2007 Media ReleasesJump To | |
Oct 07 - Best Bars First With High Tech TesterThe failure of a towbar can have catastrophic consequences on the road, should a trailer break free and plough into other vehicles. Two fatalities in the past two years have been linked to towbar failures in New Zealand along with several injury and non-injury incidents. So now a New Zealand company has engineered a testing machine at the cutting edge of technology that is helping with the design of safer towbar systems.Manurewa-based Best Bars Limited is the first in New Zealand to commission a “dynamic” testing rig that will duplicate the tremendous forces exerted on a towbar, not just in a normal vehicle life cycle, but far longer than most people will ever use it. In fact, the rig can replicate 500,000kms of continuous use under maximum load conditions. “It is highly unlikely that any towbar will ever get that amount of use in its lifetime, but it is essential to set very high targets to ensure maximum safety limits are designed into these products. The towbar test rig, known as a Cyclic Tester, was developed with its vehicle distributor customers in mind. Best Bars supplies towbars as approved accessory equipment to near all vehicle distributors and says the ability to test to the most extreme limits is part of its “best practice” approach to meeting their requirements. “This type of testing is now a matter of course for leading towbar manufacturers internationally, which is where we see Best Bars positioned,”adds Mr de Kriek. Best Bars prides itself on leadership in the towbar business. Sixteen years ago Best Bars set the standard when it introduced New Zealand’s first static testing of towbars by developing a rig to simulate certain forces on a towbar fitted to an actual vehicle. Essentially the machine tested with three actions, by pulling, pushing and a combination load. Later this was used in conjunction with computer aided design methods such as Finite Element Analysis to enable Best Bars to calculate the strength of a towbar, as well as the suitability of the fixing point to the vehicle. But such static testing and theoretical modelling can only provide basic data and in order to be more accurate, sophisticated cyclic testing is required to determine how a towbar will perform for its entire lifespan and not just against a one off test. This puts the towbar under ever changing three dimensional stress, exerting multi-directional forces to pinpoint design or material weaknesses that may not be apparent with the static test or from computer modelling. The Best Bars engineering team spent more than a year designing and then fine tuning the new Cyclic Tester so that it not only delivers highly accurate results, but is also capable itself of withstanding the stress it exerts on the towbars. To put a towbar through a full test simulation of 2million load and unload sequences, each cycle exerting up to 1-tonne, (equivalent to 500,000kms of actual uses) takes around 45 hours. At the completion, the towbar must still retain its original shape and show no signs of fatigue failure. That’s very comforting to someone who regular tows a $150,000 boat and doesn’t want to risk losing their investment, let alone causing a crash. Equally important is the validation of the products made by Best Bars that the new testing rig provides. “This has been a considerable investment for our company and it demonstrates that Best Bars is very serious about product quality and performance, and we’ll go to great lengths to deliver that to our customers. Customer can rest assured that when purchasing a towbar manufactured by Best Bars they are purchasing a product which has been designed, tested and manufactured to exceptionally high standards of safety,” adds Mr de Kriek. Most importantly, the Cyclic Tester will help Best Bars to improve towbar designs in the future by helping it to better understand how towbars perform under extreme duress. Further down the track, the testing rig will provide Best Bars with new business opportunities, as the machine is capable of testing other towing applications, such as pintles, draw bars and other towing hardware. The company plans to register itself as a testing authority so that it can certify products. For information on this aspect call Best Bars 09 269 058 << BACK TO TOP >> |
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Jul 07 - Tough Steel Deck For Kiwi Farmers & ContractorsA steel deck that is bred to be ‘farm-tough’ has been developed especially for one-tonne utes driven in New Zealand – a move that could be described as a ‘horses for courses’.Alloy decks may look pretty and their light weight obviously appeals to town folk who want to carry a heap of goods. But down on the farm they like their utility vehicles to be fitted with a sturdy, heavy-duty deck and that means it has to be made from steel. So automotive accessory manufacturer Best Bars, better known for its industry-leading towbars, set about designing a steel deck that cow cockies could drool over, yet would still have plenty of style and innovation. And the result is the ‘Real Blokes Deck’, just released at a price that makes it one of the most competitive on the market. More than a year in development, it is the heavyweight champ of steel decks. Tougher than the proverbial brick outhouse, the new Best Bars steel deck features a modular design that allows it to be fitted to almost any make of ute available in New Zealand and in sizes to fit behind standard cabs, extended cabs and double cabs. “Best Bars is one of the leaders in alloy decks in New Zealand and they are great for certain tasks, but there are some jobs that only a ute with a steel deck can do. Farmers, for instance, require a reasonable amount of weight over the back wheels or they lose traction - a steel deck provides sufficient weight even when it’s empty. The deck on a farm ute takes a lot of punishment during its life and it needs to be tough to survive. With our history in decks going back more than ten years we decided to put all that experience into creating the best steel deck for New Zealand conditions, so that it can stand up to a life on the farm or in a tough trade environment.” says Stephen de Kriek, CEO of Best Bars Ltd. The first thing the Best Bars team did was to design the new steel tray so that it sat lower on the chassis than comparable decks, which not only makes it easier to load, but also provides a lower centre of gravity to make it more stable for driving on steep terrain and uneven ground. They devised the modular construction system so that componentry is common between the three deck sizes, including the one-piece mud guard, full length tie-down rails and hinges. The design of the mud guard should impress farmers because it prevents mud and dirt from being thrown up into the underside of the deck, thus preventing a major source of rotting to the timber floor. The steel used in the construction is fully galvanised and the sides and tailgate are folded, eliminating box sections that are a common cause of corrosion setting in from the inside. Hinges are bolted on and use nylon bushes to eliminate rattling and they also feature holes for pins to prevent the sides from falling off e.g. when lowered whilst distibuting feed. The headboard, which incorporates a ladder rack, sits in-board so that it does not interfere with the rear view from the door mirrors. Tests have shown that the new deck lives up to its tough promise and Best Bars believes owners will be particularly impressed with the non-slip surface of the transport-grade wooden floor and the full 2.5m length of the single cab model, which can carry full 2.4m sheets of plywood and posts with the tailgate closed. The extra cab model measures 2.2m long and the double cab deck is just under 1.8m long. Among options available with the new Best Bars decks are a sliding undertray toolbox that hides under the centre of the deck, with provision for smaller tool boxes to be bolted under the outer sides. A tipper model is also available for those requiring this feature. Thanks to the simplicity of the design, the new deck is much easier to install, thus reducing costs even further and Best Bars promises a fast 2 day turn-around resulting in less downtime for all concerned. The new deck is likely to be adopted as original equipment by several new vehicle manufacturers in New Zealand, with two large companies having already conducted tests. Best Bars says the new steel deck will also be offered as an after-market fitment through new vehicle franchised dealers. Call Best Bars Ltd for more information 09 2683260 << BACK TO TOP >> |
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May 07 - Save Shins With Towbars From Best BarsYou could often tell someone whose car was fitted with a towbar by their skinned shins.Now that’s all in the past because drivers can save their skin by ensuring the next towbar fitted to their car has a Shin Protector or “Tongue Tip” as branded by Best Bars. Every new towbar supplied by Best Bars to leading New Zealand and Australian motor vehicle distributors now comes as standard with a specially designed Tongue Tip to prevent painful lower leg injuries from accidentally walking into the end of the towbar. Like all good ideas, the solution is deceptively simple. Best Bars is using a medium density rubber guard designed to cover the unforgiving metal towbar tongue, thus reducing possible injury. The Tongue Tip has been integrated into the standard towbar package by Best Bars, which supplies to virtually all new car distributors throughout New Zealand Giving Approved accessories yet another advantage over lesser quality aftermarket product. “You can’t get away from the fact that towbars are vulnerable because they are easily forgotten down there under the bumper and since they’re built to be strong and rigid, they can inflict a nasty injury if you walk into one,” says Stephen de Kriek, CEO of Best Bars Ltd. Mr de Kriek says Best Bars has tried a number of solutions in recent years to overcome this issue. Probably the most successful has been the development of the removable tongue, which enables the towball and tongue to be stored out of harm’s way until required. The vast number of towbars fitted in this country now feature the removable tongue, however, it isn’t the final solution, because the metal edge remains a hazard and some people forget to remove the tongue or prefer to leave it on in case it might be needed. The next step was to manufacture a rounded edge to the offending end of the towbar tongue, but even that was not enough to prevent injuries from accidentally walking into the hard metal bar. Shin Protectors were deemed to be the answer. They are not totally new, with some versions having been available as accessories for some time. But Best Bars felt it could improve on the idea and after experimenting with an early design it has now come up with a second generation Shin Protector. “Best Bars as a responcible industry leader and safety consious supplier felt it appropriate to introduce an innovative version of the old shin protector, branding it the “Tongue Tip”. In addition to raising the safety of our products the Tongue Tip enhances the visual appearance of the towbar tongue and bring the astetics of the towbar in line with the modern vehicle shape and finish” say Mr de Kriek “Our new Shin Protector does an excellent job of absorbing impact and significantly reduces injury whilst looking good on the vehicle,” add Mr de Kriek. Even mediium density rubber can be painful if you strike it with your shin, so our Tongue Tip Shin Protector has been designed with some ‘give’ to better absorb impacts. I am sure there will be a number of car owners and children who will be very relieved to see this feature on their towbar – that’s why we’ve decided to make it standard. The Shin Protector is held in place by the tow ball, yet can be easily replaced if damaged. << BACK TO TOP >> |
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