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PORTUGAL
FEDIMA Celebrates 50th Anniversary
invested in a giant autoclave with 3-metre diameter, which allowed the company to produce tyres up to a diameter of 49”.
In 1996 the management decided to renovate the facilities, and this process was concluded in February 1998, with an area of 12.000 sq m. At the time, the company employed around 70 people. Around this time, the company also obtained certification from Bridgestone Firestone Europe to manufacture retreads for the Portuguese market on
an exclusive basis for both hot and cold retreading. Recauchutagem 31 left this process in 2007/2008 when Bridgestone acquired Bandag.
In 1999 the company
also made a
partnership with Indelband/Renova
from Peru, which is a
specialised OTR company, and this allowed them to produce unique precured OTR retreads with just one bond.
4x4 tyres have also had considerable importance in the development of the FEDIMA brand worldwide. Between 1998/99 Recauchutagem 31 started strategically investing in off-road markets, and according to Marques, this has completely changed the dynamics of the company’s retreaded tyres. Nowadays, Recauchutagem 31 produces more than 300 sizes and patterns of 4x4 tyres.
In 2000 the creation of Fedima France helped support the considerable development in 4x4 competition within central Europe, and in 2002 Fedima Tyres entered the Super Trucks European Championship. This was followed in 2005 by the creation
of a second new entity,
FEDIMA
DEUTSCHLAND, which
has helped in the
development of
motorsport ranges for
autocross and rallycross.
Another strategic area for Recauchutagem 31 over
the years has been OTR
Tyres. The company
produced the biggest tyre
in Portugal in 2006, a
27.00R49. The growth in
this segment has led the
company to make various investments, such as the
purchase of an MGT 63
machine in 2009, which
allows the operator to perfectly retread or repair any tyre up to 63” in size.
“Quality-focused, technological innovation, product segmentation and differentiation have enhanced the recognition of our products in a very demanding European market, and sustained growth of our company along the years,” commented Carlos Marques. “Our main goal is to offer a recycled tyre of superior quality, with high- performance levels, assuring a
Recauchutagem 31, the Alcobaça, Portugal based retreader, best known for its FEDIMA brand of retreaded tyres, celebrated its 50th anniversary recently, inviting
TRM and Vipal.
Recauchutagem 31 was founded on September 1st, 1969 by Fernando Dias Marques and initially established its activity in a
around 400 customers, suppliers and guests to an impressive day- long event incorporating an open- house presentation of the company’s factory and a lavish gala dinner at the nearby Solar de Cerca Hotel located next to the renowned 12th century monastery at Alocobaça.
Guests were treated to a guided tour of the company’s factory, including a demonstration of some of the latest buffing and building equipment from TRM. The tour
400sqm space with five workers. Today’s Managing Director, Carlos Marques, and his wife, Conceição, started working in the company in January 1975, after Carlos had spent 38 months in Angola fulfilling military service. Carlos and Conceição Marques acquired 100% of the company six years later in 1981.
The company first started to produce pre-cured retreads in 1986, using Pal-Tread products from the Italian supplier, ITG. By
100% safe product with a competitive price.” Recauchutagem 31 currently employs 88 people and produces around 500 tyres a day (installed capacity is 1,000 tyres per day). The company has its Quality System certified by ISO9001 since 2000 and its products homologated according to reg.108 and 109 of CE/ONU since 2002. Since 2000 the company’s head office has also housed an exhibition of “The most diversified production of the world”. Recauchutagem 31 has more than 2,500 clients located across 48 countries in Europe, South America and Africa. The internationalisation process started 20 years ago, resulting in a percentage of exported product in the range of 55% of the total volume.
also included the company’s comprehensive display room, which houses examples of what the company says is the world’s most varied retread display, ranging from car and truck to agricultural and earthmover tyres. The company is also a significant player in the 4x4 and motorsport sectors.
The event was well supported by a plethora of key suppliers including EIB, Italmatic, ITG, Marangoni,
1991, though, it became necessary to evolve and differentiate the production. So, the company started the production of bead-to- bead retreads and registered two different brand names, FEDIMA for car, light truck, 4x4 and truck tyres, and CAFEMA for agricultural tyres. These being acronyms of the name of the founder, Fernando Dias Marques and Carlos’s own name, Carlos Feliciano Marques. In 1993 Recauchutagem 31
10 Retreading Business