14 January 2010
How log lorries are saving cash – and the environment
You probably don't give it a moment's thought, but next time you see a timber lorry laden with logs take a close look at its wheels and tyres.
If it's one of James Jones & Sons' Mosstodloch – based haulers it will have odd-looking armoured pipes snaking into its wheel hubs and the trailer axles will be running on a strange squat tyre.
It's all part of a significant development that improves economy, safety and saves damaging both forestry and public roads by spreading the 44-tonne load more evenly over a driving surface.
Forest Enterprise and Highland Council have worked closely with James Jones & Sons to introduce the system that allows timber lorry drivers to alter tyre pressure to suit any given surface at the touch of a button, with a variation that can be as extreme as from 130psi to 35psi.
It may not sound all that impressive, but ask transport manager Johnathan Ritchie and you'll soon learn how much it saves in running costs and limits road surface damage.
"Since we fitted this system we've saved £8000 a year on each lorry in fuel costs," he said. "The reduction on wear and tear on the vehicle allows me to keep the tractor units for six instead of five years and the trailers for up to nine years.
"It's a simple concept with a clever electronic control system our drivers use from the cab. It allows them to gradually alter tyre pressure on the move so they can adjust from road to forest track or from unladen to fully laden and always be at the best tyre running pressure."
We've all seen it. Broken road surfaces and rutted forestry tracks caused by the fixed high pressure tyres on heavy timber lorries.
But that was before Forres-based harvesting manager Sandy Hogg discovered TireBoss.
This clever, retro-fitted driver-operated tyre pressure control system originated in Canada where it has revolutionised the heavy haulage timber, oilfield, construction and agricultural industries.
By linking into an artic's air brake system it delivers flexibility and allows a heavy timber lorry to spread its tyre footprint more evenly on the road to drastically reduce fuel costs, improve ride quality and handling and, most importantly, limit damage to road surfaces from high-pressure, heavy laden tyres.
Rafford-based haulage engineer Jimmy Munro has fitted all eight of the firm's TireBoss systems and another nine to other haulier's vehicles as word spreads of the system's benefits. And interest is growing.
James Jones & Sons uses TireBoss in conjunction with a new Michelin trailer tyre - a Maxi cover that is 455mm wide instead of 385mm and has a much smaller diameter with a low profile 45 section. Like the larger single-axle tractor unit tyres, the Maxis accept varying pressures from the armoured tubes easily.
"Fitting a TireBoss system is not cheap at £10,000 per lorry," Sandy told me. "But when you save £8000 a year on each £145,000 vehicle's £55,000 fuel bill you won't take long to see payback.
"We work a lot in Sutherland and Caithness and around the Flow Country around Syre Forest where we have to extract timber along miles of forest track and single track public roads. Using lorries is the only way to access these remoter forests. Obviously we don't want to rut forest tracks that could bog down our vehicles or damage more fragile single track roads so the TireBoss system was worth every penny.
"Forest Enterprise and Highland Council are delighted with the result - it saves them huge amounts on road repair and reconstruction."
To find out how TireBoss works I joined driver Stuart Cruickshank in the cab on his new Volvo 480 FM artic. Over the next 12 months he'll cover 60,000 miles in this hard-worked log-hauler consuming a gallon of diesel every five miles or so.
"It's a great system," he told me. "I can use tracks and leave a softer footprint and avoid breaking tarmac
surfaces on narrow roads. It also makes the lorry a lot more comfortable because I run at the best pressure."
He showed me how. Leaving the Volvo running at a standard normal fixed pressure of 110psi on the trailer and 90psi on the tractor unit it was jittery and bouncy on narrow Moray single trackers and downright violent on forestry tracks. But using a simple pushbutton display in the cab Stuart gently deflated the trailer and tractor tyres to 65psi - the difference was incredible.
Ride comfort improved and the footprint of each tyre grew to spread its load and reduce surface impact. By varying the pressure Stuart can adjust in minutes to run the vehicle on tarmac or muddy track whether he is unladen or fully loaded.
Carrying logs on a forestry track he adjusts the trailer pressure to 85psi and the tractor to 65psi and can run at up to 15mph with ease - track surface damage is negligible. A normal fixed pressure artic would have left ruts.
Approaching a single track public road he increases the trailer pressure to 100psi and the tractor to 70psi - lower than normal but more comfortable, safer and crucially much kinder to the surface.
"If I get into really sticky conditions in the forest I can drop the tractor pressure to 35psi in an emergency," said Stuart. "I can only do that for a few minutes but that's enough to get through a soft patch and keep going."
But what about those ungainly pneumatic pipes sticking out of the hubs - don't they get caught on obstructions?
"Never," says Stuart. "I've been using the system for a long time now and never had a snagging issue. The pipes are very strong and even if you ever did damage or rip a pipe out, the system automatically seals the network so you don't lose pressure."
So next time you spot a loaded James Jones & Sons timber truck heading your way remember: it's helping the environment and our roads by leaving a much smaller impression all round.
