TRM notes ‘increased interest’ in retreading

Bologna, Italy - Tyre Retreading Machinery (TRM), part of Marangoni Meccanica, has reported signs of a pick-up in the retreading business “after several years of uncertainty.”

The Italian maker of retreading systems has just completed a “successful” Autopromotec 2019 fair, 22-26 May in Bologna, where it presented a new automated technology.

“Talking with the main retreading players, they confirm that there are some signs of recovery on the market, certainly,” said TRM general manager Alessandro Villa in a 29 May statement to ERJ.

This, according to Villa, could partially be attributed the Europe-wide import duties on Chinese truck tires, which have been in place since May 2018.

“The effect of the duty on Chinese tires is pushing or at least is giving an optimistic perspective on the market,” Villa said.

The European retreading market, he noted, had previously undergone “a significant contraction,” with investment put on hold for quite some time.

“New tire companies have seen retreading as leverage to add value to their product and increase the level of service to their customers,” Villa explained.

On a continental Europe level, he said, this has led to various acquisitions of the main retreaders that now include the brand of the parent company in their brands.

Independent retreaders have, therefore, to come together “to achieve a critical mass that would allow them to compete on the market and reduce costs,” added the TRM boss.

Such trends have led to the gradual disappearance of the small retreaders, ‘which were acting almost at the level of craftsmanship,’ Villa concluded.

At Autopromotec, TRM presented its Eagle Truck 3000 buffing machine, developed in partnership with German retreader Rigdon GmbH for truck tire retreading.

Suitable for both hot and cold retreading, the unit is equipped with two sidewall units, so that grinding and brushing of the sidewall can be performed simultaneously.