Page 16 - RB-89-19-2

INTERVIEW
also the average quality and customer loyalty: today we buy where we get the best offer. From the point of view of the retreaders, demand for precured treads remains high, perhaps because they are easily exportable, less demanding from the technological point of view compared to hot retreading, and therefore more affordable as a process.
In addition, the precured sector has grown in recent years compared to hot retreading, which was considered to be traditionally Italian before the cold process took over. At ITG we therefore keep up to date with our precured line, following market demands, but in this area we are more penalised because thinking tends to be more focused on price and credit. Instead, we are very strong on the hot product line, thanks also to group synergies, with our compounds and a quality / price relationship that allows us to be really competitive. Therefore, when taking everything into account, when thinking about future developments and investments, ITG’s priority is in hot retreading.
In effect, then, the Italian retreading industr y has undergone a long process of change.
Yes, over the past 10-15 years the sector has changed profoundly. Low costs as well as the direct presence of the tyre manufacturers, who have entered heavily in the retreading sector themselves, have created competition across the board but at the same time have given a legitimacy to the sector. In the space of a few years there has been a drastic decrease in the number of retreaders (not just for market contingencies), but there have also been positive changes because the quality of the product has improved substantially, regulations introduced and research of certified quality have certainly improved the quality of the product, but they have made life more complicated for a sector often managed by small businesses and medium-sized companies. I think of the homologations and the winter markings required (too much)
for product certification, an additional obstacle, especially in terms of cost. All of this time, low importation costs were widespread in the tyre market. Recent
European provisions in terms of anti-dumping protection should curb the phenomenon (at least check it), at least with regards to truck tyres (in my opinion it should be extended to all tyres). The truck sector is subject to
and products, and succeeding in surviving a confused phase. Many companies did not have the strength to invest and so abandoned the sector, finding themselves working again only for the truck market, which is affected by several factors as discussed
earlier. Seasonality, the fact of being present on the territor y and therefore having the tyres available, the fact that low-cost
What prospects do you see for the future?
Perhaps the numbers will still be scaled down, European duties still have to produce tangible effects, thousands of low-cost tyres are still on the market, and distributors improvise. It is true that now that retreaders are starting to have more requests, the climate is turning towards greater optimism, but the
The Evercompound factory
16 Retreading Business
multiple factors: Supply compared to demand, the strong offer of the manufacturers, the competition between operators, economic and financial difficulties of many companies, a failure to rationalise distribution. The full value of retreaded tyres can be captured if the tyre travels a lot, and if companies are able to evaluate the cost / benefit of the tyres. Unfortunately, in recent times the logic that governs tyre management is based on other factors and is short-sighted, just based on low price. These factors have actually triggered a selection process among the retreaders.
Interesting trends are also to be seen in the area of car tyre retreading.
Car tyre retreading is a sector that was supposed to have disappeared, but perhaps it has saved so many companies, and today it is recovering a lot, also thanks to retreaders who have continued to invest in their product range, both in designs
imports were especially interesting for the truck sector, allowed car tyre retreaders to maintain interesting positions in the market.
At ITG. in the last year we have received more and more requests for thermal winter compounds, something that had lost ground by looking more and more at the performance of car tyres, especially in compounds. The target customer has changed too, the parc has expanded, vehicles and sizes are different, the quality bar has risen and there is a demand for the best performing products. Today, there is a more widespread and better considered evaluation of the product, and this also happened thanks to the work of so many retreaders who have worked well. The problem of casings remains, many sizes are hard to find and the current management of the scrap tyre sector has taken away the availability of so much raw material.
economic return is not yet evident.
The retreaders who will remain solidly in the market I believe will be the more organised, professional, qualified companies attentive to cost management and related to the world of the new tyre, of retail and distribution. We, anyway, are very confident, in the sense that the value of the product is there in ecological terms, economy and service, and we will continue to invest in retreading. Also, for this we continue to be present on the territory as well as at trade fairs, Autopromotec for example. No need for luxurious things, our style is not extravagant, we concentrate especially on direct relationships with the customer, with the market and with certainty of our products.
Source: Pneurama