Bridgestone bringing biggest OTR radial to Bauma

Bridgestone Europe says it will present a “strong line-up” of OTR tyres at this month’s Bauma 2013 trade show in Germany. At its stand (109/206 in hall A6), the company will present details of its “Total Tyre Care” programme plus present its new 20.5 R25 VSDR. Tyre aficionados will also have the chance to ogle the world’s largest OTR radial.

The stated aim behind Total Tyre Care is to help customers keep tight control on tyre-related costs through maximising the life of their tyres. The programme is built around three tyre management pillars: Total Tyre Life, Total Tyre Services and Total Tyre Systems. Together with its products, Bridgestone offers technical tools for tyre-performance monitoring, as well as maximum service quality with the “OTR Elite” label, a European dealer network of certified OTR tyre-specialists.

Along with other product innovations, Bridgestone will debut its 20.5 R25 VSDR pattern at Bauma. Bridgestone Europe describes the new addition as a premium tyre with extra deep treads for loaders and dozers. “The VSDR is the number one pattern for working in harsh conditions such as recycling and mining,” the tyre maker comments. “Compared to predecessor tyre the VSDL, the VSDR is said to offer significant improvement in cut resistance and tyre life, resulting in better cost per hour performance.

Bridgestone invites show visitors to its stand for a photo-shoot with the largest OTR radial tyre in the world. With a weight of 5.2 tonnes and a diameter of 4.02 metres, the 59/80R63 VRF is expected to be a Bauma highlight. Bridgestone says the VRF is especially recommended for high ‘Ton-Kilometre per Hour’ operations. This outsize model is designed to fit rigid dump trucks up to 400-tons, such as those working in coal-and copper mines, and oil sands all over the world.