Bridgestone Americas (Bridgestone) and Pilot Company announced a collaboration on an advanced tire monitoring and service network for commercial fleets at select travel center locations.

This collaboration leverages Bridgestone Fleet Care mobility solutions and Pilot Company's network of travel centers to provide more convenient fleet tire intelligence. The initial trial phase will begin this summer with a rollout of the tire monitoring technology at 200 Pilot and Flying J locations.

Each router currently being installed in the fuel canopies of select Pilot and Flying J travel centers is linked to the Bridgestone tire pressure monitoring solution, IntelliTire, and transmits real-time tire data in two minutes or less from trucks and buses to fleet managers.

IntelliTire combines durable hardware with a software application to allow fleet operators to proactively address specific tire issues and mitigate unplanned maintenance, reducing downtime and improving driver safety. Fleets using this technology will have access to data such as tire inflation pressure and temperature, enabling them to continually monitor the health of each tire throughout its lifecycle.

With this intelligence in hand, fleets can also utilize the Bridgestone service event management application, REACH1, to make preventative maintenance, roadside assistance, and other vehicle service requests more efficient by connecting drivers, fleet dispatch, service centers, and technicians under one digital platform.

"Physical, on-the-ground touchpoints are critical elements to the success of digital, data-driven fleet solutions, and together they enable synergies to improve mobility," said Chris Ripani, president, Commercial Tire Group, Bridgestone Americas. "With a robust footprint and strong fleet relationships, Pilot Company is the perfect partner to help us develop a connected network that is designed to allow our shared customers to minimize downtime, save on costs and improve driver safety now and in the future."

The use of the Bridgestone advanced tire monitoring system at Pilot and Flying J travel centers allows both companies to expand their service offerings and support the growing need for evolving technology solutions that make it easier to maintain vehicles. This program adds to Pilot Company's bundle of fleet solutions, which provides trucking companies with full-service financial, maintenance, and fuel packages.

"With the safety of our customers in mind, we are leveraging our network of Pilot and Flying J travel centers to help deliver IntelliTire technology to the road—making it easy for fleets and drivers to maintain their trucks and minimize downtime during routine fuel stops," said Shameek Konar, Pilot Company CEO. "This project is part of our larger focus to add new technologies and services to make road travel better, safer and more efficient for our guests."