining the process and benefits of each stage.

"Bridgestone understands that in the future the customer's technical staff have to implement this programme by themselves. Therefore, all training is conducted with this in mind," the spokesman says. "Bridgestone's future involvement includes better products and tyre management tools such as its Tire Tracking software. Bridgestone staff also conduct tyre pressure surveys to increase customers' awareness to this most crucial maintenance point."

"Once the tyres are removed after completing their full life, the operating cost per kilometre (CPKM) of each tyre, axle by axle is determined," the spokesman says. "A big difference will be seen between tyres used without TTMP and those maintained in programme, which basically means more mileage at the same cost. Bridgestone's focus is always on how to reduce this CPKM figure and therefore, increase the client's operating profit."

Meanwhile, Bridgestone's G580 tyre has proved the toughest of the lot in the UAE, emerging a best-seller since its launch in the market five years ago, according to the spokesman.

He explains: "The UAE has one of the toughest operating conditions for heavy trucks and trailers, due to high ambient temperatures reaching as high as 50 deg C in mid-summer. In addition, UAE roads are among the best in the world, making it easy for heavy trucks to travel at high speeds of 100 km and more, and trucks carrying huge loads of up to 100 tonnes (GVW) are common.

"Such severe operating conditions reduce tyre life very much and cause tyre damage such as separation, cord break-up etc, due to the high flexion rate imposed by such speeds and loads. Fleets operators in the UAE know that only brands which are specially constructed and designed to cope with these specific conditions can survive.

"In 1997, Bridgestone introduced such a product to give users a tyre which is able to work in these conditions and provide longer life with high durability. Taking into consideration the operating conditions in the UAE, Bridgestone introduced the G580 after many years of R&D and actual field testing in the UAE.

"The G580 has a unique cap and base construction: the cap compound offers long tyre life, excellent resistance to cutting and the base compound offers high heat resistance. The wide tread and complex grooves, which has a large tread volume renders long tyre life with little irregular wear. The superior casing durability ensures that the tyre can sometimes - even in such severe conditions - be retreaded more than once."

"It is only five years since the G580 was introduced in the UAE market and it has since become the most popular truck tyre in its category," he says. "The latest surveys show the G580 has the biggest market share in truck tyres."