Our Approach to Safe Truck Tyre Inflation

Stan Rudowski
Health, Safety & Environmental Manager
October 2010
Our Approach to
Safe Truck Tyre Inflation
Future signature d’Euromaster
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ATS Euromaster
• Largest comprehensive tyre service provider in the UK with 380 Centres and
2,800 employees
• Part of the Euromaster Network, operating in 16 countries across Europe with
over 1,800 Centres
• In the UK:
– 70% of work is completed off site
– We fit 100,000’s of truck tyres each year
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Truck Tyres
• Principle hazard when inflating truck tyres is that they can explode
• Variety of reasons
• Our current experience is that we have 1 truck tyre explosion per 21,000
inflations
• Using HSE’s tolerability of risk model (HSE, 1992) that is ‘negligible’.
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Our Approach
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Our Approach
• City & Guilds Truck Award or competency assessed to same
standard
• Our Cardinal Rules include truck tyre inflation and they outline the hierarchy for
inflation:
– In a tyre safety cage
– Bolted back onto a vehicle
– Restrained using a ratchet strap
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Our Approach
• Tell tale signs a tyre is going to explode:
– Creaking or popping of the cords
– Bulging on the tread or commonly on the side wall
You need to be able to hear and see the tyre
• Perception is reality: feedback from our Technicians
• Used our colleagues in Germany’s way of working and applied it to the UK
• Subjected our bespoke ratchet strap to extensive testing
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Our Approach
• Working out the ‘likely trajectory’ - Dutch study
• 3m of air hose between the chuck and trigger with the operator standing the
safe zone
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Our Approach
• Straight through devices in our business are prohibited
• We view having these as an act of gross misconduct
• Unregulated air supply
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Get in Touch
stan.rudowski@ats.euromaster.com
07702 191 185
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