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THE TIRE
of the global tyre retreading and recycling market sectors.
“Our ultimate objective is to promote tyre safety through a high standard of training methods and
basis to maintain the importance of tyre retreading and recycling within the entire industr y.”
Both Littlefield and Heath feel the new show has proved to be
Left to Right – Dr Roy Littlefield and Joseph Heath on the TIA stand
tyre is that we designed a camera system with a laser that can measure the profile of the tyre. Within this system a special software algorithm is designed to calculate the position of the shoulders and then to calculate the
center line,” Heukshorst said.
Laser scanning is measuring the casing’s width, center and diameter. All those parameters are taken into account in the system to lay on the tread as accurately as possible.
An Optimistic Future for Retreading at B&J Rocket
although the TIA is an American based association we work closely with retreading partners on a global
successful and has a bright future in the industr y especially for retreading and recycling.
B&J Rocket, the leading supplier of quality tools for the tyre retreading industry, took up a prominent position near the entrance to the Retreading Pavilion at The Tire Cologne show with a well-designed stand that showcased their extensive product range for easy inspection.
Andreas Muller, President of B&J Rocket told Retreading Business that the company always exhibited at the leading tyre and automotive shows in order to maintain and further enhance their position as the market leader in tyre retreading accessories and also to promote B&J Rocket’s belief that the industry is in the throes of a steady recovery. He added, “We had a successful trading period in 2017, and I am confident the company will be able
to report a period of positive business development at the end of this year for 2018.”
B&J Rocket was not introducing any new products at this event, but there were some
small innovative changes in their range that was on display. Muller also revealed that there are several new products currently in the pipeline, which at the moment are at the research and development stage and will be launched in due course.
He concluded, “Of course, as always, the show served as a valuable international meeting point where we could meet and discuss our products and services with our existing customers from around the world and meet new people with regards to new potential business partnerships for the future. We are always listening to our customers views and ready to take the next step in the market for the retreading industry.”
B&J Rocket’s stand was busy throughout the show
Retreading Industry Tends to be More Automated - VMI
To increase the automation in the retreading industry is a difficult task, because every tyre is a little bit different from each other, and it is not easy to make a machine that can take into account all those nuances while maintaining a high automation level. Nevertheless, VMI Holland BV is putting some effort to increase the automation into the solutions it is offering to retreaders, Coen Heukshorst, the sales manager of VMI Holland outlined. Automation is something that is really in demand in the retreading industry in Europe right now, given the strong pricing pressure that the retreaders are facing in the market, according to Heukshorst.
For the retreading industry, VMI focuses on providing assistance in two principle areas: cushion gum application, commonly known as smearing, as well as in providing builders. At the moment, the company sees not a lot of opportunities in increasing the automation of smearing. However, builders are a different story, so the company has recently developed the RETRAX Builder – a machine with the completely new design that VMI brought to its stand at the Cologne Tyre Expo.
The main advantage of the new machine is that it is provides automatic length checking and stretching. The system automatically checks the operational parameters and the error message occurs at the monitor in case the tread length is out of range.
“We changed the table design, so the operator just needs to put the tread on, and the machine will press on the sides of the tread to make sure it is centralised on the table and that it is lying straight on the table. After that, we can move the table left or right to centralise it on the tyre. When it comes to the length, we have a special clamp that we can use to stretch the tread, so it will fit to the circumference of the casing,” Heukshorst explained. There are modules for cushion gum extrusion, tread application and stitching. In order to automate the process, the information about the tyre and the tread is still required. It is necessar y to know the tread length, width and thickness. At the same time, the RETRAX Builder is equipped with a special camera with a laser light that can automatically obtain information from the tyre.
“So, what we did to measure the
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