You know the importance of maintaining your equipment if you own or work with heavy machinery. Without your equipment, you can lose out on work and productivity. That’s why getting the best resources to maintain your heavy-duty vehicles is important.
One of the most critical parts of a vehicle is its brake system. You need it in the best shape possible to prevent any mishaps. Depending on your type of machine, it may be best served by using specific brake services.
Heavy-duty vehicles fall into specific categories. Here are the three types and how they differ.
Utility Brake Services
Utility vehicles have electric brakes, which require a brake controller. Brake controllers control the electric current that transmits to the brake when pressed on vehicles. Brake controllers also connect to the stoplight switch and the vehicle battery.
There are two types of brake controllers: Time delay and proportional.
Time delay controllers have controls that the vehicle operator must adjust. The adjustment compensates for the trailer’s weight when the brakes are used. Therefore, the driver must consider the weight before they apply the brake.
If the controller adjusts incorrectly, it can lead to the trailer assisting too much or too little when braking.
Proportional controllers have a device that checks how quickly the vehicle is coming to a stop. It uses this information to regulate the power of the trailer brakes. Then, proportional controllers apply the trailer brakes in tandem with the vehicle’s brakes.
A utility brake service should ensure that the electrical system and magnets are working to deploy the brakes.
Material Handling Brakes
Material handling brakes are sensitive and should undergo inspection before using one of these vehicles. In addition, forklifts and other material handling vehicles ‘ brakes are subject to damage due to the heavy loads these vehicles carry.
If your vehicle’s brakes don’t pass muster, something is probably wrong with the brakes.
If the brakes have more than 5,000 hours of use, it’s time to replace them. Dirt and debris will accumulate on the brake shoes over time, which will cause ridges. These ridges lead to a degradation of quality.
If the vehicle stops too quickly, that indicates something is wrong. If the vehicle isn’t slowing to a smooth stop, there’s an issue that needs correcting.
Since these vehicles carry so much weight, brake replacement and brake repair are quintessential in ensuring the vehicle’s and its passengers’ safety.
Agricultural Brakes
The brake systems in agricultural machines are split into numerous categories.
The first category is dry tractor brakes. This category includes the sub-categories of hydraulic drum brakes, hydraulic disc brakes, and air disc brakes. Each brake system uses different parts to get these machines to come to a stop.
The caliper and piston are quintessential to the hydraulic drum brakes and the hydraulic disc brakes, respectively. Air disc brakes use air pressure to get vehicles to stop instead of hydraulic fluid like the first two.
The second category of brakes is wet tractor brakes. These brakes were made for demanding conditions. Dry brakes sit outside the machine and may not be enough to get a vehicle to stop under challenging conditions.
The different types of wet brake systems are multiple discs, hydraulic pressure, internal braking, and low maintenance.
Keep Your Industry Moving
Depending on your type of machine, it may require unique brake services to ensure its braking system works. For example, heavy machines have different braking systems, which require diverse expertise in braking systems. Seek out the right business for your vehicle’s needs.
At Kor-Pak, we help make sure industrial vehicles work at full capacity. We specialize in many industries, including agriculture, iron and steel, mining, and many others. Contact us to inquire about the products we have for your industry.