Credit: Bendix
The Bendix ADB22X and ADB22X-LT (trailer) air disc brakes
The Bendix ADB22X and ADB22X-LT (trailer) air disc brakes
The Bendix ADB22X and ADB22X-LT (trailer) air disc brakes
The Bendix ADB22X and ADB22X-LT (trailer) air disc brakes
The Bendix ADB22X and ADB22X-LT (trailer) air disc brakes

Bendix passes 4 million ADB22X brakes made

April 13, 2021
The line of air disc brakes began in 2005 and now comprise about 75% of the air disc brakes on Class 6-8 commercial vehicles in North America.

More than one out of every three North American Class 6-8 trucks with air-braked wheel-ends are now equipped with air disc brakes (ADBs), which provide durability and stopping distance advantages over drum brakes. And manufacturer Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems has now manufactured more than 4 million units of its ADB22X line of ADBs.

The ADB22X and trailer version, the ADB22X-LT, are made in Bowling Green, Ky., and accounts for about 75% of North America’s Class 6-8 air disc brakes in total. Bendix’s German parent company, Knorr-Bremse, overall has produced more than 45 million ADBs.

The Bowling Green facility has expanded the number of ADB production lines, along with engineering test capabilities and ADB machining capability. Company-wide, Bendix has more than doubled the size of its North American-based engineering team, adding technical and field support employees as well as new team members in research and development.

“Sixteen years on, Bendix still puts as much commitment into making sure the ADB22X keeps on delivering safety, stopping power, and reliability as we did when we introduced it,” said Mark Holley, Bendix director of marketing and customer solutions, Wheel-End. “That won’t change, no matter how many millions are yet to hit the road.”

Bendix estimated the ADB take rates is approaching 50%.

“Adoption and standard positioning of air disc brakes represent one of the more significant sea changes the North American commercial vehicle industry has seen over the past decade,” said Holley. “Brakes impact so much that’s important to fleets and owner-operators, from safety to uptime to return on investment – and the ADB22X has been delivering on its potential since we launched it in 2005. With advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) growing in popularity, the demand for ADBs is strongly increasing as well. Fleets understand that it makes sense to support their ADAS systems with air disc brakes on both the tractor and trailer because of their reliability and stopping power. They know that each system is great individually, but better together.”

Bendix also develops and manufactures active safety, air management, and braking system technologies for commercial vehicles, such as the Wingman Fusion ADAS solution that comes standard on various Class 8 trucks in North America, such as from Volvo Trucks North America (VTNA) and Paccar.

ADB22X brakes are available through all major North American commercial truck manufacturers, including Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA), International, Kenworth, Mack Trucks, Peterbilt Motors Company, and VTNA. The ADB22X has come standard on the steer axle of all Peterbilt and Kenworth Class 8 tractors since 2013 and is standard on all wheel-ends of Peterbilt’s Model 579 and the Kenworth T680. International Trucks equips the brake standard on all axles of its LT Series, along with several vocational models.

The Bendix ADB22X-LT air disc brake – engineered specifically for trailers – is available at all major trailer manufacturers and is the preferred ADB at Utility Trailer. 

Additionally, three of the leading full-line North American school bus manufacturers – Blue Bird Corporation, Thomas Built Buses, and IC Bus from Navistar – offer the ADB22X on their vehicles, as does Motor Coach Industries (MCI), the leading intercity coach manufacturer in the U.S. and Canada.

According to Holley, adoption of ADBs is growing among all applications, including linehaul, refuse, and school bus. He said customers are seeing the benefits of air disc brakes at the same time as acquisition cost to fleets continues to decrease. In addition, with the availability of Bendix’s BX276 long-life pad with more wearable friction, fleets are seeing lower total cost of ownership.

“With air disc brakes, you get smoother, straighter, more stable stops; shorter stopping distance; and a car-like feel out on the road, with virtually no brake fade,” Holley said. “Fleets that spec ADBs on all wheel positions of the tractor and trailer recognize the increased safety of a 50-ft. shorter stopping distance compared to drum brakes, along with an increase in driver satisfaction and retention. And bottom-line return on investment comes through lightweight design, extended brake system life, quicker pad changes, and a longer friction duty cycle.”

Total cost of ownership advantages

The ADB22X has evolved to become more lightweight. The Bendix Splined Disc rotor, for instance, can be paired with an aluminum hub to make the lightest ADB wheel-end combination in North America. Other improvements in recent years include a proprietary adjustment mechanism that increases robustness against vibration while improving the running clearance between the friction and rotor, the company stated.

In 2019, Bendix introduced pad wear sensing availability on all versions of the ADB22X, removing the guesswork from ADB pad replacement, according to the company. The technology determines when a pad is nearing its replacement period, then creates a diagnostic code that can be pulled in a couple of different ways. One is through telematics signaling the fleet home office of the need to replace pads. Or, a technician can pull it directly from the vehicle using an RDU unit. In either instance, pad wear sensing technology enables fleets to proactively schedule maintenance.

“By providing a signal when air disc brake pads are reaching the point of replacement, it protects costly components such as rotors from being damaged by worn-out friction,” Holley said. “It also gives fleets the advantage of optimizing their friction replacement schedules and saves time by reducing the need for technicians to measure friction thickness.”

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