Anglian Water has hailed an ongoing trial of Michelin’s new Agilis CrossClimate van tyres after they excelled during both the Beast from the East and the recent record-breaking hot spell.
The Arctic blast caused chaos on Britain’s roads, but came at the right time for one of Michelin’s latest products to prove its worth. During the UK’s warmest May on record, and continuing heatwave, the same tyres have been performing excellently – proving the new Agilis CrossClimate really is a summer tyre with a full winter capability.
Anglian Water has been using the CrossClimate+ fitments on its cars with impressive results, showing up to double the lifetime from as little as 20,000 miles on its previous tyres to 44,000 on the Michelins.
And while the Agilis CrossClimate trial is still in its early stages, drivers have noticed other improvements including better grip, robustness, and improved uptime thanks to not having to switch to seasonal tyres.
Dave Leggett, Anglian Water’s Fleet Operations Manager, says: “During the Beast from the East, when our drivers did go out, they felt like they had the extra confidence because of the additional grip.
“Now in the hot weather we’re seeing the same level of performance. A lot of the vans have to go down dirt tracks, across fields and difficult terrains and the drivers have noticed a step up in grip and general traction.
“The trial’s been really positive and when other sizes become available they will be going on everything we’ve got.”
And Leggett says the benefits do not stop at increased performance on the road, with financial savings already having been made by using CrossClimates on its cars.
He adds: “Because we only use one type of tyre now all year round, we’re saving on storage costs, as well as the financial burden and downtime from swapping tyres.”
Anglian Water was selected as one of a handful of international fleets to trial Michelin’s new Agilis CrossClimate tyres ahead of their May 2018 launch. The trial only began in December 2017, however Michelin’s internal calculations based on longevity tests carried out by DEKRA found that with Agilis CrossClimates, four tyres are saved on average every 62,000 miles thanks to their long lasting performance.
The Agilis CrossClimate has been developed and rigorously tested in challenging winter conditions by the Michelin winter tyre testing team in two European locations 2,485 miles apart – Ivalo, high up in the Arctic Circle in Finland, and Barcelonnette, which at 2,715 metres altitude in the Alps is one of the highest roads in Europe.
Its all-year mobility has been achieved by a rugged tread pattern, manufactured with innovative new rubber compounds to promote flexibility in cold temperatures and sidewall and shoulder protection features for improved robustness in service.
Ends
Michelin, the leading tyre company, is dedicated to enhancing its clients’ mobility, sustainably; designing and distributing the most suitable tyres, services and solutions for its clients’ needs; providing digital services, maps and guides to help enrich trips and travels and make them unique experiences; and developing high-technology materials that serve the mobility industry. Headquartered in Clermont-Ferrand, France, Michelin is present in 171 countries, has more than 114,000 employees and operates 70 production facilities in 17 countries which together produced around 190 million tyres in 2017. (www.michelin.com)
For further press information please contact:
David Johnson, Michelin Press Office
Tel: + 44 (0) 1782 402341 Email: d.johnson@michelin.com
Ian Collier or Rebecca Gleave, Garnett Keeler PR, Inver House, 37-39 Pound Street,
Carshalton, Surrey, SM5 3PG
Tel: +44 (0)20 8647 4467 E-mail: ian.collier@garnettkeeler.com or rebecca.gleave@garnettkeeler.com
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