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RUSSIA
such that most potential clients have a negative stance on retreaded tyres. This is because some companies use casings of poor
quality. After all, for an average client one negative experience is enough to form a judgment on the entire industry”.
when a new Chinese tyre and a retreaded tyre in Russia were equal on price. Now retreaded tyres are cheaper,” Veidyashkin estimated.
Piper ANZ is serving the needs of small and medium-sized companies in Moscow. It would be good to get orders from the
don’t care about ways of saving some money and improving effectiveness.
“Our problem is that Piper ANZ entered the retreading market a little bit late. The regional market was already divided between the existing retreading plants, and the demand for retreaded tyres in Russia leaves a lot to be desired, although in theory the harsh economic situation in Russia should push most companies to consider some cost-effective solutions. “With no doubt, the main challenge is the shortage of clients. Some small transport companies have ceased operation, and it is often hard to urge new customers to start working together. The negotiations could last for months and still lead to nothing,” Veidyashkin said. “Globalisation processes are taking place everywhere, including in the transport industry, as big companies increase their presence on the market, while smaller firms experience problems. We have two clients both with fleets around 100 trucks that have recently closed”.
It is hard to say how the current situation will evolve in the near future. Despite the problems, Piper ANZ is looking for new clients and plans to reach full capacity. When it will happen is a different question.
Aircraft Tyres
Giving the aviation background of the owners, Piper ANZ possibly could be interested in retreading aircraft tyres. It is interesting that there is no information whether any plant in Russia is really engaged in retreading aircraft tyres. There are no advertisements on the Internet, and no plant offers that service on its website. According to Veidyashkin, this segment in Russia does actually exist, and he knows some plants that retread aircraft tyres. The technical regulations in Russia allow the use of retreaded tyres on the landing gear, so there are no legislative obstacles for aviation companies to purchase these tyres. However, there may be a problem of the lack of raw materials appropriate to retread these tyres in Russia, as Veidyashkin said he personally had never seen tread compound for aircraft tyres on the market. At this point for Piper ANZ this niche is not so interesting, because it would not secure an additional load to the plant as long as the demand for retreaded aircraft tyres in Russia is not so big. In future, however, this may change.
In addition, due to the fierce competition with cheap new tyres, many retreaders in Russia have to use cheap treads. Up to 90 per cent of treads in the local market are imported from Spain, Portugal and South America, according to Veidyashkin. As a rule, their declared mileage is not corresponding with the mileage they can actually provide. “With this tread the tyre could serve for around 150,000 km. Experience has shown that for most companies this is not enough. This is even less than the truck can cover in one transportation season. There are European suppliers that offer better treads that could run for 200,000 km and even more, but they are more expensive and as a result not so widely used in the country today”.
All in all, these factors significantly limit the demand for retreaded tyres in the Russian market. Nevertheless, things are better than they were just a few years ago.
“We were not operating at that time, but we have heard from other retreading companies that at some point the pressure from Chinese tyres was so strong that the retreading industry in Russia literally had to struggle for survival. There were times
transport giants, but it is much easier said than done.
“First of all, it is difficult to offer them anything, because they get special terms from tyre manufacturers with ver y attractive prices. Secondly, a big challenge is to make acquaintance with the decision makers in these companies. The owners would never hear your proposal, while the managers