Bridgestone Shows New OTR Tyres at Bauma 2007

ridgestone Europe has fielded a comprehensive array of OTR tyres at Bauma 2007, the international exhibition for the civil engineering and construction industries held in Munich between April 23 and29 April. Arguably the centrepiece of Bridgestone’s booth at Bauma was the company’s new OTR radials, the VJT and VRQP. Also on show was the world’s largest OTR radial, together with other well-known products for the construction sector.

The VRQP, seen for the first time at Intermat 06, is an E4 tread-class premium rock tyre developed for rigid dump trucks operating under severe conditions such as those found in quarries. Bridgestone report that the VRQP comes with a tread 21 per cent deeper than that of conventional designs, extending wear life and enhancing performance. The tread pattern incorporates angled wide main grooves and is designed with fewer and larger lugs for added grip and stability. Extra block width provides greater lug stiffness, resulting in better ground contact pressure, while a shallow sub-groove further improves traction and lateral stability. Initially available in 18.00R33 size, the VRQP will be joined by a 24.00R35 version towards the end of 2007.

The L3 tread-class VJT radial series for general use on wheeled loaders, first unveiled in 2005, has been completed with the addition of two more sizes: 20.5R25 and 26.5R25. Strengths demonstrated by the VJT are high stability and ride comfort (respectively representing an improvement of between 20 and 30 percent over its predecessor). Vibration at high speed is kept to a minimum, making the VJT ideally suited for ‘load and carry’ operations. Its strong, straight sidewalls provide the stability necessary for high productivity, and a shoulder protector minimises damage from cuts and impacts.

But perhaps the most un-missable item on display in the Bridgestone camp was the world’s largest OTR radial: the giant VELS 59/80R63 – weighing 5.2 tons and 4.03 metres in diameter. Although not used in Europe, this outsize model is designed to fit the huge rigid dump trucks employed in the mining industry, mainly in the Americas.