NIOSH would like to renew efforts to bring this to the attention of all U.S. While conducting an investigation of a recent apparatus crash-related fire fighter fatality, NIOSH learned that fire departments may not fully appreciate the hazards related to manual adjustment of ASAs. In 2006, the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) warned the fire service of this potential problem (IAFC 2006) following an investigative report released by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB 2006). Manual adjustment of ASAs should only be done by qualified technicians during installation or when absolutely necessary to move the apparatus to a repair facility (NTSB 2006, 2007 IAFC 2006).Īutomatic Slack Adjuster(left), Automatic Slack Adjuster as a component of the foundation brakes(right) When an ASA is found to be out of adjustment, it signifies the existence of a larger braking system problem that needs correction. Ensure maintenance is only performed by qualified technicians who meet NFPA 1071 Standard for Emergency Vehicle Technician Professional Qualifications.Īn automatic slack adjuster is a mechanical component of the air brake system that adjust brakes as necessary when the vehicle is in operation to compensate for wear in the brake shoes (drum brakes) or pads (disc brakes).Establish procedures to ensure maintenance on fire apparatus is conducted as recommended in NFPA 1911 Standard for the Inspection, Maintenance, Testing, and Retirement of In-Service Automotive Fire Apparatus.Ensure that ASAs are not manually adjusted.Or am I overreacting with this whole thing, because at the end of the day I am responsible for the safe operation of this vehicle.NIOSH recommends that all fire departments operating fire apparatus equipped with automatic slack adjusters (ASAs) immediately take the following actions to reduce the risk of fire fighters being injured in an apparatus crash due to brake failure: So my question is, how detrimental to my brakes is it that they have been adjusted against the ratcheting mechanism? I was under the impression that the only way to "adjust" an automatic slack adjuster was by actually adjusting the amount of pushrod travel the slack adjuster allows before automatically tightening again, if that last sentence made any sense at all. I understand that he is just doing his job, but I was doing mine. But the mechanic wasn't having any of that and said that it had to be done. Secondly, which sounds a bit self righteous, but I religiously grease my truck bumper to bumper weekly and know that my brakes are in perfect working order. I took a bit of exception to this for a couple reasons, number one, I was under the impression that loosening the adjustment nut on auto slack adjusters against the ratcheting mechanism can round out the teeth and cause the auto adjusters to fail. So for the next few weeks EVERY truck that comes in for a service, they want the adjustment nut on the brakes loosened one full turn against the ratcheting mechanism, everything greased, and then readjusted. I work for a fracking company and a few days ago I brought my truck over the pit for a service and a mechanic proceeds to tell me that they have been having problems with brakes failing because guys have not been maintaining their brakes properly. So we're having a debate at work right now on proper methods for adjustment and maintenance of automatic slack adjusters.
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