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AUTOPROMOTEC
Autopromotec
– A Talking Shop
develop and to take a risk. Consequentially, news becomes thin on the ground and there is then a risk that whispers and rumours become news.
and there was little new being presented. It was very much about renewing contacts and revitalising partnerships. However, if the retread sector is to develop again, it needs something to change. It needs
Chinese tyre prices to rise to a proper market value, or, it needs tariffs to make that happen. The playing field needs relevelling. There is a trade imbalance that cannot be sustained without further damaging the domestic manufacturers and retreaders. That is the unifying message that came out of interview after interview at Autopromotec (and from New Orleans and Panama too).
Autopromotec is the Italian-based window on the automotive aftermarket. This huge exhibition started out as a shop window for Italian manufacturers of equipment, parts and accessories, and has grown to become one of the leading events of its kind in Europe.
It would be wrong to bill Autopromotec as a tyre show, tyres form part of the event, and tyre equipment plays a part in the event – Italian tyre changing equipment manufacturers just about have a hall to themselves. Of course, tyres play a large part in the show, though in recent years the emphasis has moved away from truck and retread tyres to a wider base of car tyres, truck tyres and a nod to the OTR sector.
The tyre halls in some way give a clue as to why the market has changed. Some of the big names still exhibit in style, but the majority of tyre stands are promoting Chinese new tyres for cars, trucks and even OTR. The coming dominance of the Chinese manufacturers has impacted heavily on the retread sector, with fewer retreaders exhibiting, and fewer retread materials suppliers attending the show.
That does not mean that the show has lost any of its importance, for those who do still attend make the most of the opportunity to promote their services and their products. On the equipment side, Marangoni, Matteuzzi, Marigo, TRM, Saspol and AkarMak all had their presence. There were one or two absentees, but the equipment manufacturers had set out their stalls and were still finding interest from the market to encourage them. Interestingly, Autopromotec still attracts a fair number of visitors from North Africa and despite the difficulties in several of the North African and Sub Saharan states there is a growing interest in retreading from that sector, despite the omnipresent threat from Chinese tyres. As one Ethiopian businessman put it,
“When things get difficult, that is when the good businesses make money.”
In general, retread materials suppliers and retreaders attending Autopromotec were putting on a brave face. It was becoming increasingly difficult to find new opportunities in the retread sector and those who were surviving were doing so on niche markets and high- quality service support. In the past. suppliers were generally ebullient about business and even as the Chinese tyres advanced they still sang a happy song. Today, at trade shows around the world and every time we visit a retreader the issue of Chinese tyres is always to the fore. Many are now playing a waiting game to see where the market is going. Strategies are kept close to the chest and no-one is giving anything much away.
Some of the biggest players in the retread sector are battening down the hatches and hoping that they can weather the storm.
The Chinese though have not quite overtaken the whole market. Yes, they are supplying tools, patches, valves and of course new tyres, but their equipment suppliers, especially for the retread sector, have not yet made any inroads in Europe and none were attending the show. However, their presence, according to some manufacturers of equipment, is starting to be felt in some developing markets where cheap equipment is the entry point into the market.
It would be, we think, an honest comment if we said that for the retread sector, Autopromotec 2017 was as much a social event as a business opportunity this year. People were taking time to talk to each other.
One of the disadvantages of a recession on an industry, and this is almost an industry specific recession that is almost untouched by wider global economic dynamics, is that there is a reluctance to invest, to
During its annual meeting held during the Autopromotec Exhibition in Bologna, Italy, BIPAVER, the European federation of trade associations representing the retreading industry, announced two key appointments with a view to taking the federation forward as it faces increased legislative and
key technical projects currently being undertaken by BIPAVER, these being the labelling of truck tyres, the labelling of car tyres and winter profile markings (3PMSF).
In addition to the management of these three projects, Schwämmlein’s responsibilities will include data collection, offering technical support
Changes at BIPAVER
technical challenges in the coming years.
Firstly, Tim van der Rijken from the Dutch trade association VACO was appointed as the Federation’s new General Secretary. Secondly, as part of a plan initiated by BIPAVER Chairman, Patrick Sjolin, BIPAVER has appointed Michael Schwämmlein as a Technical Consultant on a 26- month contract to oversee the three
to van der Rijken, the acquisition and development of memberships, independent consultancy to paying members and the development of a Global Retreading Symposium to be held during The Tire exhibition in Cologne next year. Schämmlein will also be responsible for securing the services of a successor once his 26- month contract has expired.
20 Retreading Business
Akar in Good Position
Autopromotec remains one of the tyre industry’s largest shop windows in Europe, and it is an excellent opportunity for machinery manufacturers to present their wares to the sector.
Turkish manufacturer Akar Makina was once again exhibiting at Bologna with a selection of the equipment that it offers the retread sector. Managing Director Sadettin Ak told Retreading Business that despite the downturn in retreading the company was actually in a very good position, economically and geographically. “We are able to reach and work with retreaders in any market. We can help when they start small and we can work with them as they grow
with AkarMak.
“We are building our share of the market in Eastern Europe; the Western European sector is a mature market that is well catered for.
“We are of course looking at Russia but the market there is complicated and has many small retreaders and we need to be careful when choosing partners.
“The middle East and Saudi are currently good markets for AkarMak. “Of course, we are competing with Italian and Chinese producers in every market. In Africa, we had a good relationship with Leadertread, but when they were partnered with Marangoni that changed the dynamics. However, we are trying to