Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake (BSFB) announced Tuesday at the North American Commercial Vehicle Show (NACV) in Atlanta that its next-generation foundation drum brakes are now available factory-installed at all major North American medium- and heavy-duty truck manufacturers.
“What sets these brake assemblies apart from their earlier design is the newly designed stamped spiders. The greatest weight savings – at up to 16 pounds per tandem axle set – comes from converting a cast spider to the heavy-duty stamped spider,” says Keith McComsey, director of marketing and customer solutions at Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake LLC (BSFB). “At the same time, from a safety standpoint, we’ve engineered our spiders to be stronger and more durable, ensuring that it delivers the high level of quality that fleets and drivers expect from Bendix braking components.”
A joint venture between Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems and Dana Commercial Vehicle Products, BSFB produces the full lineup of commercially available Bendix brand foundation drum and air disc brake solutions at its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Bowling Green, Ky. BSFB says these improved brake designs have recently been implemented on Freightliner, Western Star, International, Volvo, and Mack trucks. Kenworth and Peterbilt have been utilizing Bendix stamped-spider brakes since 2016.
Two versions of Bendix’s next-generation drum brake are available. The lightweight version is utilized for standard line-haul applications, while the heavy-duty version is more suitable for severe-duty applications.
In most cases, BSFB says the stamped-spider brakes will take the place of existing factory-installed Bendix drum brakes, although cast-spider brakes are still available to meet specific severe applications. The new brakes continue to offer stopping power meeting OEM requirements that exceed federal Reduced Stopping Distance (RSD) standards.
“High-performing, dependable foundation drum brakes remain incredibly important to fleet safety equations across North America,” McComsey says. “And this new generation of drum brake will certainly make a difference in the increasingly popular ‘hybrid’ braking systems, in which air disc brakes are equipped on tractor steer axles, while drive axles are fitted with drums.”
