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TYREXPO AFRICA
Tolins Considering Relocating UAE plant
Vamshi Improving in Exports Despite Slowdown in Key Markets
Indian tread makers are always on the look-out for new markets. The Middle East and Africa are the traditional markets of Indian companies, and their presence in these markets has now existed for many decades. Those Indian tread rubber makers who became
active in exports more recently are now scouting for partners in Africa. Numbered amongst these is Hyderabad based Vamshi Rubber, who the entered export market only in the middle of 2015, and is now growing positively in East Africa and the Middle East. “Vamshi entered the export market about a year ago, and we have already started working with 7 customers in East Africa, the Middle East and Turkey. This is fairly good considering the market is down largely due to the flooding of markets by low priced Chinese new tyre brands,” stated K Gopinath, Head Sales, International, Vamshi Rubber Limited.
The company says it is growing on the strength of its quality and the right product mix for various markets. “We have added 60 sizes in last few years to offer in the international market. Now we have product for almost all the markets and are also working on new patterns and sizes to suit the market priorities,” he stressed.
As part of strengthening its brand position in the international market, Vamshi is exhibiting in all the key tyre shows around the world. It has already participated at the SEMA show in Las Vegas,
Tyrexpo Africa in Johannesburg and is now preparing for the Essen show in May.
Vamshi is also targeting the US market and is working on the right product for the market. “We are making efforts to design and
develop the right sizes for the US market and we hope to get a breakthrough in 2016. Besides, our focus continues to be in Africa the European market,” he clarified.
On the strength of breakthroughs in the export market, Vamshi’s shipments position has improved during the last year. “Our export performance is much better than last year,” he added.
Vamshi produced 4,800 tonnes of tread rubber in 2015, which represented an increase of 5 per cent over 2014 production.
K Gopinath, Head Sales, International - Vamshi Rubber Limited
With the Middle Eastern retreading market down due to the dumping of low-priced tyres, tread makers are considering shifting their bases to other markets. Indian tread makers are some of the biggest suppliers of tread rubber to the retreading plants located in the Middle East but the dumping of low-priced imported
the region. “It was a large retreading and tread making facility under one roof. We had plans to cater to the Eastern European market from the plant,” admitted Tolin.
Tolins Tread has presence in number of African countries like Kenya, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Egypt etc. When asked any time
K V Tolin, Chairman, Tolins Tyres & Tread
tyres has made it almost impossible for them to operate in the market, which has been considered as key growth market for them all these years.
Indian tread makers have even set- up tread making plants in order to serve the market efficiently but with the industry in bad shape, some of them are planning to shift their base to Africa. Cochin based tread rubber maker Tolins Tread, set-up a tread making base about five years back in Ras-al-Khaimah, one of the seven emirates that makes United Arab Emirates (UAE).
“Due to the considerable slowdown in the Middle Eastern market, we are considering relocating the UAE plant to Africa or Eastern Europe,” said K V Tolin, Chairman, Tolins Tyres & Treads at the Tyrexpo Africa show in Johannesburg.
Tolins has made a foray into tyre manufacturing also and showcased a range of tyres at the show. “We have launched 2-3 wheeler tyres for the African market at the Tyrexpo. The patterns are similar as Africa is a traditional market for Indian 2 and 3 wheeler OEMs,” he explained.
The firm has made heavy investments in its UAE venture, but the market has continued to slide down over the last few years and recovery is not expected in the near future. Tolins has also withdrawn from its other overseas ventures in Donetsk in Ukraine. Donetsk became disputed due to the intervention of the Russian forces in
frame set for the UAE plant relocation he said, “We will take the decision shortly as at the moment Africa looks far more interesting to us over any other market.”
In order to give a push to its exports, Tolins is exhibiting at the Tyrexpo Africa, the North American Tire & Retread Expo in New Orleans, the Latin American and Caribbean Tire Expo in Panama and the Essen show in Germany.
Even competition in the home market is becoming intensified after the entry of tyre makers into tread making and retreading. “The Indian market is also becoming highly competitive as tyre manufacturers are entering into retreading and offering precure rubber below their production cost, creating unfair competition in the market,” he complained.
The tread rubber manufacturing is concentrated in Kerala in India and is largely controlled by small scale industr y. The Cochin based three decades old representative body of small scale tread makers in Kerala – All Kerala Small Scale Tread Rubber Manufacturers Association - with around 150 members decided to take up the issue with the Central Government. “We have met the Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise in Delhi recently and urged him to declare the tread rubber manufacturing industr y as a ‘reserve’ for the small scale sector only,” said Tolin, who is Vice President of the Association.
Vipal Strengthens Tyre Repair Side in Southern African Market
36 Retreading Business
Brazilian tread maker Vipal Rubber has widespread presence in the tyre repair sector in the African market. It supplies a wide range of repairs, valve reinforcements, patches and flaps for tubes and tubeless tyres for the retread market in various parts of Africa. However, the company has yet to make a major mark on the retreading material side, with import duties on retreading
materials having hampered Vipal’s presence in the South African market. “The high import duty of 25 per cent on tyre retreading material has been a major challenge in the South African market,” said Dijan Rigo, Commercial Coordinator, Overseas, Vipal Rubber and responsible for the African and Middle Eastern markets. “The landing cost would be so high that