Thicker polyurethane treads afford some desirable characteristics, although it can be at the expense of others. Polyurethane is much about tradeoffs. Thicker treads increase the cushioning, and also increase the “footprint”, which means that the contact pressure on the floor is less since the load is spread over a larger area. This can be a critical factor for some larger loads on production floors. Also, bond stresses (bond between wheel center and the polyurethane tread) are reduced in thicker treads. This can lead to better performance and fewer failures in some situations.Within Hamilton’s stable of 1” thick polyurethane treads are different compounds to accentuate certain performance characteristics.