Tweaking company and lease truck performance is a continuing process at NCI. Currently, I have my shop personnel testing synthetic oil in three of our trucks. If this test confirms our belief that prolonged oil changes, increase fuel efficiency, and additional torque will offset the initial additional cost of using synthetic oil, our shop will replace traditional oil now used in our trucks.
Johnny Branstine
Next to fuel, the number one cost of operating a truck is tire replacement and maintenance. Supervisors are engaged in another investigation concerning tire balancing and air pressure management. We have added a product to a group of truck tires that is designed to prolong the balance of the tire. The test will be on steer tires. Every 50,000 miles we will pull the tires, break them down, examine for wear (liner scrub) document our finding, reassemble and reinstall. In a separate trial, we are examining a new air pressure management system that both increases and decreases air pressure unassisted.
These types of monitoring are ongoing and span a long period of time. If these products prove beneficial, expect to see them in use in the future on NCI trucks.