Bendix offers remanufactured brake shoe with OE friction and coating specs

New in 2018, Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems is offering a remanufactured brake shoe with the same friction and coating it specs on its original equipment (OE) brake shoe – as well as an extended, five-year warranty against rust jacking. The warranty matches the one Bendix offers on its OE shoes.

The introduction of the new reman shoe comes as the company’s remanufactured brake shoe production has topped 6 million units. Bendix’s rate of production has steadily increased to meet growing demand from fleets and owner-operators wishing to optimize value while maintaining the quality, performance, and compliance of their Reduced Stopping Distance (RSD) brakes when replacing shoes.

“We are intently focused on offering reman brake shoes that maximize safety and performance by resisting premature lining wear and rust jacking to provide full service life. This, along with value, is what our customers require in a reman brake shoe,” said Keith McComsey, director of marketing and customer solutions at Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake LLC (BSFB). “The Bendix OE-level reman shoe with extended warranty is part of our commitment to meet these needs. Likewise, achieving the 6-million-unit production milestone for reman brake shoes is the latest benchmark in our effort to provide operators what they need to compete in today’s industry.”

Friction and Coating

To help vehicle operators maintain performance of RSD-equipped vehicles (those built after 2011), Bendix offers both original equipment and aftermarket RSD-certified friction options. The company’s newest reman brake shoe combines Bendix OE friction with the same E-coat originally spec’ed only on Bendix OE shoes.

Bendix stands behind the OE shoe and its OE coating with an extended five-year warranty against rust jacking, identical to the warranty on its original equipment shoe.

“There is demonstrated value in choosing OE-level reman components, and brake shoes are a prime example,” McComsey said. “They offer fleets continued RSD performance and wear characteristics, and contribute to lower cost of ownership (TCO). Buying an OE-level product results in OE-level value. For our OE-level reman brake shoe, we’re backing it up with OE-level support on the warranty side.”

The brake shoe’s coating is engineered to protect against rust jacking. Rust jacking occurs when rust builds up on the steel beneath the brake lining and exerts upward pressure on the friction material, eventually causing it to crack.

Although rust jacking can occur year-round, the combination of wet roads, temperature swings, and chemical de-icers – such as road salt or chemical compounds (for example, magnesium chloride and calcium chloride) – makes winter conditions ideal for corrosion to take hold on a brake shoe. For this reason, rust jacking is most prevalent in regions with cold-weather climates.

Bendix produces reman brake shoes at its 74,000-square-foot Huntington, Indiana, plant. The facility handles the complete salvage, coining, and assembly processes that make up start-to-finish brake shoe remanufacturing. Bendix significantly increased the capabilities and capacity of its Brake Shoe Remanufacturing Center in 2014.

“Rust jacking protection is about much more than a quality coating,” McComsey said. “At Bendix, where we have nearly four decades of remanufacturing expertise, we also coin 100 percent of our reman shoes to return them to OE geometry – so they will perform as designed by OE engineers. Many brake shoes are relined – not truly remanufactured. And most reliners don’t coin. The coining process removes the gap between the shoe and friction, where rust jacking can initiate more easily.”

According to McComsey, the combination of Bendix coating, along with coining and high flexural strength friction that resists cracking, adds even more rust jacking protection. “It’s a powerful combination delivering a longer lasting brake shoe that provides consistent brake performance and reduced maintenance costs,” he said.

In addition to the RSD mandate, McComsey noted, trucking today is also influenced by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program – which has brought a focus on CSA scores. A reman process that produces brake shoes meeting OE specs is crucial to maintaining brake safety and performance in this demanding environment.

The value of Bendix remanufactured brake shoes is enhanced by the company’s friction portfolio, also engineered to meet the complete range of customers’ needs for safety, performance, and value. Bendix continues to add new friction materials to its portfolio, which includes options ranging from economy and extreme-duty offerings to OE friction, and features the industry’s first RSD-certified aftermarket friction.

Industry Support

Bendix supports and advances its remanufactured brake shoe product portfolio through research and development conducted at the company’s engineering center in Kalamazoo, Michigan, where it also performs ongoing comprehensive friction testing. The activities support and advance Bendix’s remanufactured brake shoe product portfolio.

Bendix remanufactured shoes are further supported by field-tested sales and service professionals; a veteran field technical support team; and the Bendix Tech Team (at 1-800-AIR-BRAKE), an expert technical support group providing service advice, brake system troubleshooting, and product training. Customers can also log on and learn from the Bendix experts at www.brake-school.com. The Bendix multimedia center at knowledge-dock.com offers always updated videos, blog posts, podcasts, and white papers.