New CEMEX Tyre Strategy Gives Economic and Sustainability Savings
With a fleet of 350 cement and aggregates vehicles covering over 15 million miles per annum, tyres are a key part of the economic equation for CEMEX UK. The company started work in 2011 to develop a new strategy with Continental Tyres aimed at maximising the utilisation of this important asset.
Within a year, smarter use of tyres has yielded significant savings. With the construction market under ever increasing pressure these savings go a small way to balance the rising cost of other materials used in the production of vital building materials.
The new proactive and structured approach looked at ways of targeting and reducing waste, testing and finding the optimum tyre solutions for different vehicles, with better tyre husbandry, extended tyre life and improving fuel efficiency.
The fleet tyre policy uses a tailored range of Continental heavy goods tyres, which are carefully managed and reworked to give maximum life span, optimum performance and fuel economy.
Environmental benefits have resulted through extending the life of the tyre by reworking and effectively giving it four lives. Every retreaded tyre can save up to 68 litres of oil, 44g of rubber and equivalent of 182kg CO2 compared to a new tyre.
The original new tyre is designed to be re-cut once the tread has worn down to approximately 4mm tread depth. When this has worn down to its limit it can be returned to Continental and retreaded as a ContiRe tyre, for a third life. Finally, the retreaded tyre can also be re-cut to extend it into its 4th life.
Craig Williamson, Director of Supply Chain and Logistics “These applications are not new to the market, but ensuring a holistic management approach to the tyres, on the scale we are dealing with in CEMEX, can have significant economic and environmental benefits.
“For our customers, the economic savings on tyres can help us to reduce the impact of escalating prices in other areas of the production of cement, concrete and aggregate and ensure we continue to help build a greater Britain.
“Our strategy is still developing in 2012. The long tyre life for commercial vehicles it takes a significant amount of time to see the true extent of the benefits for the fleet. Our drivers are extremely positive which is a key consideration.”
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NOTES TO EDITORS:
For further information contact Elizabeth Young; email: Elizabeth.young@cemex.com telephone: 01932 583214
- CEMEX is a global building solutions company and leading supplier of cement, ready-mixed concrete and aggregates. In the UK, CEMEX also produces asphalt, and has a significant share of the concrete-block paving, and concrete block sectors. Additionally, the company is the leading supplier of concrete sleepers to the rail industry and a supplier of PFA cement additives. CEMEX has a national supply network in the UK with over 360 locations, to ensure that quality building materials are available to customers locally. For more information, see www.CEMEX.co.uk, www.CEMEX.com