Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC continues its commitment to North American commercial fleet safety through its industry-leading development and manufacture of active safety and braking system technologies. Central Refrigerated Service, Inc., is adding Bendix Wingman Advanced – A Collision Mitigation Technology – to its highway safety efforts.
The leading fleet is equipping 100 new Peterbilt tractors with Bendix Wingman Advanced this year. Approximately half are already on the road. Central Refrigerated Service also equips all of its tractors with the Bendix ESP Electronic Stability Program full-stability system.
Founded in 2002 and based in Salt Lake City, Utah, Central Refrigerated Service is one of the nation's largest temperature-controlled truckload carriers. The company counts 1,950 tractors and 3,400 trailers in its fleet, which serves 48 states from locations in Fontana, Calif., Denver, Colo., Rochelle, Ill., Conley, Ga., and Pasco, Wash.
Other Bendix products used by the Central Refrigerated Service fleet include Bendix AD-IP air dryers with PuraGuard oil-coalescing technology, Bendix Versajust slack adjusters, Bendix EverSure spring brakes with No Touch technology, and Bendix ES (Extended Service) Wide Drum Brakes.
"Safety is our number one priority, and we have been consistently impressed by Bendix's game-changing active safety technology," said Mark Hadley, Central Refrigerated Service's director of fleet maintenance. "We began adopting today's stopping distance and safety standards seven years ago, adding Bendix's wide brakes to our trucks. From brakes to full-stability, every Bendix product we've incorporated into our fleet has been reliable. With Bendix Wingman Advanced, we believe our incidences of rear-end collisions have been reduced – our use of the system is still new, so we're waiting for conclusive data."
Bendix Wingman Advanced, built on the foundation of Bendix ESP technology, delivers active cruise control with braking features, along with collision mitigation technology. Using a radar sensor mounted to the front of the vehicle, Bendix Wingman Advanced delivers both warnings and active interventions to help drivers potentially avoid rear-end collisions or, at least, help reduce their severity.
Whether or not cruise control is engaged, Bendix Wingman Advanced provides following distance and stationary object alerts at any speed greater than approximately 10 mph. The system's collision mitigation feature provides additional braking interventions, delivering up to two-thirds of the vehicle braking power through the steer, drive, and trailer brakes. Above about 15 mph, this "always available" braking feature can assist drivers through an alert and an automatic application of the brakes to help decelerate the vehicle when a rear-end collision may be imminent. The driver still maintains control of the vehicle and can add additional braking or steering inputs to help avoid or minimize the collision situation.
"Bendix is proud to be a part of Central Refrigerated Service's commitment to provide safe vehicles for their drivers and improve roadway safety for everyone," said TJ Thomas, Bendix director of marketing and customer solutions, controls group.
Central Refrigerated Service was among the earliest adopters of steer axle wide brakes and Bendix ESP.
Full stability typically assesses situations quicker than roll-only stability systems – thanks to additional sensors that measure driver intent and vehicle direction – and then delivers automatic brake interventions involving the steer, drive and trailer axles. Bendix ESP helps slow the vehicle quickly to help mitigate rollovers faster, while slowing and redirecting can help the driver maneuver in loss-of-control situations.
Central Refrigerated Service has also spec'd Bendix AD-IP air dryers with PuraGuard oil-coalescing technology on more than 1,000 of its trucks. PuraGuard technology is highly proficient at preventing oil from entering a vehicle's air system, where it can contribute to premature damage in a variety of components such as push-pull dash valves, spring brake modulating valves, and brake chamber diaphragms.
Bendix's active safety and air management solutions are part of the company's ever-growing portfolio of technology developments that delivers on safety, plus other areas critical to fleets' success. By improving vehicle performance and efficiency and providing unparalleled post-sales support, Bendix aims to help fleets and drivers lower total cost of vehicle ownership, strengthen return on investment in equipment and technology and improve highway safety.
Bendix emphasizes that safety technologies do not replace the need for safe drivers. No commercial vehicle safety technology replaces the most important safety components of all: skilled, alert professional drivers exercising safe driving habits, as well as continuous, comprehensive driver training.
