I’ve strongly supported truck and trailer TPMS (tire pressure monitoring systems) for as long as I can remember. When the first ATIS (automatic tire inflation system) was introduced, there was no doubt in my mind that it would be successful. Trailer tires are by far the most neglected in any fleet, so providing a constant source of regulated air to each wheel position seemed like a no-brainer at the time. It still does.
The interchangeability of tire and wheel assemblies makes ATIS on trailers popular. The components and mechanics of connecting the air supply to the tires may differ, but a 295/75R22.5 on a 10-hole hub-pilot wheel with a standard valve stem can be used with any ATIS currently on the market. Nothing “extra” or “special” is required.
But TPMS is a completely different story. With multiple systems from various manufacturers, the truck tire industry is where passenger and light trucks were two decades ago.
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When the federally mandated TPMS phase-in started in 2006 vehicles, questions outnumbered answers by 10 to 1 as the industry struggled with damaged sensors and systems that wouldn’t reset after service. Truck tire industry challenges could be more daunting.
Mounted tire programs have become incredibly popular because carriers can maintain a bank of steer, drive, and trailer tires that are inflated and ready to be installed by maintenance personnel. The only difference is the tread and the wheel (steel or aluminum). Worn or damaged tires are returned to the vendor for replacement and returned to the bank. It’s a great system for both parties.
To say TPMS is a curveball to mounted tire programs is a disservice to curveballs. If a good baseball player knows the curveball is coming, it’s easier to hit it. If the curveball is one of three or four pitches on the way, it can be tougher to hit. For mounted tire programs, TPMS can potentially be a radio-controlled anti-gravity pitch that defies the laws of physics. Sometimes, it may be unhittable.
Fleet technicians do not care where the tires come from when they replace them on a tractor in a mounted tire program. Sprinkle in some TPMS, and now the fleet has to identify the year, make, and model on every tire that comes off a truck. As if that’s not enough, the bank of tires will need assemblies with TPMS sensors that match the tractor’s year, make, and model. Therefore, the fleet will need to purchase additional TPMS sensors. How many depends on a number of known and unknown factors.
Truck tire vendors and retreaders also face known and unknown challenges of picking up assemblies with sensors, removing them, storing them, and then reinstalling them in rims before they are mounted, inflated, and delivered. The vendor must somehow communicate the year, make, and model to the fleet so the customer knows where to install the sensors. Fleets operating different makes and models may need more tires in the bank to keep the TPMS operational under the present mounted tire model.
One solution is to abandon mounted tires for tractors with TPMS. Based on experience, if the sensors stay with the truck in the same wheel positions after a tire change, the TPMS will resume normal functioning. The truck will be shut down for longer with extra expense, but the TPMS will continue to operate as designed and warn the driver when a tire is underinflated. It’s the best way to guarantee that everything works after changing the tires.
Fleets should also expect higher costs to manage TPMS in a mounted tire program. Currently, the demounting, mounting, and inflation process is quick, simple, and efficient. Add TPMS sensors, and it takes more time to demount the tire without damaging the sensor or the beads. Removing and reinstalling the sensor is another time drain in the mounted tire department, while the process of inventory management for customer sensors hasn’t even been considered.
The American Trucking Associations’ Technology & Maintenance Council has formed a new task force to develop recommended practices for managing TPMS in a mounted tire program. Fleets, tire manufacturers, and commercial tire dealers should work together to create solutions that work for each other.
