Grille guards crucial to reduce downtime and towable accidents, protect profitability

Keeping trucks on the road is paramount for carriers. A company’s profitability – and an individual driver’s paycheck – is largely determined by the number of miles driven in a given day. Crashes on the highway or even in parking lots often lead to unexpected maintenance and downtime, significantly impacting profits. 

Incidents that cause front-end damage often lead to towable accidents and costly, time-consuming repairs because these accidents compromise several different components of the truck, including complex radar sensors. 

Fortunately, high-quality aftermarket grille guards – like those offered by Ex-Guard – protect trucks from damage from some of the most common front-end threats, including animal strikes and debris left in the roadway. Without the protection, an ill-timed deer crossing, sudden wheel-off or a blindly backing big-rig could result in days of downtime and lost revenue. With a guard, a driver can keep moving and complete their shipment undeterred. “We have major fleet customers that have seen an 80% reduction in towable accidents on the portions of their fleets that have grille guards,” notes Ex-Guard General Manager, Ryan Holt.

“Ex-Guard’s product is a welcomed addition to Werner’s equipment and we’ve seen significant enhancements to our fleet,” said Ben Murphy, vice president of maintenance and equipment resources at Werner. “The augmentation has positively impacted the safety of our fleet while increasing uptime and decreasing parts and labor costs. These benefits have been invaluable to Werner’s day-to-day operations.”

Trucking company Prime, Inc. also installs Ex-Guards on all its owned and leased trucks, providing an additional layer of protection to help keep its equipment – and drivers – on the road. 

Chris Holtmeyer, director of fleet maintenance at Prime, noted that downtime for team trucks, specifically, can become a serious issue. With multiple trucks in these situations, lost wages and downtime can easily add up to thousands of dollars a day. 

In addition to the financial burden associated with lost revenue, front-end collision work itself tends to be costly. For example, hitting a deer or even a stationary object without a guard can easily damage a truck’s hood, headlights, bumper, grille and radar assembly. Repairing or replacing several parts at one time can quickly add up and diminish a carrier’s bottom line, especially when the expenses are unexpected. 

“Some of the radar components on a truck cost thousands of dollars. If you damage or replace those parts, it can cost even more,” Holtmeyer said. “More expensive electronics and body panels lead to more downtime waiting on parts, as they can take a few days to ship and a few more to assemble.”

With Ex-Guard grille guards, Prime has been able to significantly reduce the occurrence of front-end damage, therefore cutting downtime and increasing profitability. 

According to Holtmeyer, the carrier’s drivers have become particularly fond of the equipment since it protects their paychecks. Prime’s maintenance team also appreciates the guards because it frees them up to work on other issues that come into the shop and largely prevents outsourcing for body work. Ultimately, everyone wins when trucks are more protected.

Ex-Guard offers products that work with all eight major semi-truck brands. This is no small feat in an environment rife with innovation. 

Radar sensors, for example, have evolved significantly in recent years. An effective guard needs to work in conjunction with these radar sensors to prevent accidental activation, thus causing a truck’s brakes to lock up. 

“As technology has changed, Ex-Guard has done a great job changing and adapting their product to work with the industry,” Holtmeyer said.

Ex-Guard actively works with radar manufacturers to ensure their guards work alongside collision mitigation systems – helping carriers reach their goals of fewer towable accidents and less downtime. 
Click here to learn more about Ex-Guard.