Through its long operations against substandard tyres in the country, the Uganda National Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has so far seized over 500 substandard pneumatic tyres worth Shs150 million from traders in downtown Kampala.
The operation is in line with the Bureau’s mandate aimed at enforcing standards in the protection of public health and safety, and that of the environment, from dangerous substandard products.
According to the UNBS Surveillance Officer who led the operation, Mr Denis Odur, the operation follows recent public outcry and complaints about substandard tyres on the market as well as the increased accidents attributed to tyre failure in the recent past.
“We have discovered that a number of tyres are defective and some are poorly stored which compromises the quality of the tyres. When such tyres are used on motor vehicles, they can result in accidents for motorists.”
Other poor practices in handling tyres include poor packaging, transportation and storage during importation and distribution, which lead to degeneration in the quality of tyres posing a risk to the health and safety of the public and the environment.
UNBS thus developed standards to regulate the quality of tyres on the market and urges all manufacturers, importers, distributors, transporters, wholesalers and retailers of pneumatic tyres to ensure that their products meet the standards.
UNBS further cautions the traders against retreading pneumatic tyres for passenger trucks, stacking them inside one another during importation and transportation, re-grooving old and expired tyres and reselling them to unsuspecting customers, storing tyres directly on the floor and under direct light from skylights, windows, doors and other openings among others.
UNBS has encouraged traders of pneumatic tyres to follow the outlined procedures for keeping and storing the tyres, and these include;
Storing them in a covered place to prevent exposure to direct light from skylights. Any openings should be kept closed so that light entering the warehouse is reduced to the minimum as possible.
In case the warehouse where tyres are stored cannot be darkened for some reason, the storage piles of tyres should be carefully covered with some reasonably heavy woven fabric for complete protection against light, air current, dirt or water.
Stacking the tyres on a suitable clean base in as stress-free condition as possible. No more than 25 motorcycle tyres; no more than 15 light truck tyres; no more than 20 car tyres; and no more than 10 truck and bus tyres should be stacked one atop another.
All the tyres in a stack shall be turned and re-piled at least once every 90 days and during re-piling, the bottommost tyres should be placed at the top and the topmost tyres at the bottom.
Lacing of tyres in piles shall not be allowed and tyres shall be free from water or excessive moisture before stacking.
Meanwhile here are some of the specifications UNBS has issued to all tyre traders in the country; US EAS 357:2004, Pneumatic tyres for trucks and buses – Specification. US EAS 358:2004 Pneumatic tyres for passenger cars – Specification. US EAS 359:2004, Pneumatic tyres for light trucks – Specification. US EAS 360:2004, Pneumatic tyres for agricultural implements – Specification.
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