It was automotive revolutionary, Henry Ford, who famously said, “Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success.” His wise words describe a number of strong relationships found across both Ford’s automotive industry and that of commercial road transport. A case in point is the relatively new, yet remarkably strong partnership between equipment supplier, JOST Australia, and wheel chroming specialist, Superchrome.
Now working together with JOST for four years, Superchrome Manager, Greg Druitt, says the relationship between the two businesses is built to last. Greg has been part of the transport industry for over 24 years, with 17 years experience with chroming alloy wheels, giving him a good base for solving the problems associated with wheels in the heavy vehicle industry.
“Superchrome will only align itself with the highest quality brands of wheels, and the JOST product is one of the best on the market,” Greg says – adding that the two companies work well as their products provide different benefits that combine to make a powerful package. Together it solves the main wheel problems encountered by providing ease of cleaning, no polishing, weight saving, professional presentation and resistance to sandblasting, all while prolonging the life of the wheels.
On top of that, the JOST forged alloy wheels weigh half that of a steel wheel, increasing the potential payload for users without compromising on strength and durability. The Superchrome process builds on that durability by coating the quality alloy wheel with a super-hard chrome plating that Greg says can double the wheel’s life in some cases.
“The chrome coating makes alloy wheels highly resistant to the effects of Australian road conditions in general which includes chemicals, gravel, dirt and sandblasting common to the harsh working environments for mining, construction and offroad applications,” Greg says. “A simple wash with a hose or gurney will remove most residue and bring the wheels back to a brand-new presentation. Our customers love the fact that they don’t have to waste time polishing wheels in order to maintain a professional level of presentation.”
Throughout his years in the business, Greg says he’s been informed that it takes, on average, 30 minutes to polish a single wheel, which adds up to a significant amount of time when multiplied over each entire combination in a fleet. “JOST and Superchrome websites actually provide a simple Lifetime Savings Calculator that can outline just how much money and time having chromed alloy wheels can save operators,” he says. “Operators are often surprised how much they invest in polishing wheels over their lifetime.”
According to Greg, Superchrome has invested over $1 million into years of research and development to perfect the unique Superchrome process. So confident in its quality processes, Superchrome offers a seven-year warranty on the chrome, which far outstrips the one-to-two year warranty offered by much of its competition, he says.
“Together with the five-year, unlimited kilometre warranty that JOST offers on its alloy wheels, fleet operators don’t have to spare a second thought for the reliability and quality of their equipment,” Greg says.
That peace of mind is crucial to long-time customers such as John Crampton, Director of Coffs Harbour-based bulk haulage transporter, Crampo’s tippers. Crampo’s carts a wide variety of bulk tippable supplies from quarries like sand, soil and crushed gravels for highway construction, to fertiliser, with his equipment going off road to pick up and deliver to farms as well as into the harsh environment of the concrete yard with agitator trucks.
“We used to spend most weekends polishing alloy wheels, but in this game they’d be just as bad again within a week,” John says. “In looking for a solution, we found Superchrome and now have over 180 of the wheels. The seven-year warranty gives us peace of mind. We’re very happy with the product and how easy it is to maintain the professional presentation for our fleet. We just specify Superchrome wheels to be fitted by our truck and trailer suppliers when ordering new equipment.”
Greg adds that in the four years that Superchrome has been working with JOST, it has experienced positive growth and acceptance of the brand and the many benefits of Superchrome, which is testament to the high quality reputation of the German brand. “JOST is famous for quality products that meet our high expectations,” Greg says. “We are very selective with which wheels we will process, to uphold the Superchrome brand name.”
That alignment in the level of quality across the JOST and Superchrome products is the key to the relationship the two businesses share, which even revolutionary Henry Ford could likely agree fits his description of success.
Fast Fact
JOST Australia introduced its forged alloy wheels to the Australian market in 2013, with Product Manager, Mike McCosker, describing the company’s wheel portfolio as a “competitively priced range boasting industry-leading quality”.
Fast Fact
In 2018, Superchrome is celebrating 20 years of chroming steel wheels and 15 years of chroming alloy wheels for the truck, trailer and bus industries. A second production shift has been introduced at Superchrome and this, combined with the JOST warehouse distribution in all states of Australia, ensures all orders are processed in a timely manner.
