76 2015 Higher mileage at a lower cost Simple cautions with the road implement extends its service life, reduces the cost of maintenance and keeps the product available for use. Keeping the road implement 100% ready for use until the end of its service life is the dream of every freight carrier and self-employed carrier. After all, the investment was made in order to keep equipment operating and providing results. On the other hand, several structural problems and operational errors may come along and distance reality from aimed results. For the relief of those who are not disturbed by unfavorable circumstances, difficult is not a synonym for impossible. Hard workers end up finding the ways to preserve their goods in nice conditions. First, one must be aware of the problems in order to avoid them. According to Angelo Banchi – owner of Assiste Consultoria, a company focused in management systems and fleet maintenance which provides services to several freight carriers and more than 50 sugar and alcohol mills using heavy duty implements – the most common problems in these products occur on wheels, suspension and brakes. Vanderlei Rodrigues, owner of Roadtruck – a company specialized in road implement maintenance and restoration, is quite familiar with this problem. Every day, he and his mechanical team dedicate themselves to replace parts: grain truck scoop, stanchion, angle bracket, aluminum thin strip, front, cover hinge, dumper, chain lock and cover stanchion, among others. According to the entrepreneurs’ answers to this Yearbook questions, one can deduce the road implement problems has two main causes: abysmal road conditions and overload. In the first case, the vehicle owner may complain of Government’s neglect: potholes, poorly done speed bumps, poor traffic signalization, severe road bends and other deficiencies that could be corrected. Blaming other people is an easy way of not taking responsibility; but when we talk about your own decisions, who is to blame for? The damages prove it. According to Vanderlei, the “chassis weld for overweight” is one of Roadtruck main activities. People working in this sector know that overload, with some exceptions, does not happen by chance. It comes from the vehicle owner desire to get more money by freight or, sometimes, the motive is a circumstantial urge. To aggravate this situation, some damages are caused by operation errors or lack of basic precautions. Angelo Banchi mentions a large amount of problems raised “by the misuse of the implement service brake” and problems caused by “wheel hubs missing grease”. The tips of the experts are focus on simple, everyday procedures. Follow all manufacturers’ recommendations on vehicle inspection and maintenance; check systems at the end or at the beginning of the day; do not exceed the weight stated by the manufacturer; train drivers to avoid errors; and perform preventive maintenance... Only 25% of preventive maintenance Prevention is important for several reasons, such as product value and conditions. “Preventive maintenance keeps the equipment always available and decreases repair costs,” states Vanderlei Rodrigues. However, the percentage of companies that perform preventive maintenance is too low. “Considering all interventions carried out, nearly 75% are corrective and only 25% are preventive”, says Angelo Banchi. The Assiste’s director continues: tire is of the utmost importance for cost and safety of such equipment and there is a maintenance procedure properly selected and studied. To sum up, we can highlight: assembling compatibility (admissibility), the proper calibration, visual inspection, proper shafts alignment and balancing, regular inspections (measurement of grooves). Finally, Angelo Banchi highlights the evolution of the implements. “We support the continuous design improvements, which lead to a tare reduction, made by manufacturers with the use of more resistant and lighter materials (chassis/frame rail) for a higher cargo capacity and thus, reducing operating costs.” Nonetheless, this progress will be useless if the culture of overload, structural conditions and lack of maintenance continues. He believes that it is essential that the Governments, vehicle owners and drivers also take responsabilities and do something to reduce costs and therefore, reduce freight values. Manutenção Maintenance
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