About This Guide

This guide covers everything to do with tires in RoadBays: setting up rotation patterns for your account, defining tires in the parts catalog, configuring a unit's axles, and then installing, reading, rotating, and removing tires on that unit.

It is written for fleet end users. You do not need to read it end to end. Use the table of contents to jump to the screen you are on.

How to read the instructions

Why RoadBays tracks tires this way

Tires are the second-largest running cost on most fleets after fuel, and the hardest to account for, because a tire is not a consumable that gets used up in one place. It moves. It comes off one axle and goes onto another, gets pulled from one unit and fitted to a second, gets retreaded and comes back.

A system that records "four new drive tires, $2,400" tells you nothing eighteen months later. RoadBays instead tracks each casing individually, by serial number, and records where it is fitted at any given moment. That is what lets you answer the questions that actually matter: how many miles did this brand get, which position wears fastest on this configuration, and is this unit safe to dispatch today.

A note on units of measure

Tread depth is recorded in 32nds of an inch throughout. Pressure is recorded in psi. Mileage figures are whole miles.

How Tire Management Fits Together

Three screens work together. Setting them up in order saves rework, because each one depends on the one before it.

The order to set things up

1. Check the rotation patterns on the Profile screen. RoadBays ships standard patterns, so you may not need to add any.
2. Create your tire parts in the parts catalog, with Is Tire ticked and the specification block filled in.
3. Open a unit and set up its axle configuration on the Tire Management tab.
4. Install a tire at each wheel position.

The vocabulary

Setting Up Rotation Patterns

Rotation patterns live on the Profile screen, under the Tire Rotation tab. They are account-wide, so a pattern you create here is available on every unit whose axle configuration matches it.

Standard and custom patterns

The Type column tells you which kind of pattern you are looking at.

Standard patterns are listed first, then your own, each group sorted by name. Anything you create here belongs to your account alone and is never visible to other RoadBays customers.

The patterns table

Creating a pattern

1. Open Profile and click the Tire Rotation tab.
2. Type a Pattern Name. Make it descriptive, because this is what people pick from on the unit screen. "Custom 6-Wheel Cross" tells someone what they are choosing; "Pattern 2" does not.
3. Choose the Wheel Positions count: 4, 6, 8, or 10.
4. Click Add Pattern.

The pattern appears in the table with 0 mappings. It does nothing yet.

Adding the mappings

A mapping is one move: the tire at this position goes to that position. A pattern is the full set of moves.

1. Click Edit on the pattern row. The Edit Rotation Pattern window opens.
2. Choose a From Position.
3. Choose a To Position.
4. Click the plus button.
5. Repeat for every move in the pattern.
6. Click Close when you are done. Mappings save as you add them, so there is no separate save step.

Each mapping you add appears in the table inside the window, with a Delete control for removing it again.

The two rules RoadBays enforces

A rotation has to be a clean set of moves, so each position can appear once as a source and once as a destination.

This is deliberate. If a position were a source twice, RoadBays would have two answers to the question of where that tire goes, and no way to choose between them.

Understanding position codes

Position codes describe where a wheel sits. Front axles use codes such as LF for left front and RF for right front. Rear axles with dual wheels use LO and LI for left outer and left inner, and RI and RO for right inner and right outer.

The From Position and To Position dropdowns offer the codes that exist for the pattern's wheel position count, so you cannot build a mapping for a position that does not exist.

Deleting a pattern

Click Delete on a custom pattern row. The pattern and all of its mappings are removed together.

Standard patterns cannot be deleted. If a delete appears to do nothing on a standard pattern row, that is why.

A known limitation with tandem rear axles

On units with 10 wheel positions, the rear axles are usually tandem, meaning two rear axles with the same layout. The position codes on those two axles repeat, so a mapping that says "move the tire at LO" is ambiguous: there are two positions called LO on that unit.

Rather than guess which axle you meant, RoadBays refuses the rotation and tells you so:

"Position code LO appears on more than one axle for this unit. Automatic rotation isn't supported for tandem rear axles yet, this needs to be handled manually for now."

Setting Up a Tire in the Parts Catalog

A tire is a part like any other, with two things switched on: Is Tire, which reveals the specification block, and Track By Serial, which makes RoadBays track each casing individually.

Creating the part

1. Open Parts and create a new part, or open an existing one.
2. Fill in Name, Part Number, Manufacturer, and Unit Of Measure as you would for any part.
3. Enter Cost, Retail Price, Reorder Point, and Minimum Required.
4. Tick Track By Serial.
5. Tick Is Tire. The Tire Size section appears below.
6. Fill in the tire specification fields described next.
7. Click Save.

The Tire Size block

The first six fields build the tire size. As you fill them in, RoadBays assembles the size string and shows it beside the section heading, so you can check it against the sidewall of the actual tire.

Ratings

The automatic conversion uses the standard table:

Tread and life

These three fields are the ones that do real work later, so it is worth taking the time to get them right.

What a tire part gives you elsewhere

Once a part has Is Tire ticked, it appears in the Tire Model dropdown when you install a tire on a unit. Parts without it do not, which is what keeps that list short and relevant.

The rest of the part record works as it does for any part. Stock by Location shows quantity and cost per location, Inventory Activity shows every transaction, Work Order Activity shows where the part has been used, and the purchase history chart on the Overview tab plots what you have paid per unit over time.

Setting Up a Unit's Axles

Open a unit and click the Tire Management tab. Before RoadBays can record tires, it needs to know the unit's wheel layout.

Choosing the wheel position count

The first time you open the tab on a unit, it shows Set Up Axle Configuration.

1. Count the wheels on the unit. Count every wheel, so a tractor with a steer axle and dual drive wheels on two axles has 10.
2. Click the matching button: 4, 6, 8, or 10. Each button lists the axle arrangements it covers.
3. Click Save Axle Configuration.

RoadBays builds the axles and their wheel positions, then switches to the configuration display with a summary such as "10 wheel positions across 3 axle(s)".

Setting steer and drive

Each axle card has a dropdown set to Steer or Drive. Change it and the setting saves immediately, confirmed by "Axle updated."

Get this right, because rotation patterns move tires between axle types, and because steer tires and drive tires wear differently and are usually held to different minimum tread depths.

Reconfiguring

Click Reconfigure to remove the axle configuration and start over.

Installing a Tire

Once the axles are configured, the tab shows each axle as a card with its wheel positions across it. An empty position shows a dashed box with its position code and an Install button.

The steps

1. Click Install on the position.
2. Choose the Tire Model. The dropdown lists your tire parts.
3. Either pick an On-Hand Serial, which is a casing already in your inventory, or leave the dropdown on "Use a new serial instead" and type the serial into Serial Number.
4. Set the Install Date.
5. Enter Tire Meter at Install, the unit's mileage at the moment the tire goes on.
6. Enter Current Tread Depth (32nds) and Current Pressure (PSI).
7. Enter the Tire Identification Number if you have it.
8. Click Save.

The position fills in on the diagram, showing the tire model, its tread, and its pressure. The install is written to the tire activity log.

On-hand serial or new serial

You must give one or the other. If you give neither, RoadBays refuses with "Select an on-hand serial or enter a new serial number."

Why Tire Meter at Install matters

This one field is what makes tire cost-per-mile possible. Without it, RoadBays knows a tire is fitted but not how far it has run, so when the casing comes off there is no way to say whether it delivered the miles the part record promised.

The Tire Identification Number

The TIN, sometimes called the DOT code, is molded into the sidewall and includes the week and year the casing was manufactured. It is worth recording: it is what a recall notice refers to, and it is how you tell a two-year-old casing from a ten-year-old one when both look serviceable.

Reading the Wheel Position Diagram

The diagram is the fastest thing on the tab. One look tells you whether the unit is fit to dispatch.

What each position shows

The tread color code

The tread figure on each position is colored against that specific tire part's Minimum Tread Depth, which is why filling that field in on the part record matters so much.

Readings and Copying

Recording a reading

1. Click Edit on an installed position.
2. Update Current Tread Depth (32nds) and Current Pressure (PSI).
3. Click Save.

RoadBays confirms with "Reading updated." The reading is stamped with its date and written to the tire activity log, so the wear rate builds up over time.

Copying tire details to other positions

When a unit gets several identical tires at once, entering each one from scratch is tedious. Copy does the repetitive part.

1. Click Copy on a position that already has the correct tire recorded.
2. In the window, tick the empty positions you want the same details applied to.
3. Type a serial number for each position you ticked.
4. Click Copy to Selected.

RoadBays confirms how many positions it copied to. If any could not be copied, it says how many.

Rotating Tires

Rotation moves every tire to its new position in one action, and records each move so that each casing keeps its own history as it travels around the unit.

The steps

1. Open the unit's Tire Management tab.
2. Click Rotate Tires above the diagram.
3. Choose a Rotation Pattern. Only patterns matching this unit's wheel position count are offered.
4. Check the preview of which position moves where.
5. Click Rotate.

RoadBays confirms with a count, such as "6 tire(s) rotated." The diagram redraws with the tires in their new positions, and each move is written to the tire activity log as "Rotated LF -> RO" or similar.

What happens to empty positions

If a pattern says to move the tire at a position and nothing is installed there, RoadBays skips that move and carries on with the rest. This is intended, so a rotation still works on a unit with one position empty.

When a rotation is refused

Tandem rear axles

On units with two rear axles of the same layout, position codes repeat across both, so a mapping that names one of those codes is ambiguous. RoadBays refuses rather than guessing which axle's tire to move.

Handle the rotation manually on these units: remove each tire and install it at its new position, keeping the serial numbers straight, or record the moves with Edit at each position. The activity log still records everything, and the automatic path is planned for a future release.

How often to rotate

Follow the manufacturer's guidance for the tire and the schedule your maintenance policy sets. The signal to watch on the diagram is uneven wear: when one position reads noticeably lower than the others on the same axle type, the tires are due to move, and something on the unit may want checking too.

Removing a Tire

1. Click the X on an installed position.
2. Confirm "Remove this tire from its position? It will be returned to on-hand inventory."

The position empties on the diagram and the casing goes back into inventory as on-hand, where it can be installed on another unit.

Why removing properly matters

A part-worn tire pulled off one truck and fitted to another is normal fleet practice, and it is exactly where most tire records fall apart. Remove the tire properly rather than simply installing a new one over the top, and the casing keeps its serial, its readings, and its accumulated miles when it goes on the next unit.

Tire Activity History

Below the diagram, the Tire Activity table is the full audit trail: "installs, removals, rotations, and readings for this unit," newest first.

What the table is good for

• Working out how long a casing has been in service and at which positions.
• Calculating a wear rate from two readings and the miles between them.
• Confirming a rotation was actually carried out on schedule.
• Checking whether a tire that failed early had been running underinflated.
• Settling a warranty claim, because the install date, the serial, and every reading since are all there.

Common Workflows

First-time setup for your account

1. Open Profile, Tire Rotation, and read through the standard patterns.
2. Add custom patterns only for arrangements the standard set does not cover, and add their mappings straight away.
3. Open Parts and create a part for each tire model you run. Tick Track By Serial and Is Tire on each.
4. Fill in the size fields and check the preview against a real sidewall.
5. Fill in Factory Tread Depth, Minimum Tread Depth, and Life Expectancy. Do not skip the minimum.

Bringing a unit onto tire tracking

1. Open the unit and go to Tire Management.
2. Count the wheels, pick the matching wheel position count, and click Save Axle Configuration.
3. Set each axle to Steer or Drive.
4. Walk the unit with a tread gauge and a pressure gauge, and write down the serial, tread, and pressure at each position.
5. Install a tire at each position, using on-hand serials where the casings came from your stock.
6. Check the diagram. Every position should be filled and colored.

A routine tire check

1. Open the unit's Tire Management tab.
2. Look at the diagram before you look at anything else. Note any amber or red positions.
3. Click Edit on each position and record today's tread and pressure.
4. Order replacements for anything amber, and take anything red out of service.
5. Check the activity table for positions wearing faster than the rest.

Fitting a new set of drive tires

1. Take a final reading on each outgoing tire, so you know what it delivered.
2. Remove each outgoing tire, which returns the casings to on-hand inventory.
3. Install the first new tire at its position, choosing its on-hand serial.
4. Click Copy on that position, tick the other new positions, and give each one its serial.
5. Click Copy to Selected.
6. Check the diagram shows the new tread readings at every position.

Investigating a tire that failed early

1. Open the unit and go to Tire Management, then the Tire Activity table.
2. Find the install row for that serial and note the date and the tire meter reading.
3. Read the pressure figures across every reading since. A pattern of low pressure explains a great many early failures.
4. Check whether the tread readings fell faster than on the other positions on that axle.
5. Compare the miles run against the part's Life Expectancy.
6. If the casing is still under warranty, the serial, the install date, and the reading history are what the claim needs.

Preparing for a roadside inspection

1. Open the unit's Tire Management tab.
2. Look for any red position. Red means at or below your minimum.
3. Pay particular attention to the steer axle, which is held to a higher standard.
4. Take fresh readings if the last ones are more than a few weeks old, because a green reading from three months ago proves nothing.

Troubleshooting

Glossary

Need More Help?

If something in Tire Management is not working the way this page describes, email support@roadbays.com or submit a question from the Help page.