Safety tyre pressure checks

Business: Carillion Building

In partnership with: Kwik Fit

Date: June 2007

Location: Mauldeth Road Office, Manchester

Business benefits:

Company vehicles properly maintained

Reduced fuel costs

Improved employee safety

No time lost taking cars for maintenance

Community benefits:

Less CO2 in the atmosphere

One journey by Mobile Unit instead of one by each car driver

Under-inflated tyres create more resistance when your car is moving, so more fuel is used and more CO2 emissions are produced. During Sustainability Week 2007, Philippa King at our Manchester Office arranged for a Kwikfit Mobile Tyre Unit to come and check the tyre pressure of cars in the car park.

On the day of the check, leaflets were displayed with tips for drivers on cutting down CO2 output. Approximately 70 cars were checked, including company and private vehicles. 17% of these needed to have their tyre pressure adjusted and 31% had worn or damaged tyres requiring attention.

Appointments were made on the spot for company vehicle users to have their cars seen to, and information given to private owners who were under no obligation to use Kwikfit’s services.

As well as reducing emissions from under-inflated tyres, this initiative avoided multiple journeys to Kwikfit, as the Mobile Unit came out to the Carillion office to carry out all the work. There was a significant safety benefit in ensuring that everyone’s tyres were in perfect condition, and raising awareness of the importance of regular maintenance.

This idea was followed on other sites, and will be repeated regularly at our Daresbury office.