Hendrickson unveils Watchman
20/07/2026
Hendrickson, based in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, has launched its new Watchman advanced wheel-end sensor system, a technology the company claims will help fleets take a meaningful step towards predictive maintenance.
Watchman builds on Hendrickson’s existing Tiremaax Pro and Pro-LB systems, expanding its smart trailer portfolio and setting the stage for more advanced sensing capabilities.
Matt Wilson, Vice President of the Hendrickson Vehicle Technology Group, said the system aligns with the company’s long-term technology road map and efforts of the fleet to shift from reactive maintenance to more predictive strategies.
Matt stated that Hendrickson’s focus is on developing smarter, more durable and reliable suspension and wheel-end systems supported by field performance and technical expertise. He noted that the company’s suspension lines, brakes, wheel ends, tyre-inflation products, aftermarket parts and now sensing technologies all tie into that approach.
“These technologies are designed to support fleets in reducing tyre costs, improving uptime and enhancing predictive maintenance,” said Matt. “That is the role of the technology we are introducing today, the Watchman wheel-end sensor.”
Matt described Watchman as an advanced sensor platform that provides real-time visibility into tyre and wheel-end conditions while serving as the intelligence layer that connects Hendrickson’s systems.
“A simple way to think about it is Tiremaax inflates, TPMS monitors and Watchman interprets the data and connects it to fleet operations,” he said.
The system delivers tyre pressure and wheel-end temperature data at each trailer wheel position and generates actionable insights from that information, including alerts for slow leaks, major leaks and low-pressure conditions. Hub-mounted sensors transmit data via Bluetooth to a receiver and the Watchman mobile app. The system is designed to be telematics-agnostic so fleets can integrate it with existing platforms.
Matt emphasised tyres remain one of the largest operating costs for fleets, noting that even slightly underinflated tyres can shorten casing life, reduce fuel efficiency and lead to unplanned downtime.
“By pairing Watchman with Tiremaax, fleets get a complete solution that automatically maintains proper tyre pressure while providing intelligent diagnostics to identify the root cause of tyre issues,” he said. “That reduces manual guesswork and better supports predictive maintenance planning.”
He added that Watchman is engineered specifically to work with Hendrickson trailer suspensions and wheel ends, giving fleets a unified, integrated system rather than separate components that may not communicate effectively.
Looking ahead, Matt said Watchman is designed as an expandable platform that will add future sensing capabilities, including vibration monitoring and brake wear sensing, to deliver deeper diagnostics and further strengthen predictive maintenance programmes.
“As our suspension systems and components continue to evolve, Watchman will evolve right alongside them.”
