On a city job, the site is the puncture risk
Equipment working in a metro area spends much of its life on construction and demolition sites, and those sites are full of things that cut tires: rebar ends, broken concrete, nails and screws from formwork, scrap steel, glass. A loader tire is built to take a great deal of abuse, and none of that changes the fact that a sharp object under several tons finds its way in.
A tire lost to a puncture on a busy site is not only the cost of the tire. It is the machine standing idle, the crew waiting on it, and sometimes a schedule built around that machine being available.
Clean the work area, save the tires
The most effective protection is not a tire at all. It is keeping the ground the machines work on as clean as the job allows.
- Sweep or scrape travel routes on a schedule, especially after demolition or formwork removal.
- Collect cut-offs where they are made. Rebar ends and offcuts left where they fell end up under a wheel.
- Keep loading areas tidy. The place a loader works repeatedly is where debris collects and where it does the most damage.
- Walk the machine's route at the start of a shift. A minute spent picking up a bent piece of steel is cheaper than any repair.
When a tire is damaged
Look at the damage before deciding. A small puncture in the tread may be repairable; a cut in the sidewall usually is not. The size and position of the damage decide it, and the assessment is what tells you. Leaving a damaged tire in service often turns a repairable injury into one that ends the tire.
Rims and wheels take damage on these sites too, and wheel refurbishing is at this store. A contractor running several machines can put them on a fleet account. The national OTR services page covers fitting, repair and supply.
Other stores nearby
Springfield and Joplin also offer OTR services in Missouri.
About this store
The Kansas City store carries all nine Purcell tire categories and is managed by Richard Kerber.
See the national OTR services page for all 41 locations.