When you travel the sorts of distances that Freestone’s Transport’s fleet of trucks and trailers cover, the issues of safety, breakdowns and running costs are always at the forefront of your actions.
That was the case for Freestone’s Transport Director, Paul Freestone, before meeting with the team from MICHELIN Connected Fleet. An introduction to the OEM’s Trailer Premium solution soon changed how he approached his national transport business.
“Our business hinges on punctuality, safety and cost control, and we sought a solution that could effectively manage tire pressures, brake temperatures and provide live alerts for our fleet of trucks and B-double trailers,” he says.
The MICHELIN Connected Fleet Trailer Premium solution provided Freestone’s with optimised tyre performance, brake temperature alerts, proactive maintenance and live tracking and alerts. It has resulted in a 90-per-cent reduction in tyre-related emergencies for Freestone’s Transport, as well as preventing possible fires caused by brakes and boosting workshop organisation and fleet performance.
“It’s one of the best systems I’ve seen in a long time,” Paul says. “Operators just love it. You don’t have to check tyre pressures anymore, and that’s a huge saving. But the biggest issues are tyre failure and brakes getting hot, and with Trailer Premium we know what the problem is straight away.”
Freestone’s Transport National Workshop Manager, Daniel Keohane, explains how a presentation of the MICHELIN Connected Fleet system paid off for the national trucking company.
“We were looking to upgrade our tracking system initially on our trailers,” he says. “We were running a solar tracking system which we found to be unreliable, and we were looking to go in other directions.”
By early 2024 Freestone’s had upgraded its entire fleet of 130 trailers with the Trailer Premium solution, using it to monitor the fleet, including distances travelled per trip, the most efficient routes in real-time, exact arrival times of trailers at customer depots and even the causes of tyre punctures.
MICHELIN’s Trailer Premium solution alerts Paul and his team as soon as a trailer has an issue – tyre pressure, axle fire or required maintenance or repairs – all resulting in savings.
“It’s not what it costs you, it’s what it saves you,” Paul says. “It’s priceless, really. We run over 130 trailers and to have that backup service is priceless.”
In addition to the cost savings, the Trailer Premium solution also provides increased safety to the fleet.
“Before, you wouldn’t know if you were having a failure as you were driving,” Paul says. “But now, you will know before anyone else knows it and you can get the driver to pull up and react accordingly.
“It’s made our business safer for the drivers and other road users. It’s a great system and it should be made as an OEM standard.”
Daniel says a truck’s real-time data can be analysed and compared with other axles, resulting in the issue being pinpointed and diagnosed en route. Drivers are notified to quickly attend to any potential problems before things escalate.
“We can relay that onto our drivers so that they can safely pull over and essentially prevent a fire,” he says. “We’ve saved a couple of trailers with this.”
Paul is thrilled with MICHELIN’s Trailer Premium solution which saves his business money through the reduction in tyre purchases, insurance costs, as well as maintenance and repair bills and fleet down times.
“To me, it’s gold,” he says. “It’s not cheap, but what price do you put on excellence?”
MICHELIN Connected Fleet’s Trailer Premium will be showcased at the 2025 Brisbane Truck Show highlighting the many cost-saving, safety and reporting features which make it ideal for commercial vehicles, truck and rigids, trailers and vans.
