If you run forklifts, narrow-aisle trucks, or heavy transport carts, you have probably been told you need Vulkollan wheels and probably not been told why. The name gets used loosely, as though it were a synonym for polyurethane. It is not.
- 65 Shore A to 60 Shore D hardness range1
- 90 Shore A best all-round dynamic properties1
- +15% load capacity, 95 over 90 Shore A2
Vulkollan is a cast polyurethane based on Desmodur 15, a naphthalene diisocyanate produced by Covestro, and only licensed manufacturers may make it. Solid grades run from roughly 65 Shore A to 60 Shore D, with 90 Shore A giving the best balance of mechanical and dynamic properties and 95 Shore A carrying about 15% more load.
Vulkollan Is a Specific Material, Not a Category
Vulkollan is a trademarked polyurethane elastomer based on a particular chemistry, and it can only be produced by licensed manufacturers. That licensing is the reason a Vulkollan wheel costs more than a generic polyurethane one that looks identical.
What you get for the money is a material with an unusually high modulus of elasticity: it deflects under load and returns without accumulating permanent set. That single property is what makes it the standard for drive and load wheels on industrial trucks.
Why Flat-Spotting Is the Real Test
Park a loaded truck on ordinary polyurethane wheels over a long weekend and the contact patch takes a set. On Monday the wheels thump for the first hour, sometimes permanently. Vulkollan's resistance to compression set is why it survives duty cycles that involve sitting under load and then moving immediately.
This is also why hardness alone is a poor way to choose. A 95 Shore A generic wheel and a 95 Shore A Vulkollan wheel measure the same on a durometer and behave differently after six months.
When You Should Not Use It
Vulkollan is not the answer to every wheel problem. It is hard on uneven or debris-strewn floors, where a solid rubber tread absorbs shock better. It has a real temperature ceiling, and prolonged wet or hot service degrades it. On smooth floors in a clean plant it is excellent, and its advantages narrow considerably outside that.
Softer 80 and 85 Shore A grades trade some load capacity for a bigger contact patch, more traction, and a quieter, more comfortable ride. On a truck where the operator spends eight hours a shift, that trade is often worth making.
How to Specify a Replacement
Four things determine the wheel, and if you send them we can quote without a back-and-forth:
- Outside diameter, tread width, and bore, measured rather than remembered
- Load per wheel and whether it is a drive, load, or guide position
- Floor condition and whether the truck sits loaded between shifts
- Bearing type and any hub or keyway detail
If the old wheel is still in the shop, a photograph of it beside a tape measure answers most of that at once. Worn tread can also be re-bonded onto the existing center, which is often cheaper than a new wheel and always faster than waiting for one to be cast.
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