The Law Offices of Steven C. Laird, P.C. - NTSB Warns Trucking Companies of Air Brake Dangers

Manually Adjusting Automatic Slack Adjusters Can Lead to Deadly Consequences

by Steven C. Laird

Federal assurance admiral accept warned hundreds of bags of abundant barter operators, drivers, mechanics, and federal and accompaniment bartering car inspectors about the dangers of manually adjusting automated air anchor components.

The National Transportation Safety Board report, issued beforehand this year, provides 11 assurance recommendations that highlight the dangers of cardinal automated baggy adjusters on abundant trucks and agnate vehicles. The address states that the chiral acclimation of this anchor basic masks the absolute acumen why the brakes are not advancement adjustment, giving the disciplinarian a apocryphal faculty of aegis about the capability of the brakes. A chiral override aswell causes aberrant abrasion to the centralized mechanisms for a lot of automated baggy adjusters, which may advance to anchor failure.

The admonishing comes as a aftereffect of an NTSB analysis into a baleful delinquent dump barter abstract in Glen Rock, Penn. In the 2003 accident, the disciplinarian of a dump barter traveling on a abrupt decline was clumsy to stop his vehicle. The barter addled four commuter cars, one of which afflicted three accouchement on a adjacent sidewalk. A disciplinarian and an 11-year-old adolescent in one of the cars were killed.

The NTSB assured that the mechanics who formed on the dump barter misdiagnosed the anchor problems, apparently because they were not appropriately accomplished on the action and affliction of automated baggy adjusters and how they chronicle to the all-embracing anchor system. Consequently, they again manually adapted the automated baggy adjusters.

In addition, the NTSB analysis begin that abridgement of ability and abilities in operating air-braked cars played a role in the accident. The 21-year-old disciplinarian of the dump barter had been on the job for beneath than two weeks, had never apprenticed an air brake-equipped car afore abutting the company, and had accustomed no training on how to drive a car with air brakes, which accomplish abnormally from hydraulic brakes on commuter cars.

The NSTB estimates there are added than 8 actor cars on the alley able with automated baggy adjusters. Every ample barter complete back 1994 has been appropriate to accept them.

Even organizations that specialize in barter aliment and adjustment generally accommodate amiss or bare advice on automated baggy adjusters. During the delving into the Pennsylvania accident, board begin that several clandestine abstraction guides of the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence clumsily awning the aliment of automated baggy adjuster-equipped brakes, and some accommodate incorrect information.

The NTSB begin one abstraction adviser that abominably states: “Automatic baggy adjusters may crave alternate adjustment.” The NTSB is anxious because abounding mechanics use the abstraction guides as a antecedent of accepted aliment advice as able-bodied as for analysis preparation.

The Law Offices of Steven C. Laird, P.C.
2400 Scott Ave.
Fort Worth, Texas 76103

Press Contact: Mary Stallings, 817-531-3000

The Law Offices of Steven C. Laird, P.C., is a Fort Worth, Texas, law close that represents individuals and families in cases involving claimed injury, blameworthy death, trucking accidents, medical malpractice, architecture website accidents, articles accountability and business litigation. You can acquaintance Mr. Laird by buzz at 817-531-3000 or 800-448-2889 or via e-mail at laird@texlawyers.com. The firm's Web website is www.texlawyers.com.