• Point your whee1!
Page 48
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in the right dfureetioz
TYRES are expensive_ This might seem very obvious but many operators just don't seem to be aware of the effects of axle misalignment on trailer• tyre wear. Although a keen eye is usually run over the tractive unit's tyres, the trailer is, as usual, the forgotten animal. As a tandem-axle trailer has eight tyres, then there is a lot of rubber to scrub.
Derek Godden is one person who is very conscious of the effects of axle misalignment, as he has set up his own business to correct the problem — but with a difference. Instead of the operator bringing the trailer to him, Derek goes to the operator, complete with £5,000 worth of equipment — including a laser projector.
Up to last September, Derek Godden worked for Truck-Align Co Ltd (Greenwich) as sales manager. This entailed visiting many transport companies in order to inspect and price damaged chassis, and it became clear to him that many operators knew next to nothing about wheel alignment. Those who did sometimes made the journey to Greenwich to have the problem rectified, but quite a few didn't bother because of the time and distance.
It was to deal with this sort of customer that Derek Godden decided to go into business on his own to take the alignment to the trailer with "Tracker Trucks''. One of the disturbing things that Derek has found on his travels is that brand-new trailers often have badly aligned axles.
This also applies to trailers straight back from MoT. One example he recalls had the leading axle pointing two inches to the rear on the nearside and the leading axle pointing three inches forward. The effect of this on the rubber life can be imagined. The charge for aligning a tandem-axle trailer is £25 in the Kent and Essex area, although he is quite prepared to travel anywhere within reason.
CM recently visited the London premises of F. J. Everett to witness the alignment process applied to a tandem-axle fridge trailer.