President's Message
WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO
August 13, 2007
As the sales and marketing teams here at Smartire work with more and more bus/coach and commercial vehicle fleets, we tend to focus on the financial benefits of using SmartWave tire pressure monitoring systems. After all when a business is considering making a considerable capital investment the return on investment is a key consideration and is usually the deciding factor in a purchase decision.
There is no question that there are excellent financial benefits to be received in the areas of fuel and tire wear related savings for both commercial trucking as well as bus/coach fleets. However, a recent article released by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) entitled "Lessons Learned from a Motorcoach Tragedy - NTSB Calls for Fire Prevention Upgrades on Motorcoaches" highlights another very important benefit for tire pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) and reminds us at Smartire of a big reason "why we do what we do" - SAFETY.
Here's an excerpt from the article:
Its investigation into a bus accident that killed 23 elderly people fleeing Hurricane Rita has prompted the National Transportation Safety Board to issue a series of far-reaching recommendations to federal highway regulators to improve motorcoach safety.
The accident occurred on September 23, 2005. A 1998 Motor Coach Industries, Inc., 54-passenger motorcoach, operated by Global Limo Inc., of Pharr, Texas, was traveling northbound on Interstate 45 near Wilmer, Texas. The motorcoach, en route from Bellaire to Dallas, Texas, as part of the evacuation in anticipation of Hurricane Rita, was carrying 44 assisted living facility residents and nursing staff. A passing motorist alerted the driver that the right-rear tire hub was glowing red. The driver and nursing staff exited the motorcoach and saw flames coming from the right-rear wheel well. As they initiated an evacuation, with assistance from passersby, heavy smoke and fire quickly engulfed the entire vehicle. Twenty-three of the 44 passengers died, two were seriously injured, and 19 received minor injuries. The driver also received minor injuries.
As a result of its investigation, the Safety Board is urging the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to gather and evaluate information on the causes, frequency, and severity of bus and motorcoach fires; conduct ongoing analysis of fire data to measure the effectiveness of fire prevention and mitigation techniques; and prohibit commercial vehicles from operating with wheel seal or other hub lubrication leaks.
The complete article can be found here.
Our SmartWave products today help prevent tire fires and other tire related failures that often lead to fatal vehicle accidents. Unfortunately our experience has shown that it is difficult to sell safety and therefore we are very pleased that companies such as Coach USA have recognized that tire safety is as important as the financial return realized from better fuel efficiency and longer tire life.
As the President and CEO of Smartire Systems, I am committed to increasing shareholder value through the growth of our company's revenue and profitability. Our management and staff take pride in working hard, to achieve these goals but, we are also pleased that our corporate growth ambitions coincide with making bus/coach, RV and commercial trucking safer for passengers and drivers.
What better position can we be in than to provide a product that not only saves money but also saves lives?
Dave Warkentin
President & CEO
SmarTire Systems Inc.