Introducing Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

In the current economic climate, fork truck fleet operators will be thinking about how they can make savings on their replacement tire bills. Continental’s Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) program is a unique response to these challenges; focused on reducing operating costs & maximizing the return on your investment.

Do you know how much your tires really cost your business every year?

Looking into the overall costs you may find this it not an easy question to answer, as we are not just talking about the pure tyre price per year. It is important to consider the everyday running costs, the impact tires have on fuel consumption, vehicle downtime, premature removal, disposal, service costs – and they all add up.

What do you expect from a tire?

Long life, consistent wear, safety and most importantly value for money, right?

That’s why a tire should never be selected or rejected purely on the basis of its purchase price. There are good reasons why premium tires have a higher purchase price than others and this is why it is important to focus on TCO to reduce your overall operating bill.

What are the advantages from a Continental premium tire?

The performance of a tire is the key to its success. You need to be able to rely on your tires, constantly. Continental’s R&D team spend millions on researching and developing the tires we offer to our customers, making sure the tires are consistent in quality, with the highest performance standard possible.

There is nothing worse than a busy warehouse full of trucks standing still. Punctures, tire failure and the need for premature removal resulting in a new fitment, are cost intensive and time consuming.

Premium tires and their long service life can solve all these issues and save you money. With Continental tires you can be confident that you’ll get the highest service life & minimized downtime. This will reduce your cents per hour significantly. Depending on your application Continental tires can provide you up to three times more hours than cheaper alternatives.

Decreasing your operating costs even further

Choosing Continental tires can decrease your TCO even more, particularly when you consider the non tire cost factors, including fuel savings, downtime savings plus safety & comfort for your drivers.

To be able to keep your fuel consumption to a minimum, your tires need to have a low rolling resistance.

Rolling resistance is the force needed to keep a wheel rolling. It is mainly influenced by the dynamic properties of the rubber, but also by the construction, geometry, load and tire temperature. Most important is the damping of the rubber, low damping means less internal losses therefore less rolling resistance and less heat generation to avoid overheating tires. Around 20% of your truck’s energy consumption is needed just to overcome the tires rolling resistance. Using low rolling resistance tires can provide you with fuel savings of up to 6% and also help to reduce your carbon footprint.

The CSEasy, Continental’s latest product innovation, is a good example for this. An independent test* established that the CSEasy can even be up to 12.8% more economical than its competitor solid tires, because of the low wear rates, up to 40% more mileage and the minimal vehicle downtime during tire changes, as a fitting press is no longer required.

*DEKRA independent test

Total Cost of Ownership Benefits

• Reduced operational cost
• Improved site efficiency & minimized downtime
• Awareness of your tire performance vs spend
• Budget control