Tire makers share strategies to keep fleets with steady supply
“The disruption caused by COVID-19 is resulting in many new challenges globally and stretching supply chains across industries in ways we’ve not experienced before—consequently impacting many manufacturers’ ability to supply tires,” said Kyle Chen, channel manager for fleet & OE TBR at Bridgestone. “Multiple constraints related to the acquisition of raw materials, recruiting and retaining employees, transportation, and imports of finished products have converged with surging demand to present new and complex challenges that we are working diligently to solve. In the short-term, our team is working diligently to prioritize key products to meet the critical needs of our fleet customers.”
To avoid disruptions, Chen advised fleets consider more retreading.
“Retreading has never made more sense than it does today,” Chen said. “The benefits of retreading for fleets and the community at large far exceed simply filling a wheel position—retreads are made locally, are readily available, and premium retreads such as Bandag offer performance on par with new tires. Retreads also present substantial savings for fleets and significant sustainability benefits for the environment and local economy.”
Tire manufacturers attest to the power of a global footprint and the supply chain connections that come with it.
“With COVID-19, we’ve all now experienced some of the negatives of the recent trend in global supply chains, and how they can be disrupted as a result of a regional or global event,” said Tom Fanning, head of truck tires for the U.S. market at Continental.
He said having multiple plants in North America was “a big plus” for Continental’s ability to supply fleets here.
“Supply is a challenge in 2021,” Fanning reiterated. “The best advice I can offer is to talk to your sales representatives ahead of time. Don’t wait until you need the tires in-hand… We remain in constant and close communication with our customers, focusing our efforts on forecasting properly to have the right tires in the right place at the right time.”
This was a recurring theme when Fleet Maintenance spoke with other tire OEs as well.
“Like everyone else, manufacturing and shipping have been negatively affected by COVID and there have been some supply chain disruptions,” said Dan Funkhouser, Vice President of commercial sales at Yokohama Tire. “These disruptions have been arguably worse for products that are produced offshore and can cause a chain reaction that runs through the entire distribution network.
“This makes it much more difficult and important to properly forecast short- and long-term product needs,” he continued. “Balancing offshore and on-shore production to maximize supply on the highest-demand product has become critical. Thankfully, having U.S.-based commercial tire production in West Point, Mississippi, has really helped Yokohama manage the product needs of our customers.”
This year, Yokohama added its fourth distribution center, a 430,000 square-foot facility outside of Dallas, to better supply customers. The three others are in California, Georgia, and Ohio.
Funkhouser said fleets will need to rely on communication with suppliers more than they may be used to.
“Working with their salesperson and forecasting their needs will help dealers and the manufacturer maintain inventory for them,” Funkhouser said. “This will shorten downtime and out-of-stock situations. Big buys are not the route I suggest in this environment. Most suppliers cannot fill or commit to those. With all the supply chain challenges, it’s easier to manage consistent business rather than large swings.”
Application changes
Needs have been changed for both fleets and tire manufacturers alike. With drastic changes in certain areas of demand, duty cycles have been adjusted and the need for specific tires have altered.
“In addition to last mile delivery, which obviously benefited from changes in consumer habits, we also saw refrigerated vans and food products are staying particularly resilient,” Continental’s Fanning said. “The decreased demand from chain and local restaurants has been counteracted by the surge in demand for groceries. People still need to eat.”
It is not just the last mile delivery sector that was affected, though.
“The issues have affected all segments of the market,” Funkhouser related. “The sudden increase in the price of oil, and thus the increase of production, has also had a positive impact on mixed service products.”
Mileage has increased due to more freight in 2021 versus 2020, putting a strain on the heavy-duty tire market.
“Larger tire sizes require more resources to produce and consequently are in shorter supply than the more common, standard sized medium truck tires,” Chen stated.
The routes have also changed. Hub-and-spoke cycles have become more popular to allow drivers the ability to stay closer to home.
“Not long ago, line haul meant you get in your truck and you drive across 13 states and you drop off and pick up a trailer load and drive 13 states,” said Jason Miller, Cooper Tire & Rubber’s national fleet channel sales manager.
This has also put more wear on tires.
“Because you’re going those short distances and you’re doing more stops and turning and twisting and backing and going into pickup, you’re now exposing the decoupling rib to more curbs, to more turning, and more dragging,” Miller explained. “When we used to look at a decoupling rib, all we really wanted to do is decouple it from the part of the tread that’s supported by the belts. If you don’t, every time the tire goes around, the sidewall forces push into the tread and creates a little bit of wear.”
He said that “turns into an area of localized wear, and the irregular wear eventually turns into a ride disturbance.”
This is why Cooper engineered its recently launched Pro Series LHS 2 to stand up to more of these regional haul rigors by enhancing the tire compound and changing the decoupling rib design to a more robust shape that doesn’t grab the road while turning.
“When you twist and turn and go over curves, it is more resistant to abrasion or tearing,” Miller explained.
