Venturing behind the scenes with TMD Friction
It can be easy for home mechanics to consider just fitting implications and not appreciate the development, testing and manufacturing expertise that lie behind the braking parts they buy. To redress the balance, TMD Friction provides a sneak peek.
While you might not have heard of TMD Friction, you will be familiar with the company’s brands. Textar, Mintex and DON have existed on the UK market for many decades but surely this variety makes it more confusing for buyers?
TMD Friction asserts not, for it reaffirms its goal of serving all drivers better, by offering them the right brake parts, regardless of location, car brand and even budget.
That trio of brands, for instance, ensures that the company can satisfy all of these very different requirements and serve everyone with the right product. While TMD Friction declares that its products are tailored to the requirements of geography, vehicle segments and price classes, it insists that quality and safety remain the top priorities in every price segment.
Above and beyond
All TMD Friction brands undergo rigorous examinations to deliver the key safety criteria, which form part of the approval process for ECE Regulation 90. Yet, the company reports that this legislation is not the ‘be all and end all’ of the quality journey. While some companies view R90 as a target, TMD Friction sees it as a starting point.
Therefore, its brands’ quality remits stretch beyond base legislation and includes areas that are not considered in depth, such as certain aspects of braking performance, durability, and comfort. The latter point is most important, considering that noise is one of the most common braking complaints. Aside from being manufactured in some of the most advanced production facilities in the world, TMD Friction’s components benefit from a host of noise-abating features, such as brake pads equipped with carefully-tuned chamfers and precision shims that reduce vibration.
As part of being a global company, TMD Friction utilises British expertise, too. Extensive product evaluation is conducted at its purpose-built Seaton Ross testing facility in East Yorkshire. Clearly,
this exercise is not just to satisfy legislative requirements but it also allows the company engineers to assess the high-speed behaviour, noise and even pedal feel of its product portfolio and feed the results back to the developmental teams.
Making the choice
The brake friction market received a sudden and unexpected shock, when the DVSA’S market surveillance exercise found that not all brake pads on the market comply with the minimum legal standards. TMD Friction advises that CM readers should ensure that, even if brake pads are supplied in sealed packaging (as per the regulations), they still might not comply with the required quality and road safety standards. When examining a particular component, information on a product’s conformity with R90 must be displayed, including country of origin and vehicle make and model coverage, at the very least. However, this still does not guarantee high standards of the product inside.
However, why take the risk? With TMD Friction, you are guaranteed prime value, with braking components that will satisfy your wallet as well as delivering optimum performance, when your life depends on it.