Truck tyres are, perhaps, the masterpieces of applied technology. They have to start, stop, and turn to the tunes of driver. They are put to work at temperatures over 100 degree celsius bearing enormous traction, impact, and deformation while carrying tonnes of cargo at speeds up to 60 km per hour. They are asked to last for several thousand km, without being spendy for every purchase. They leg up not just the vehicle, but also the truckers’ business and ultimately the industry!
That conviction on the phenomenal role of tyres in his logistics business was quite apparent during our latest Smart Fleetz interaction with Mr. Ramesh Kumar Maini on his decade-long allegiance with JK Tyre. Head of Punjab Bangalore Roadlines Ltd. (PBRL), located in the Sanjay Gandhi Transport Nagar (SGTN) in the outskirts of North Delhi – arguably one of Asia’s biggest transport hubs with over 2,500 transporters, Mr. Maini is a prominent figure in the region. The main road Jagir Lal Maini Marg that hosts his office has been named after his father. He is also the President of the Transport Welfare Association and Chairman of the Transport Federation of India.
Starting his career as a transport consultant, he nostalgically remembers the first truck he had bought on his own in 1989. And now, his fleet has expanded to about 138 vehicles, all of them 31-37 tonne multi-axle haulage trucks, mostly from Tata Motors and Mahindra. The company primarily hauls iron and steel-related cargo from MSP Steels, Raigarh in Chhattisgarh, and cement in and around Delhi-NCR region, also transporting tiles and fruits en route to Raigarh. All GPS-tracked, PBRL trucks run an annual mileage of over 90,000 km, with trucks being replaced every four years. The company will soon witness third-generation leadership as Mr. Maini’s sons are already the company’s office bearers.
Experience with JK Tyre
Mr. Maini says that he is a loyal customer of the home-grown tyre brand since 2005. “Tyres are the cardinal component and a decisive factor in my business”, he says, adding that he settled with JK Tyre after long, discomforting experiences with other brands in the market. Since then, his fleet has been running 100 per cent on JK Tyre, consuming over 1,200 new tyres on an average every year. While a majority of the tyres are radial, the fleet uses bias tyres for the front wheels alone. “The average lifespan for a tyre is somewhere around 80,000 to 90,000 km, and its costs account for about 10 per cent of our total spending. The wear and tear is slightly on the higher side for us owing to the unusual operating conditions, but we somehow manage them thanks to the quality of the tyres”, he explains.
Maintenance and service
Mr. Maini proudly boasts about his three-decade long experience in fleet operation to substantiate his assessment on JK Tyre’s outstanding service. “My own unsatisfactory experiences with other tyre brands is a testimony to the fact that JK Tyre’s Fleet Management team is warm to its customers and well-qualified”, he says, briefing that his fleet undertakes regular wheel alignment, balancing and shuffling of tyres, under the supervision of personnel from JK Tyre. He is well connected with the JK Fleet Management team, right from its regional bosses to dealers and service personnel. “My fleet is a family enterprise which also includes JK Tyre”, he adds with a loud guffaw.
Moreover, being the President of the Transport Welfare Association, SGTN, he is well aware of the importance of tyres as a critical factor of profit and business survival. “Many of my fellow transporters at SGTN often rebuke on increasing operating costs and poor macro-economic prospects, thanks to National Green Tribunal’s restrictive orders on truck operation in Delhi NCR, demonetization impacts, and renewed competition from railways”, he says, citing that he is unlikely to expand his business in the upcoming financial year. “Fuel and road toll expenses are beyond our hands, therefore every penny saved in maintenance and longevity of tyres help sustain our business”, he explains. “The JK Fleet Management team offers valuable technical inputs and observations on our practices, which help us to minimize tyre wear and improve tyre mileage”, he adds. At PBRL, drivers are encouraged to drive efficiently and take utmost care of tyres.
Asked about his business prospects in the next five years, he was cautious, indicating that driver shortage and rising costs seem to bring no solace to the trucking business. He suggests that “price control is something every component seller has to vouch for, to save the logistics business in India”, also hoping that JK Tyre would continue extending its unswerving support as done until now.
By Dhiyanesh Ravichandran