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SRI LANKA
3K Holdings factory and offices
new infrastructure projects in the next year. “This government has yet to announce new projects, though lots of projects are there in the pipeline,” he
confided. The company hopes the market will improve once the new projects are announced.
month,” said Amitha Dheerasekara, Chairman, Autoways Private Limited. The Anuradhapura plant was set-up in 1991, and caters to
plants have identical capacities of 25 tonnes of tread each month. “We have plans to double the tread making capacity to 50 tonnes at the
Amitha Dheerasekara, Chairman, Autoways Private Limited
Pasan Retreaders to Expand into Compound Mixing
the North Central market, whilst the new Kuruwita plant caters to the Southern part of Sri Lanka. The company says it has plans
Kuruwita plant in the next three years,” he revealed. The company produces the tread rubber under the ‘Autoways’
Colombo based Pasan Retreaders will soon be foraying into compound mixing, with a new plant scheduled for construction near to the company’s retreading plant at Horana Industrial Estate. “The mixing plant is likely to be operational by the beginning of 2018,” informed Dhansiri, Managing Director of Pasan Retreaders. The company says it will soon install a mixing mill sourced from Kerala. Pasan is a price-sensitive retreader and retreads the majority of its tyres by the traditional hot process. The plant retreads a total of 1,300 tyres per month. “We have a clientele that prefers the hot
cure process, but we started making pre-cure retreads in 2013 and currently make around 300 units a month,” he said.
After entering the compound mixing business, Pasan plans to further expand into the manufacturing of tubes for pneumatic tyres.
The company retreads tyres largely for the state owned Ceylon Transport Board, retreading 1,000 tyres per month for the government- owned bus service. The plant is installed with one 8-tyre chamber and 10-hot moulds. Pasan also manufactures tread rubber as well as camelback for its own plant consumption.
to expand further down South in Matara on the Southern coast of the Southern Province. “However, all this depends on the market, which is down at the moment, besides which, it is all quiet on the government front. If the government announces new projects that stir-up the economy, we would look to expand down south in the next 2-3 years,” Dheerasekara said.
Both plants have enough tread making capacities to feed the retreading operations. The two
brand.
The plant has a mix of equipment sourced from India, Malaysia and the US, with 3 autoclaves of 12 & 16 tyres and two presses for tread making at both locations.
Commenting on the market, he said; “With retreading plants coming up all over Sri Lanka, competition has intensified leading to a price war among retreaders, and with long credit further killing the business, companies are forced to survive on the lowest of margins.”
Autoways Starts
Second Plant in Kuruwita
Major Sri Lankan retreading companies are largely self-reliant in tread rubber having their own production facilities, which is also a major reason for their large retread volumes. Autoways Private Limited is one of the largest retreading companies in the Central part of Sri Lanka. Autoways has recently opened a new plant in Kuruwita, which is
a town in the Ratnapura District of Sabaragamuwa Province of Sri Lanka and about 87 km from Colombo. “We have opened the second plant around six months ago. Now both plants have combined capacities of 14,000 tyres per month but due to the slowdown in the market, the two plants together retread around 10,000 tyres per
Lanka Autolands to Consolidate Business
50 Retreading Business
Lanka Autolands is to focus on consolidating its volumes in the subdued market scenario in Sri
Lanka. The plant based at Homogama on the outskirts of Colombo used to retread around