Michelin training tackles tyre safety in Africa

Citation

(2007), "Michelin training tackles tyre safety in Africa", Industrial and Commercial Training, Vol. 39 No. 7. https://doi.org/10.1108/ict.2007.03739gab.007

Michelin training tackles tyre safety in Africa

International development agency Transaid has launched a tyre-safety awareness campaign in Malawi and Zambia, which began with a series of training courses led by Phil Rochester, a training manager at Michelin’s head office in Stoke-on-Trent, England.

The initiative forms part of Transaid’s wider program of work on road safety and professional driver training, which aims to reduce the number of road crashes in Africa. The continent records 10 percent of all such incidents, despite having only 4 percent of the world’s total vehicles.

Ten courses were delivered over a two-week period to traffic police, road-safety agencies, road-transport operators and public-transport operators. Each course provided basic information on safety checks and how to avoid dangers associated with poorly maintained tyres, with training delivered to 270 people.

Phil Rochester explained: “Ignoring the basic rules of tyre safety is a major risk factor, which is seeing the number of fatal road-traffic crashes in Africa continue to rise, in direct proportion to the increasing number of vehicles. Michelin was keen to support Transaid in its campaign to raise awareness of the issues, and we felt the best way to do this was ‘on the ground’ with a series of training courses tackling key target audiences.

“One of our main messages was to emphasize that better tyres mean safer roads, and safer roads will result in fewer crashes. The groups we spoke to were incredibly receptive to this message, and were quick to understand the benefits of routinely checking tyre pressures, tread depth and general tyre condition.”

By focusing initially on specific opinion leaders, Transaid hopes the tyre-safety message will quickly spread, with the regulatory and law-enforcement agencies being more aware of the importance of tyre inspections and the need to enforce existing regulations.

Tyre dealers and repair specialists also have a better understanding of the impact that damaged tyres and their inadequate repair can have, while transport operators appreciate the benefits of well-maintained tyres in the conservation of their fleet.

Transaid’s project is also being supported by Bandvulc, which has developed and supplied materials including stickers for drivers to display in their vehicles, which highlight their understanding of tyre-safety issues.

Transaid is an international development agency that aims to improve people’s quality of life in the developing world by making transport more available and affordable. Founded by Save the Children and the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (UK), it works by sharing skills and knowledge with local people to enable them to put in place and manage efficient transport systems.

Transaid’s core work includes creating transport-management systems for the public sector and helping with the provision of professional driving-qualification development and the training of driver trainers. It also helps with teaching preventive vehicle maintenance and introducing local, low-cost transport, including its bicycle ambulance. Transaid also helps to promote HIV, AIDS and road-safety awareness and shares its specialist knowledge with the humanitarian-aid sector.