ALLENDE, NL.– A head-on collision can mean more than just taking a vehicle to the repair shop. While components such as bumpers, grilles, reinforcements, or hoods are being repaired, the vehicle remains out of service, a scenario that has led carriers to seek alternatives to minimize damage and maintain the availability of their fleets.
Following that logic, Vigomex , a manufacturer of bumpers and accessories for tractor-trailers , focused the development of its bumpers or “bull bars” on protecting components of the units from impacts and reducing the damage that can take them to the workshop, explained Alejandra Villarreal, the company’s commercial representative .
“The purpose of our bull bar is to protect the investment of transporters, ensuring that their units are not stopped due to impacts that could cause them to be out of service in maintenance workshops,” he said.
Currently, the company has more than 40 designs ready for sale and registered with the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property (IMPI) .
The cost after the impact
For a fleet, the economic consequences of an incident can increase as the number of vehicles exposed to road operations grows. Villarreal explained that the company has received evidence from clients regarding damages sustained after certain impacts.
According to the Vigomex representative, in some of these cases the repair cost was reduced to around 30% of what it would have cost to replace components such as plastic bumpers, reinforcements, grille and hood.
The effect takes on another dimension when it comes to companies with fleets of 100, 200 or even more units, where the costs derived from repairs and vehicles stopped can multiply.
Villarreal noted that some customers have incorporated this type of protection from the moment they place their order for their vehicles and request that the units come equipped from the distributor.
The development of new designs stems from the needs of the carriers and distributors themselves. Vigomex works with units provided by clients or agencies to obtain the molds and templates necessary for each model.
Once the vehicle is at the plant, the company requires between three and four days to develop the first design , on which modifications can be made according to the requirements of the client or distributor.
Collaboration with the agencies also allows some units to be delivered with the bumper already installed, preventing the carrier from having to subsequently take the vehicle to another adaptation process.
In addition, Villarreal indicated that the company maintains an after-sales service to handle repairs or warranties when any impact is registered.
From Allende, Nuevo León, Vigomex has expanded the reach of its products beyond the northeast of the country. Villarreal stated that the company currently works with 10 of the largest transportation lines in Mexico , while continuing to develop designs as new models and fleet requirements emerge.
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