Page 37 - Retreading Business N104 2023-1

COUNTRY REPORT - URUGUAY “With more than 60,000 tyres retreaded per year in Uruguay, the tyre retreading industry is increasing its numbers, leveraged by savings in cost per km, quality, safety, efficiency similar to new tyres and above all the generation of true ecological benefits.” Stabile explained: “In 2012, before Chinese tyres began to prevail, the retreadability index in Uruguay was 1.25 (for every two tyres imported, one was retreaded), whereas today it is between 0.40 and 0.50. This drop was very important, and tyre retreading seemed doomed to disappear. However, the reality today is totally the opposite, due to the fact that rubber manufacturers as well as the retreaders reacted and came to the market with specific products for Asian casings. “These are specific treads with different components that last less kilometres,” he explained. “Putting a tread that lasts 140,000 km onto a casing does not make sense if the casing is not going to last that long. The client does not expect that either. This type of tread incorporates lighter compounds, and Asian casings withstand them without problems, with a mileage performance like their first life, and without any failures.” MARKETING TO THE COST CONSCIOUS Stabile continued to explain the thinking behind how to market retreads to cost conscious customers who prefer to purchase Asian manufactured tyres: “The Asian casings are the ones with the highest market share with more than 50%, and these are available in different type of qualities; and in the case of the best quality of Asian tyres, their cost is lower than that of a top tier 1 tyre brand category, and they can be retreaded with excellent results. In the case of the lower quality ones, they are not so recommendable for retreading because they generate many failures, and the recoverability is very, very low, but in the case of the better-quality ones it is highly recommendable because they generate an approxi- mate saving for the carrier of between 20% to 30% in ter- ms of cost per kilometre. For example, for a medium-sized fleet company that invests USD 50,000 a year in tyres, if it retreads them, the saving is around USD 10,000, which goes directly to the fleet owner’s pocket.” Continuing with this example, we asked, how does this calcu- lation work in the case of a premium tyre brand? “If we talk about a top tier 1 tyre brand such as Goodyear, which offers one of the best tyre performances, the savings are greater because the initial performance of the tyre is be- tter, and the Tipler tread band that we can put on it allows higher mileage,” explained Stabile. “Therefore, it is a casing that can be demanded much more. The savings which can be achieved in this case are around 30%.” RETREADABILITY INDEX STILL LOW According to Stabile, the retreadability index in Uruguay re- mains low compared to neighbouring countries Brazil and Argentina, with many fleet companies choosing not to give a second life to their tyres for fear of failure and associated costs. Nonetheless, with more than 60,000 tyres retreaded per year in Uruguay, the tyre retreading industry is increa- sing its numbers, leveraged by savings in cost per km, quality, safety, efficiency similar to new tyres and above all the gene- ration of true ecological benefits. “At Puma we are working very hard to raise awareness of en- vironmental care through tyre retreading, explaining to our fleet clients that they have an important role to play in the environmental sustainability in which Puma is committed to act as an active key partner,” said Stabile. “Puma is also an active part of the recycling plan for end-of-life tyres in Reci- clo NFU, which is an extended producer responsibility plan of the Uruguayan Chamber of Tire Importers. It was driven by the Decree 358/2015 which obliges tyre importers in Uru- guay to have a management plan for tyre reuse because final disposal is prohibited.” Within the Reciclo NFU management plan there are more than 260 workshops and tire shops that participate in the recycling programme plus 120 special generators and was- te collectors covering the nineteen departments within the country. There are also ten regional collection centres, a cen- tralised collection centre and a primary shredding plant. In Uruguay, 100% of this waste is processed. In 2022, 75% of the waste was used for energy and material recovery, 22% for P.37