Tips for Improving Tire Changing Processes for Heavy Vehicles
February 26, 2018
Tire changing Wheel Dollies Workshop Equipment ErgoSeats Impact Wrenches Torque Wrenches Nutrunners Accessories
With the right solution, it’s possible to improve both working conditions and quality in the heavy vehicle tire changing industry.
With the right solutions, we can greatly improve the working conditions and the quality of work in the heavy vehicle tire changing industry.
Changing tires on heavy vehicles, such as trucks or buses, can be physically demanding for operators. When working conditions are not ideal (heavy tools, loud noise levels, vibration transmissions or overall ergonomics), overall job quality and operator safety can be impacted. Here are two pieces of advice to help improve your operator's working conditions:
1. Select ergonomic equipment
Changing tires in the heavy vehicle industry means working in a demanding environment. Therefore, setting up the best working conditions for operators can help prevent MSDs (Musculoskeletal Disorders), caused by bad posture and inadequate equipment. It also significantly improves the quality of the job. If you have concerns about working conditions, we recommend taking a look at the following solutions:
Prevent injuries with the Wheel dollies tire changing tool
- Wheel Dollies: Without a wheel dolly, operators carry and roll the wheels manually. Designed to be a sturdy and handy assembly aid for heavy vehicles, the use of wheel dollies allows easy removal and installation of tire/wheel assemblies, and can help avoid operator injuries.
Ergonomic Seat to improve comfort and safety in tire shops
- Ergonomic seats: Many tire workshops are not familiar with ergonomic seats; however they bring significant improvements in operator comfort, like preventing operators from having bad posture. Some specific seats are even improving job quality, thanks to integrated FRLs and tool balancers.
When choosing an ergonomic seat, check the ease of handling, the robustness, the quality and stability of the seat. More advanced solutions, like our CP87029 Ergoseat, are also designed with integrated FRLs, ensuring the right air pressure close to the tool and a tool balancer for more comfort to the operator.
2. Choose nutrunners (or pneumatic torque wrenches) as tire changing tools
Did you know that you can use nutrunners, also called pneumatic torque wrenches, to tighten your wheels with better accuracy? Nutrunners are specifically designed with a very low (close to zero) vibration transmission and a low noise level. (Learn more about the benefits and different types of nutrunners here)
Spotlight on Chicago Pneumatic BlueTork Nutrunners
When truck and bus wheels are mounted and tightened properly, it ensures the safety of drivers and passengers, and can reduce road accidents. Chicago Pneumatic’s BlueTork CP7600 nutrunner series is a reliable and ergonomically designed tool that can tighten wheel nuts to a precise specification without using impact force.
Proper wheel maintenance and the use of proper tools can help to eliminate dangerous wheel offs and loose wheels. Chicago Pneumatic has developed a series of tools including a final torquing tool (the BlueTork Nutrunner) to help assist in this process. Check out our video for some of the steps that you can take to help eliminate wheel offs and loose wheels.
Don't miss this video of National Account Manager Tom Pelette walking through the benefits of the BlueTork Nutrunner at the 2014 SEMA Show.
