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Burden or opportunity?

25th October 2012
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Page 39, 25th October 2012 — Burden or opportunity?
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

CM brought Goodyear together with a trio of respected operators to debate the effect and value of the EU tyre label directive that comes into force next week

Words: Justin Stanton / Images: Graham Richardson Most operators know that tyres aren’t just black round things: they know there’s an awful lot of hard science involved in their development, but until recently only those operators big enough and with the available time could be truly sure of how effective their preferred tyres were. However, as of the end of next week, when the EU tyre labelling directive comes into force, every operator in the UK will know how effectively their tyres perform.

The directive means every new tyre (with a few exceptions) must be sold having been measured against three criteria: rolling resistance, wet grip and noise.

Adam Stanton, product marketing manager of commercial tyres at Goodyear Dunlop, sets the scene: “Labels are mandatory from 1 November. Tyres must carry the sticker or, in the case of truck tyres, [the results on the label] must be communicated to the operator on the invoice and prior to the agreement to purchase [given that the tyre will be fitted in your yard or at the roadside – you don’t see it being pulled off the shelf like a car tyre].

“Tyre grading is via self-certification among the premium manufacturers; the budget and value brands don’t have the facilities to self-certify, so the likes of TUV or MIRA might do it for them. There are 20 pieces of equipment around Europe that can grade tyres – we have one, Michelin has one, Bridgestone has one, etc – and the EU ensures that they are calibrated to the right standard.

“If a manufacturer believes another manufacturer’s grading isn’t right, they can ask for it to be tested by the EU. You can be fined quite heavily if you falsely represent your tyre performance.” CM invited a handful of operators to debate the value and effect of the directive with Goodyear. Terry Dillon is fleet services director at Ryder, which spends around £10m a year on tyres and is supplied by Bridgestone. He says: “We’ve been procuring tyres in the UK for more than 40 years and we have experienced engineers who make the decisions on what tyres we want and what works best for our customers. It’s a long and complicated decision choosing tyres; it’s not just noise, wet grip and fuel economy.” Wyvern Cargo transport manager Trevor Green says his 70-strong fleet also runs on Bridgestone as a first choice, with Continental, then GT. Wyvern spends around £150,000 a year on tyres and is trialling Michelin and Bandvulc. Green is aware of the new legislation and “waiting to see from our suppliers how our current tyres fit within the criteria”.

“We’re similarly keen to see where our current tyres fit within the bands,” says Steve Granite, MD of Abbey Logistics, which runs 200 tractors, all on Michelin. He voices a widespread concern: “I’m sceptical of what manufacturers will do price-wise: [an existing] tyre gets graded AA and the price goes up.” He echoes Dillon’s point: “I don’t see the relevance of the noise criteria, but it’ll be an eye opener for me to see the different grading on fuel and stopping distance. I don’t think [the directive] has gone far enough. A key criteria for us is the life cycle of the tyre; it’s OK saying ‘pay more for this tyre and you’ll get greater fuel return’, but that’s no good if the tyre only lasts six months – a less fuel-efficient tyre might last a year. The danger of the [three] criteria is that people will just focus on those.” Green says: “Road noise is a moot point. That’s more to do with the road surface!” He also says durability is a key factor: “Since we moved to premium brands, downtime due to tyre damage has reduced considerably.” Stanton understands their reactions: “Labelling is not the full story; when we develop tyres we operate on the basis of 50 different criteria rather than three.” CM asks if the operators expect either to use green tyre performance as an additional sales tool or that customers will pressure them to specify the best-performing tyres.

“Wyvern is committed to the green issue. Our customers expect us to be doing our part – in some cases they will only allow us to work for them if they are satisfied on this point. We will be adding it to our green portfolio,” says Green.

Dillon adds: “I suspect we will be asked questions [about tyre performance] by lots of our customers. We respond to many government tenders: they always want to know what your green credentials are, and this is one more piece of information we can put to them. It’s helpful that there’s a standard measure now.” Granite notes that all the marketing being deployed and the education being carried out by tyre manufacturers means “you may find clients asking about tyres who would never have before” .

He highlights the clear expectation that tyre suppliers that charged premium prices before the directive came into force should now be able to prove their tyres provide a premium performance to match.

Granite asks Stanton if he thinks the directive is a good thing. Stanton replies: “Absolutely positive. We welcome it, because it means what we’ve been saying for many years is now on the side of our tyres. We’ve always believed we produce the most fuel-efficient tyre among all the premium manufacturers – and now we can say: ‘told you so’. We’d like to shout about all the other criteria [that the directive doesn’t cover].” Which brings us back to the criteria: Green acknowledges it’s not really possible, but he would like to see the measurement of a tyre’s performance half way through its life.

But why should any operator really care what it says on the label? Well try this rather extreme example from Goodyear: it carried out a test of a truck fitted only with tyres F-rated for rolling resistance and one fitted with only A-rated tyres – the latter was 15% more fuel efficient.

Another example of the gulf between the best and the worst is this test by Goodyear: a fully laden 40-tonner at 80km/h brakes to a full stop in the wet – equipped with nothing but F-rated tyres for wet grip. Its stopping distance was a full 25m longer than the truck fitted with nothing but A-rated tyres.

Stanton notes that the directive allows for a review process after four years, so the grading will reflect improvements in performance over time. He reminds everyone around the table: “When washing machines were first graded, you couldn’t buy anything better than a C, but now you’ve got A++.” And you wouldn’t buy an F-rated washing machine, would you? n

RETREADING OLD GROUND

As we said at the start, most operators know that tyres aren’t just black round things, but the directive does shine a more scientific light on tyres.

Will the directive change received wisdom and traditional perceptions? No truck operator worth their name will put retreads on the steer axle; Stanton declares that there is no issue with using retreads on the steer axle; and then Dillon, speaking for everyone, agrees: “No there isn’t. We just don’t do it.” Green adds: “For drivers, it’s effectively a health and safety issue. It’s an old wives’ tale, but I’m still not comfortable putting retreads on the front at all.” The directive doesn’t cover retreads, but this will be reviewed in 2016.


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