Alcoa^® Wheels didn’t stop at the invention of the forged aluminium wheel in 1948.

We have continued to stay at the leading edge of innovation and are using our wheel technologies to help forge the future of the transportation industry.

New technologies such as electric vehicles, fuel cell vehicles, along with decarbonization initiatives, fuel emissions regulations, green gas house emissions standards, and sustainable city transportation are having an impact on how fleets operate. 

Vehicles are getting heavier due to the technologies required to meet climate change driven standards, when in the transport industry every kilogram counts.

The Future is Electric

 We have seen a range of prototypes, demonstration trucks, and commercially available hydrogen fuel-cell and plug-in electric vehicles come onto the market.

Bollinger and Toyota in North America, Tata in India, and BYD and Chanje in China have introduced prominent new 2019 and 2020 models.

Both Volvo Trucks and Renault Trucks started producing electric trucks in 2019, and Scania released two battery electric city distribution trucks in early 2020.

Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, took the Volvo FL Electric for a drive on his visit to Volvo Australia Headquarters in 2021.

Big changes are on the horizon for the future of the transport industry, with Daimler Trucks committing in October 2019 to sell only zero-emission vehicles by 2039 and Volvo Trucks announcing in late 2020 its intention for all of its trucks to be fossil fuel free by 2040.

What do Alcoa Wheels have to do with electrification of vehicles?

It’s all about light weighting.

The environmental impact of battery electric vehicles is significantly lower than vehicles with an internal combustion engine, according to a life cycle assessment (LCA) of distribution vehicles published by Scania in 2021.

This means that lighter wheels are becoming a more and more important consideration as we move towards a more sustainable future.

“The push toward electrification in the industry now is driving the light weighting crusade with batteries currently being very heavy,” says Michael Nichols, National Sales Manager of Howmet Wheel Systems, distributor of Alcoa Wheels in Australia.

Fitting lighter wheels not only offsets the added weight of the battery, but they help extend battery life and improve range.

A good example is shown in the bus segment where one OEM notes, “Weight needs to be reduced to get maximum battery capacity and passenger loading while respecting the various regulations (local, state, and federal).

“For every ~150 lbs (~68kg) reduced, one extra passenger can be added.  Alternatively, with Battery energy density of 160 Wh/kg, ~3 miles (~4.8km) of range could be added.”

“The term ‘innovation’ is thrown around a lot nowadays,” says Nichols. “But when it comes to Alcoa Wheels, our 70+ years of innovation has resulted in real benefits for the customer – lighter weight, stronger wheels with less fuel costs…and now, lower carbon emissions.”

The new Alcoa Ultra ONE^® 18kg Wheel is already helping fleets, owner-operators and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) reduce individual truck and trailer weight by up to 590 kg versus steel options, and up to 100kg for a standard 22 wheel truck and trailer combination, compared with other aluminium wheel options.

The Future Is Aerodynamic

If you thought that aerodynamics was just for airplanes, you would have been right…a few years ago. Nowadays, the transport industry on the ground are seeking to streamline fleets with aerodynamic solutions as the mega trends in sustainability continue to grow.

With the cost of diesel going up, and with increased government activity to reduce greenhouse gases, interest in aerodynamics is becoming a much talked about topic in land transportation.

Aerodynamics reduces air drag which means a lowered fuel consumption and therefore CO₂ emissions and is becoming popular for fleets.

For long-haul operators, there’s a definite advantage to streamlining with aerodynamic products, and fleets are doing it through trial and error at the moment, according to Dave Walters, manager of warranty and field service for Alcoa Wheel Products, who acted as chairman for the Technology and Maintenance Council’s (TMC) Recommended Practice (RP) 261, Considerations for Aerodynamic Wheel Covers over in the US.

Doug Mason, Alcoa Wheels Global Technology Manager (pictured) shares the following example to highlight the trial and error: “A fleet that adds a trailer skirt might see 5 percent savings.

They might then decide to add another component that should provide an additional 2 percent savings, but only realise 4 percent instead of seeing a total 7 percent in savings.”
Mason explains: “The interaction between the two components did change the airflow, but because of the complexity of the truck and trailer designs themselves, the addition of the second aerodynamic device may have actually created more drag.”

Mike Yagley, global program launch manager for Alcoa Wheel Products says, “The aerodynamics of trucks are just so complex, and the best data out there … belongs to the fleets. They know exactly what they get for the aerodynamics.” 

What do Alcoa Wheels have to do with aerodynamics?

In order to improve aerodynamic performance equipment are added to the vehicle, which all add weight.

Alcoa Wheels, as the lightest and strongest in the market, are considered by fleets and OEMs to help offset the additional weight from the aerodynamic equipment without compromising on the load capacity.

Larger fleets may spec Alcoa Wheels as standard across their equipment, as this provides a stable and consistent measure while trying new technologies to lower emissions and meet standards.

Howmet Aerospace, manufacturer of Alcoa Wheels, is at the forefront of what is working in the field of aerodynamics, and what wheel experts like Mason, Walters and Yagley are seeing is that the benefits of aerodynamic products in the future, especially wheels, will far outweigh the setbacks of the current ‘test and measure’ phase –  such as proper installation of aerodynamic devices, choosing the right ones, or ensuring they don’t damage parts of the vehicle to which they’re mounted.

Alcoa Wheels’ innovative wheel technologies will continue to forge the future of the transport industry as it adjusts to demands to become more and more sustainable.

Make Sure It’s An Alcoa^® Wheel

To spec your wheels, ring  1800 955 191 to talk with our wheel experts, or fill out a contact form and we will reach out to you to answer your questions and discuss your specifications.

Truck and trailer wheels made from aluminium do cost more money up-front, there’s no denying it. But as it turns out, they are the smarter investment in the long run – especially with the Australian government’s extension of the Instant Asset Write-off tax break.

With the Instant Asset Write-off, businesses can claim an immediate deduction of the cost of an asset in the year the asset is first used or installed ready for use. At the time of writing this, the assets will need to be used for the first time or installed ready for use by June 30, 2023.

“The extension of temporary full expensing to 2023 will continue to drive trucking business investment and help more businesses purchase safer trucks and trailers,” Australian Trucking Association CEO, Andrew McKellar, has said.

What this means for Australian transport business owners who may need to replace equipment, increase equipment numbers and/or improve equipment, is that now could be the time to explore Alcoa^® Wheels when buying a new truck or trailer, or upgrading their wheels to Alcoa Dura-Bright^® Wheels.

“Trucking businesses have rightly seen the measure as a once in a lifetime opportunity to renew their fleets,” McKellar said.

It’s no secret that forged aluminium truck wheels cost more money than steel wheels, so often this seems like the most economical choice.

A 22.5” by 8.25” steel wheel sells for between $100 and $140. An aluminium wheel, like the Alcoa Ultra ONE^® wheel, in the same size can cost two to three times that.

While it might seem economical to go for a cheaper wheel, aluminium wheels work out to be a smart investment for a transport company’s bottom line in the long run.

Here are some of the key benefits of Alcoa^® Wheels and 6 reasons why they make more financial sense than generally believed:

1. Fuel Savings

Many people know that investing in the right set of tyres can cut down on rolling resistance and therefore increase fuel savings.

When Alcoa wheels are combined with low rolling resistance tyres, the fuel efficiency is maximised again by some 3% or more! And this is supported by research – a 2012 study of Alcoa forged aluminium wheels in the US.

The study also found that the fuel efficiency savings of Alcoa wheels contributed to a decrease of the carbon footprint of commercial vehicles; so much so that trucks that switched from steel to aluminium reduced carbon emissions by 16.3 metric tons over the lifespan of the wheels, which equals the carbon footprint of an average 4 person household over a year’s time!

According to the North American Council for Freight Efficiency, light weighting technologies save 0.5% to 0.6% of fuel per 450-500kg (1,000 pounds) of weight reduction.

Upgrading to the new Alcoa Ultra ONE^® 18kg wheel from the equivalent 22.5” x 8.25” steel wheel, for example, will lighten a standard truck and trailer by over 600kg.

If we calculated that over the 14 year lifetime of a truck and 10 year lifetime of the trailer, there are some substantial fuel savings to be had.

Some businesses, like bulk haulage companies, will want to replace the weight saved with more payload, so one could argue that the above equation isn’t valid, but read on and see what is possible for businesses where payload is a consideration.

If payload isn’t a factor in your business ie you don’t get paid by the load, more load means a decrease in the number of necessary hauls over time, which reduces the amount of fuel consumption as well.

2. Payload Gains

For bulk haulage fleets, the extra payload capacity drives wheel choices.

The newest Ultra ONE^® Wheel, at just 18kg, can lighten a rig by over 100kg* against the average aluminium wheel of the same size, which can weigh 23kg.

Compared with a steel wheel of the same size, the weigh difference is upwards of 600kg.

Work out your savings with our payload calculator.

“Weight reduction is an ever-present goal for commercial wheel manufacturers,” says Ross Simmons, Managing Director of Howmet Wheel Systems – distributor for Alcoa Wheels in Australia. “We continue to find new opportunities for weight reduction without sacrificing performance and durability as we innovate with manufacturing processes and metal technology.”

The patented MagnaForce^® Alloy used for all new releases of Alcoa Wheels is 17% stronger than the industry standard alloy used to manufacture aluminium wheels, which has allowed Alcoa Wheels to reduce the weight of the wheel while still maintaining the load rate strength.

3. Low to No Maintenance

If we’re still talking ‘cheaper wheels’ being steel, it’s worth noting that although they cost less to purchase up front, steel wheels are high-maintenance ie labour intense – and labour = $$$.

Steel requires a lot of refurbishing such as removing rust, re-painting, and touch-up work, leading to higher lifetime costs.

Maintenance is one of the measurable costs that help transport business owners justify the financial sense aluminium wheels make because refurbishing, curbing damage, tyre and brake life are all part of the choice of wheels at the time of manufacture of the equipment, or replacement of wheels.

By their very nature, wheels in the heavy-duty world, spend their entire lives in harsh environments. They are constantly bombarded with potential corrosion and dirt build up.

Alcoa Dura-Bright^® Wheels, on the other hand, are cleaned with just soap and water.

Dura-Bright^® Wheels are a premium surface treatment – not a coating – that actually penetrates the metal to form one composite.

This composite creates a lower surface energy, so less dirt and road grime sticks to the wheel.

It also enables the wheel to keep its shine, and so the wheel stays looking newer for longer without the need to polish, even after hundreds of washes and thousands of kilometres.
The ROI here is easily calculated: labour and time saved cleaning, less wheel offs due to Dura-Bright^® wheels being 10 x more resistant to corrosion, and more time on the road hauling loads.

Dura-Bright^® Wheels have been known to reduce wheel cleaning time from 25 minutes down to just 2 minutes.

Combining the advantages of lightweight Alcoa Wheels with the easy to clean benefits of the Dura-Bright® finish helps to lower lifetime operating costs and provide value to fleet owners.

4. Extended Tyre and Brake Life

Improved heat dissipation can lead to longer tyre and brake life, so whether trucks and equipment are exposed to high temperatures due to harsh weather conditions, or they are start and stopping in high density city areas, the advantage of aluminium wheels is that they give up heat faster and dissipate heat away from the tyres and brakes – thus helping to improve tyre and brake life.

If the truck and trailer were on steel wheels, the heat would continue to rise even after parking the trucks. Alcoa Wheels help to quickly cool down the system and help to prevent heat damage to the tyres and brakes.

Because Alcoa Wheels are made from a one-piece aluminium machined on a CNC lathe, they are better balanced, which makes for improved ride quality and improve tyre life.

The cost of replacing tyres due to overheating can be lessened or even avoided, with that money staying in the business instead of being put into ongoing maintenance costs.

5. Driver / Operator Retention

Because Alcoa Wheels are 100 percent CNC machined, run-out and vibrations are eliminated leading to a smoother, safer ride for the operator.

This can potentially be measured as ROI in longer driver retention.

Employee satisfaction is directly proportional to how long a person remains in a role, and it has been recorded in a 2016 survey of 6200 truck drivers at two large fleets that those who believed their safety was prioritised by their employer felt more valued and were more likely to stay in their jobs.

6. Resale and End-of-Life

The durability and long life of Alcoa Wheels add value to commercial trucks and trailers, even when it is time to sell them. Research shows that trucks equipped with aluminium wheels have a higher trade-in value.

Wheel manufacturers report that the resale value of aluminium wheels is typically more than 50% of the original investment as much as 10 years earlier.

Even at the end of their very long life, Alcoa Wheels have value because they are recyclable. They will never be taken to a landfill.

Upfront Costs Remain Upfront

Price remains an issue for many businesses, which is why the Instant Asset Write-Off has been a godsend to many owner-operators, fleet owners and OEMs who have wanted to upgrade to aluminium wheels.

“We find that working out an ROI based on productivity gains helps in the decision to spec Alcoa Wheels,” says Michael Nichols, National Sales Manager for Howmet Wheels Systems Australia. “For example, we can quantify things like the reduction in maintenance costs, increased resale value due to the longevity of our wheels, and even driver retention.”

He adds: “The aluminium wheel choice is a long game, so to be able to take advantage of the government’s extension of the Instant Asset Write-Off now is making a lot of sense to business owners out there who can get behind the financial sense Alcoa Wheels makes over the lifetime of their equipment.”

The Preferred Choice of Leaders in the Industry

In the mining and heavy haulage sectors in particular, where every piece of the vehicle uses as much aluminium as possible because the payback is so great, Alcoa® Wheels are the preferred choice for leading OEMs in Australia.

How Does The Instant Asset Write-Off Work If I Want To Buy A New Trailer?

In a nutshell, if you buy your new trailer between now and 30th June essentially you will get an immediate tax deduction.

• Threshold amount is $150,000 (up from $30,000)
• Eligibility has been expanded to businesses with an aggregated turnover of less than $500 million (up from $50 million).

Businesses can claim an immediate deduction (business portion only) for multiple assets, new or second-hand, provided each asset costs less than $150,000.

Our best suggestion is to get onto your tax accountant STAT so that he or she can give you professional advice on what your options are.

You can also visit the ATO website to read up on what you can and cannot do.

Make Sure It’s An Alcoa^® Wheel

Did you know that you can specify Alcoa® Wheels when buying a truck or trailer?

Ask for Alcoa^® Wheels to be included in the quote. To spec your wheels, ring  1800 955 191 to talk with our wheel experts, or fill out a contact form and we will reach out to you to answer your questions and discuss your specifications.

*A standard truck and trailer with 22 wheels.

The prominent ‘lightest wheel in the market’ statement by Alcoa^® Wheels has drawn in a lot of curiosity – and some great questions – from customers and other interested parties.

A statement like this isn’t said lightly, if you’ll pardon the pun. Alcoa Wheels were the very first forged aluminium wheel in the world, when in 1948 Aluminium company, Alcoa, using an alloy it had developed for the aerospace industry, invented the forged aluminium wheel.

In 1968, the Alcoa company set the industry standard again when it launched its 6061 alloy for forged aluminum wheels. Alcoa’s 6061 material provided a strong, durable alloy, resistant to corrosion that is used to this day by all major forged aluminum wheel manufacturers as the industry standard alloy.

Alcoa^® Wheels have continually met increasing demands for lighter weight wheels, and by 2013 their design experts were engineering products 4.5kg lighter than wheels from 20 years before, using the same alloy.

Today, weighing in at just 18kg, the new Ultra ONE^® Wheel is heralded as the lightest and strongest forged aluminium wheel in the world of commercial vehicles; manufactured from an exclusively patented alloy (6361) which is 17% stronger than the industry standard.

Here are the answers to 8 questions about the Ultra ONE^® Wheel:

QUESTION 1: What does spec’ing the lightest wheel mean for my business?

A: In order to meet carbon emission regulations at truck OEM’s, fleets are switching to lighter-weight wheels more and more to offset the weight of technologies needed to remove air pollutants from diesel engine exhausts.

Lighter-weight, lower-maintenance wheels also help trucks improve fuel economy to help make up for rising fuel prices and move goods in a cleaner, more fuel-efficient way.

With the Australian Government extending the Instant Asset Write-off incentive recently, truck and trailer OEMs, together with owner-operators are taking advantage of being able to spec premium wheels like Alcoa^® Wheels, and even up-spec to a Dura-Bright^® finish, because they are able to make the best wheel investment decision comfortably and do it right, first time.

QUESTION 2: How do the numbers stack up when cost is a serious consideration for me?

A: The average forged aluminium 22.5” x 8.25” wheel weighs 23 kg, which is 25% heavier than the new Ultra ONE^® Wheel. Put that into a payload calculator and you’ve got some serious savings over the lifetime of your equipment.

QUESTION 3: What applications are the new Ultra ONE^® Wheels good for?

A: Because of the strength and durability of Alcoa^® Wheels, they perform well in the harshest of conditions and are chosen by leaders in the mining operating industry, as well as for long haul applications, where payload and fuel efficiency are important considerations in the trailer build process.

The new Ultra ONE^® Wheel is currently available in standard US fitment on 10-285, so you’ll see it on Tippers, Tankers, Skels and Tautliners – in fact, any trailer seeking to be light weight will benefit from this durable, light wheel that’s trusted by some of the biggest OEM’s in the world. Learn more about which applications Alcoa^® Wheels suit.

The Dura-Bright^® finish is widely used on the Ultra ONE^® Wheel where maintenance down time is a cost factor to operators.

QUESTION 4: How does the new wheel compare to the previous version of the Alcoa^® Ultra ONE^® Wheel?

A: The new 18kg wheel is an improvement in important ways. Its new Hub Bore Groove Technology reduces the metal-to metal contact area between the wheel and the hub wheel end by half.  This reduces the opportunity for corrosion to form, thus allowing for easier wheel removal during maintenance.

Aside from the Hub Bore Groove Technology, the exclusive to Alcoa^® Wheels patented MagnaForce^® Alloy is 17% stronger than the industry standard for forged aluminium wheels, which means that while the new Ultra ONE^® wheel is 600grams lighter than the previous version, the load rating is the same at 3,355kg and payloads are thus improved further.

QUESTION 5: Does the new wheel look different to the previous Ultra ONE^® wheel?

A: The wheel face, hand holes, and rim profile all look the same as the previous version, with minor changes not easily visible.  The only visible change you will note is the new enhanced hub bore with less metal present to reduce contact with the wheel hub.  Once mounted this hub groove will be hardly noticeable.

QUESTION 6: How will I know if I have the new Ultra ONE^® wheel or the previous one?

A: The difference is in the part number. On the wheel roll stamp, you’ll see ULT39 in the part number, indicating the new 18kg wheel. The previous wheel part number began with ULTRA.

QUESTION 7: What finishes are offered with the Ultra ONE^® Wheel?

A: This new wheel is offered in the same leading finish options: LvL ONE^®, Mirror Polish and Dura-Bright®.

• LvL ONE^® reflective finish and high gloss levels give the wheel an appearance 6 times brighter than that of competitor wheels.
• Mirror Polish  is in the premium wheel finish exclusive to Alcoa^® Wheels, with the highest level of gloss and reflectivity of any wheel on the market.
• Dura-Bright^® surface treatment offers a consistent shine without the need to polish.

Compare the various Alcoa^® Wheels finishes here.

The quality of Alcoa^® Wheels finishes is evident in the ‘Reflective Clarity Comparison’ below, with the competitor best finish sitting far below the Alcoa^® Wheels’ standard LvL One^® finish.

QUESTION 8: Where can I inspect the Ultra ONE^® wheel?

A: Call  1800 955 191 and talk to our wheel specialists. They will help you decide if the new Ultra ONE^® Wheel is right for your equipment…and we’ll arrange to come out to you.

Make Sure It’s An Alcoa^® Wheel

Did you know that you can specify Alcoa^® Wheels when buying a truck or trailer?

Ask for Alcoa^® Wheels to be included in the quote. To spec your wheels, ring  1800 955 191 to talk with our wheel experts, or fill out a contact form and we will reach out to you to answer your questions and discuss your specifications.

WARNING: Welding, brazing, or otherwise heating any area of an Alcoa^® aluminium wheel will weaken the wheel. Weakened or damaged wheels can lead to an explosive separation of tires and wheels or wheel failure on the vehicle. Explosive separations of tyres and wheels or wheel failure on the vehicle could cause serious injuries or death. Never attempt to weld, braze, or heat any surface of an Alcoa^® aluminium wheel.

Did you know that even something as seemingly harmless as chroming your Alcoa^® Wheels instantly voids the 5 year warranty?

Alterations to a wheel may change stress points, strength, and corrosion properties in such a way that the wheel no longer meets design criteria, resulting in non-compliance with safety standards and vehicle certification requirements.

All Alcoa^® Wheels come with a 5 year Warranty and are designed, manufactured, and rigorously evaluated in a tightly controlled environment to ensure they pass performance criteria only for approved applications, so it’s important to only use them for the applications they’re designed for and not to alter them in any way.

THE 6 THINGS THAT WILL VOID YOUR WARRANTY

Howmet Wheels Systems Australia (distributor of Alcoa^® Wheels) will not be able to consider a wheel valid for reparation under the warranty if a customer brings a wheel in with any of the below alterations:

1. Machining (of any type)
2. Redesigning the hand holes
3. Reconfiguring the bolt holes in any way
4. Welding on any part of the wheel
5. Painting the wheel
6. Chrome plating the wheel

In fact, the warranty conditions state, “Howmet is not liable for, does not warrant, and will not repair or replace or make adjustment, with respect to any Wheel or surface or rim flange treatment on such Wheel that has been subjected to misuse, abuse, or improper modification.”

Under Australian law, while Alcoa Wheels owners are offered extra protection from guarantees that fall under the Australian Consumer Law, these consumer guarantees do not apply if the customer has misused a product in any way that caused the problem they are seeking to be remedied.

THE TROUBLE ALTERATIONS CAUSE WITH WARRANTY

Where wheels have been altered, Howmet Wheel Systems may not be able to certify the accuracy or validity of the certification markings that are stamped on the wheel at the time of manufacture.

Alterations can also lead to cracks, bending, shrinkage, breakage, out of roundness, balancing issues, and other problems that can lead to catastrophic wheel failure, wheel separation, tyre failure and/or tyre separation, all which can cause  serious injury or death.

Wheel showing welding alteration on the mounting surface and thereby voiding the 5 year warranty.

WARRANTY BEST PRACTICE

Always refer to the Alcoa^® Wheel Service Manual when maintaining your Alcoa Wheels. Section 3-2 in our wheel service manual addresses wheel alteration in more detail.

Listen to wheels experts sharing warranty stories over at the Behind the Wheels Podcast:

Make Sure It’s An Alcoa^® Wheel When You Buy Your Next Truck or Trailer

To spec your wheels for your equipment, ring  1800 955 191 to talk with our wheel experts, or fill out a contact form and we will reach out to you to answer your questions and discuss your specifications.

You’re not alone if you’re asking, ‘Why is wheel design so complex when all wheels are simply round?’

Even people who work in the wheel industry in many forms – from tyre fitters to service technicians – are told that working with wheels ‘should’ be easy because, after all, a wheel is a wheel is a wheel.

Designing the lightest and strongest wheels is top of the list for the manufacturer of Alcoa Wheels, Howmet Aerospace, as these factors determine the overall performance of a truck, bus or trailer when it comes to increasing payload capacity and bettering fuel efficiency to help fleets maintain a healthy bottom line.

It’s Not Simply Cookie Cutter Design

Grant DeGeorge, Global Design Manager, has been with the company for almost 14 years now (as at 2021) and designed wheels for approximately 10 of those.

“It’s not a cookie cutter design,” he says. “When somebody wants a 22.5”x8.25” wheel, we just don’t pull a design from our back pocket and run it through a test. There’s a lot of things we’ve got to get from the customer, whether it be a mounting system, the offset, whether it’s going to be used in the steer position, for example”.

Grant also says that in between what the customer needs, things like the load rating, the pressure ratings, what application they’re using it in, whether they’re using disc brakes, whether they’re using drum brakes, all need to be taken into account when designing wheels that are reputed to be the lightest and strongest in the market.

“It’s the whole system solution that we need to think about when we’re designing a wheel,” he adds.

Here are 5 unexpected things about designing the lightest and strongest wheels in the market:

1. LOAD ISN’T JUST KGs

When we think of a light commercial ute that weighs around 750 to 1000kg, the wheels each weigh 13 or 14kg (they can also weigh up to just over 18kg).

Truck wheels, on the other hand, can carry loads of 3500kgs or more…and they are able to do that now on wheels weighing just 18kg, like the new Alcoa^® Ultra ONE^® 22.5” x 8.25” wheel released in February 2021.

That’s quite an engineering achievement, considering that light commercial ute carrying less than a third of that weight on wheels that weigh almost the same!

And load is more than just the weight of the consignment sitting on the trailer.

“We take into account the tyre, it’s the mounting system, it’s everything that goes into how the load is transferred into that wheel,” says Grant.

“We know what the most severe application may be, so we incorporate that into our FEA* (Finite Element Analysis) to make sure that we are designing that wheel to handle those highest loads,” he adds.

2. THERE’S MORE TO ROTATION THAN ‘THE WHEELS ON THE BUS GO ROUND AND ROUND’

As wheels rotate, the load weight is transferred through the tyre and into the wheel at different places and at different times, adding stress that needs to be carried by the wheel.

“When designing a wheel, you’ve got to make sure you’re taking into account that full rotation cycle because the stresses aren’t being transferred in just one spot and so the load rating changes,” explains Grant.

In other words, the wheel designer has to make sure that the wheel can handle that change in load as it’s going through every second of its rotation.

This is called ‘cyclic loading’ and it is important that a wheel is sufficiently robust to withstand force and variable loads when doing its job on the truck or trailer.

3. DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE WHEEL REACT DIFFERENTLY TO STRESS, TOO

There are a lot of other parts of the wheel designers need to look at when it comes to making a wheel that can withstand the stress of the load, like: the rim, the hand holes, and any interrupted surface within the wheel’s design.

Each of these areas react to load stress differently, so the forged wheel can’t simply be treated as the one piece of aluminium it is.

The engineering team takes into consideration additional load-inducing variables like over-inflation, under-inflation, tyre scrubbing, and steer axle turning stresses. All of these change the way the wheel is loaded. For example, they may move the stresses from the handhole to the bolt holes.

4. TYRES MATTER

Another important factor in designing wheels is to cross reference the wheel’s components with the tyres that are currently available in the market.

As new tyres are released into the market by the major tyre companies like Michelin, Bridgestone and Goodyear, Alcoa® wheel designers stay abreast of this and factor things like new load ratings in so that the wheel matches the new specs and applications.

Industry standardisation impacts the design of the wheel. International tyre standards for mounting systems, for example, need to be followed so that the rim is designed to fit the tyres available in the market.

“The last thing we want to do is design a wheel that the moment you try to put a tyre on it, it doesn’t work or you mess up the tyre,” says Grant. “We follow the min-max dimensions of tyres to help us design a rim that’s compatible.”

5. TESTING, TESTING AND THEN MORE TESTING OUT IN THE FIELD

All Alcoa wheels are put through stringent, rigorous testing before being released to market.

Biaxial wheel/hub fatigue test technology is one of the tests that are run. Also known as the LBF test, it takes into account actual driving conditions, like rotating, bending and operational loading conditions, when testing for wheel life durability.

Another test we run is called the RR Moore Test, where we test cyclic fatigue until the endurance limit is reached. A number of variables are thrown into the mix to increase and decrease stress factors on the wheels and to cover all bases.

All Alcoa Wheels exceed the 1 million cycle requirement outlined in globally recognised radial and cornering fatigue testing standards^**.

While it’s all very well simulating conditions in the lab, out in the real world things are a little different, so good wheel design includes taking the wheels out for a spin on the road.

Grant says, “We make sure we find out how people are using our wheels, too, because the damage we’re putting on a wheel in the field may not be the damage we’re considering or testing for initially. Feedback from customers is an essential because that gives us an idea of what targets we need to design for.”

Damage cycles out in the field could be more lateral loads, more cornering loads, or where the wheel is positioned on the vehicle.

“If you’re getting to vocational applications such as mining or construction where they’re really going to the extremes for that wheel, you’ve got to make sure that you’re designing for those specific applications,” he adds.

Who would have thought wheel design would be such a complex undertaking?

Designing to the needs and applications of the customer is very much embedded in the Alcoa Wheels philosophy, and the results speak for themselves.

The Alcoa^® Ultra ONE^® 22.5” x 8.25” wheel is leading the drive to enhance the durability, sustainability and reliability of heavy-duty equipment wheels at just 18kg and with 17% more strength than industry standard 6061aluminium alloy wheels.

Make Sure It’s An Alcoa^® Wheel

To spec your wheels, ring  1800 955 191 to talk with our wheel experts, or fill out a contact form and one of our wheel specialists will help you out.

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*FEA is a numerical method used for solving engineering problems that involve complicated geometries, various loading conditions and material properties.
** Reference SAE J267 testing using a 2.0 severity factor.