Tyre, wheel and hub safety might not always be front of mind during daily walkaround checks, but it absolutely should be.
Over my career in transport, I have seen firsthand just how vital these checks can be, and how quickly things can go wrong when component failure strikes without warning.
A real-world lesson in hub failure
Back in the late 1990s, I was managing a distribution centre supplying parts to a radiator factory in southwest Wales. From time to time, I would head out myself in one of our 7.5-tonne rigid trucks, delivering plastic radiator end tanks along a short 10-mile stretch of the M4.
As always, I carried out my daily checks, inspecting wheel nuts, tyres, fluid levels and logging everything on the driver defect pad in the cab.
But just two miles into one journey, I glanced in the mirror and saw something you never want to see, the nearside rear twin wheels, along with part of the half shaft, detaching from the vehicle.
Thankfully, I managed to keep the vehicle under control and pull over safely. But the issue was not loose wheel nuts or a missed defect, it was a catastrophic wheel bearing failure.
The bearing had overheated and failed, damaging the axle and hub so badly that the vehicle needed a full rear axle replacement. It was out of service for days. We had to rent a replacement vehicle and deal with potential time penalties. It could have been so much worse.
Looking back, I can’t help but think, if Wheely-Safe technology had existed back then, that incident could have been prevented.
How technology can prevent wheel loss
Wheely-Safe is much more than a loose wheel nut alert system. It monitors hub temperature and tyre pressure to prevent wheel loss, giving drivers and fleet managers early warning of problems before they become dangerous or costly.
In a case like mine, the system would have detected the heat build-up in the hub and alerted me well before the bearing failed.
That is the kind of intelligence that turns routine checks into life-saving measures.
Smarter tyre checks
During your daily walkaround, Wheely-Safe’s tyre pressure monitoring system can be used with a simple handheld device.
Instead of kicking tyres or relying on instinct, drivers can get accurate, reliable pressure readings on the spot, helping prevent under-inflation, which can lead to:
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increased fuel consumption
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premature wear
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potentially dangerous blowouts
An under-inflated tyre does not just affect efficiency, it creates heat and puts excess strain on the casing, increasing the risk of failure.
If a tyre does blow out, the damage can go far beyond the tyre itself. Mudwings, air suspension systems and other components are often collateral damage. Not to mention the safety hazard of debris on the road or a potential collision.
Turning technology into prevention
Technology like Wheely-Safe gives drivers the tools to spot these risks early, saving time, money and most importantly, lives.
Find out more
To book a demo and find out more about Wheely-Safe and how it can support your fleet, click here: https://www.fors-online.org.uk/cms/fors-wheely-safe/.