Calculate Costs with Conti

Continental has claimed a world first with the release of its truck tyre division’s “ContiCostCalculator”. This software employs a DEKRA-certified database and enables customers to directly compare the purchase and operating costs of commercial vehicle tyres amongst all main tyre brands. The key aim of the ContiCostCalculator, the company notes, is to help calculate a commercial vehicle’s running costs and show ways to reduce them.

The ContiCostCalculator works out the ideal choice of tyre using the customer’s individual usage figures. The cost-saving potential compared with similar tyre products is calculated and the improvement in economy is shown. The application not only takes the kilometre costs and the fuel consumption into account for the overall calculation, it also covers additional income from the increased payload that a lower tyre weight makes possible.

Information such as the number of trucks in a fleet, their annual mileage and the use of retreaded tyres is requested for basic cost calculation. At this stage, says Conti, the user can immediately see the percentage and actual cost advantage compared with similar products. The tyre types for steer and drive axles on the tractor as well as the trailer can be selected separately and calculated together with purchasing conditions, including the return of casings and fitting price. As on the road and in real terms, it is not only the purchase price and the mileage that play a part.

According to Continental, the focus of cost balances for long distance transport has shifted to fuel consumption, which accounts for around 30 per cent of the running costs incurred in long distance usage. The savings potential resulting from the use of low rolling resistance tyres can be worked out exactly with the ContiCostCalculator – the user simply needs to enter the average consumption of their vehicles and the fuel costs. The ContiCostCalculator also calculates the possible weight saving achieved with reduced-weight tyres in applications where the payload is critical, like tanker and silo transporters.

“The intelligent programme calculates cost savings that can reach a six-figure sum with a fleet of 50 tractor-trailers, for example,” comments Stephan Giesler, eBusiness manager for Commercial Vehicle Tyres at Continental.