Wabco Bets Big On Air Disc Brakes For CVs In India

The US-headquartered Wabco, provider of braking solutions, stability, suspension and transmission automation systems for commercial vehicles, is bullish on introducing air disc brakes (ADB) in the Indian market.

- Bhargav TS

Wabco feels that there is a strong growth opportunity in the Indian market as, ADBs, compared to drum brakes, have a number of advantages like no exaggeration of friction coefficient differences, reduced fade, high thermal load, minimal and consistent hysteresis and servicing ease when changing brake pads. Safety enabled technology is the future and the company is ready with the products. It introduces ADB in the Indian market gathering its expertise of more than 2 decades in this technology.

Sven Horak, Vice President, Business Unit Leader, Wheel End Solutions, Wabco, said, “India is now becoming a matured market to imbibe the latest technologies. This technology is there in Europe, China, and the US and the penetration levels are figured as 85%, 8% and 15%, respectively. Currently 1% penetration is observed in the Indian market and by 2020 it will be at least 10%. The technology is reliable, robust and provides brake solutions for vehicles across segments. The stopping performance is high and at least 30% increase in performance is experienced. Durability is high, long service intervals, corrosion resistance, environmental seal are some of the other key attributes to mention.”

Though the initial cost of air disc brakes is high, it improves the vehicle-braking performance, providing reduced stopping distances and saves more cost during maintenance. They are the perfect solution for fleet looking for high efficiency with greater control and stability for a long service life with lower total cost of ownership. Air disc brakes require less maintenance and replacement than drum brakes during the entire life of the vehicles.