Wheel alignment technology is helping Volvo dealer Thomas Hardie Commercials to save money and reduce vehicle downtime for its customers. Thomas Hardie, which is a headline sponsor of the 2024 ALBUM Conference, is the main distributor for Volvo Truck, Bus & Coach in the North West of England, North Wales and Lancashire, and has six franchised dealerships supported by three smaller sites, plus its Thomas Hardie Vehicle Solutions (THVS) division providing repairs, painting, aftermarket services and refurbishment of trucks and trailers.
The group has invested in a Volvo Truck & Bus-approved Josam Cam-aligner from Automotive Equipment Solutions (AES UK), and has equipped one of its service vans with the kit, giving it the flexibility to provide wheel alignment services, either at its own workshops or at customers’ premises.
Group Truck & Bus Manager Chris Whalley said: “We have already seen a return on investment from the Josam Cam-aligner as it enabled us to take wheel alignment completely in-house. We carry out tracking checks on new vehicles as part of our PDI. In addition, for wheel alignment we can now go to the customer rather than have them bring their vehicles to us. This saves on fuel and tyres and reduces vehicle downtime for our clients.
“Customer vehicle downtime has now halved thanks to the specialised equipment from Josam,” added Chris. “The accuracy of the tracking is also saving our customers money, and they absolutely love that. Our data shows that identifying and replacing worn steering components can add up to 10% extra mpg to a vehicle, which is a huge difference.”
AES UK delivered in-depth training for Thomas Hardie’s 11 master technicians as well as Chris, ensuring the entire team were fully confident and comfortable with the technology.
“The support we received from AES has been second to none,” continued Chris. “While we were getting to grips with the technology, any time we encountered an issue we called them and they either fixed it over the phone or came in person extremely quickly. Their rapid response and customer service helps to ensure we keep customer vehicle downtime to a minimum.”
