Continental demonstrated complete solutions for the construction and on/off-road industries at its proving grounds in Uvalde, Texas. The event served as the public debut of Continental’s new Generation 3 construction truck tires for on/off-road or mixed use.
The Conti HSC 3 steer/all-position tire, Conti HDC 3 drive tire and Conti HAC 3 all-position tire deliver key benefits for the on/off-road application, including construction, aggregates, cement, utility, emergency vehicles, forestry and logging.
The tires deliver high performance in mileage, durability, traction, and retreadability, the key aspects for Lowest Overall Driving Cost in the on/off-road segment. All arrive from the factory pre-equipped with Continental tire sensors for digital monitoring of tire pressure and temperature, and are covered by a six-year, three-retread warranty.
Continental chose to pre-equip these tires with sensors due to the inherent benefits of tire monitoring in the on/off-road environment. During the off-road portion of the construction application, tires are more susceptible to cuts, chipping and chunking, and punctures.
Additionally, the tires operate under heavier loads in a limited radius, meaning there is quite a bit of starting, stopping, braking, thus causing heat build-up – especially in warmer regions during the summer season. This is where it’s critical to ensure that tires always have properly maintained air pressure and to monitor internal casing temperature.
By embedding sensors in each of these new construction tires, Continental now offers a complete solution for the extremely demanding construction application. Continental’s digital solutions help fleets reduce downtime, improve safety and fuel efficiency, and minimize labor and maintenance costs associated with tire inspections. Digital tire monitoring solutions are key in this increasingly technological environment where fleets need to maintain premium tire casings and reduce the overall driving costs.
In addition to the three new construction truck tires, Continental offers a lineup of earthmoving off the road (OTR) radial tires. This includes the EM-Master, RDT-Master and DumperMaster, which all come direct from the factory pre-equipped with Continental tire sensors.
Shawn Rasey, director of global business development – earthmover tires for Commercial Specialty Tire, presented the OTR tire demonstration. It included 23.5R25 EM Master E3/L3 tires on a Hitachi ZW220 Wheel Loader scooping material into a dump truck equipped with the new HSC 3 and HDC 3 tires.
The EM-Master is designed to excel in a variety of conditions from soft and muddy soil to rocky terrain. Featuring an exceptionally high tread volume along with availability in both E3/L3 and E4/L4 versions, the tire is versatile to perform in all conditions.
The E3/L3 features a normal tread depth and wide spacing between the blocks for good traction and maneuverability, even in muddy terrain. The E4/L4 features a greater block size with less spacing between the blocks and a deeper tread depth. It offers high carcass protection and superior cutting resistance, minimizing the risk of punctures and downtime.
The RDT-Master has angled tread edges and an open shoulder design to facilitate high lateral stability and maximum traction even on rough terrain while driving at high speeds. The RDT-Master’s special tread design with a deep tread depth and a wide and flat tread radius offers high loading capacity and cutting resistance.
The DumperMaster has an all-steel radial carcass which lowers heat build-up. The up to four-star rated carcass design allows extremely high load-carrying capacity that increases efficiency. Its tread pattern ensures high self-cleaning ability and good traction in muddy and loose ground conditions.
Every Generation 3 construction tire and radial Off the Road tire comes pre-equipped with a tire sensor, direct from the plant. Sensors are mounted on the inner liner of the tire for maximum accuracy and protection from theft and damage. Unlike valve-mounted sensors which can be damaged during curbing and which use an algorithm to calculate values, the Continental sensor is securely adhered to the inner liner of the tire and physically reads the air pressure and temperature.
Continental, www.continental-truck.com, www.continental-specialty.com