The industry of the retread In Spain and Europe it is in a critical situation and runs a serious risk of disappearing. It is the message without half inks that launch the Spanish Association of Recycled Tires (AER) and Treatment of Used Tires (TNU), on the occasion of the forum “The European Ruft Industry in Danger”, within the framework of Motortec, the automotive fair held on April 24 in IFEMA.
According to the main representatives of the sector, this circular economy process – which allows to extend the useful life of the tires reusing its internal structure – is on the edge of extinction. The main reason? The low -cost new tire competition, mostly imported from Asia, added to a lack of incentives and policies that favor its use and production.
Javier de Jesús Landes, TNU operational director: «The retail is a procedure through which The original properties of a used tire are recovered». It is not a simple patch. As Salvador Pérez Lucena, International Commercial Director of the Soledad Group – one of the main suppliers of the market – explains, “a tire does not end its utility when it wears out: the housing it contains remains valid and safe. And was designed precisely to be recorded ».
This procedure goes through placing a new rolling band. The final product meets the same legal demands as new tires, and allows us to extend the useful life of the original tire considerably reducing the environmental impact. But, despite its multiple benefits, the retail sector experiences a clear setback. In Spain, national production has fallen more than 50% in the last 20 yearsand the number of plants has been reduced from 46 to only 19.
The main cause of this situation is the strong pressure of mass imports of new and cheap tires. «The main competitor of the backup today is The cheap tire range imported from Asia», Says Landes. Often, they lack adequate environmental and technical controls, distorting the market and penalizing local producers.
This competence, added to the lack of political and normative support, has led to the Ruchuta market in EU 5 (France, Italy, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom) has dropped 20% since 2010. A situation that puts local businesses at risk, often located in rural areas.
In addition, it weighs an erroneous perception of the records, which remain seen by some users as of low quality. However, the sources emphasize that the reduchutated tire has the same level of security as a new one, both approved with the same European Standard E9. And Landes recalls that “95% of the world’s main airlines use securities on the landing train of their aircraft, where the demand is maximum.”
The possible loss of the retail would mean a significant environmental setback: «The figures are clear. Extending the useful life of a tire by holding it allows to save 70% of raw materials, 60% of CO₂ emissions compared to manufacturing a new one, 45% energy and 51% costs in production, ”List Pérez Lucena lists.
It is added that the distance contributes to the reduction of the volume of waste, decreases the energy dependence of the exterior and generates green employment. Losing this industry would mean prematurely discarding a product with a remaining useful life and missing an proven solution to close the tire circle of life.
Urgent measures
Given this situation, the participants in the forum made an “urgent” call to action. The sector and experts agreed on the need to implement concrete measures to reverse the decline, as fiscal and regulatory incentives that make the most competitive distance. They also propose sustainable public procurement; That is, to prioritize the use of struck tires in institutional fleets and public companies, establishing mandatory minimal quotas, as in other European countries.
They also request to impose deterrent tariffs on low durability tires and regulate imports to ensure equal conditions. Finally, they ask to promote campaigns that disassemble the prejudices on the safety and quality of the record tire, report on their advantages and promote their choice. In line, they propose explicitly to include the record in the sustainable mobility plans, reindustrialization and ecological transition.
The sector insists that it is not enough to recycle tires at the end of their useful life; It is essential to promote the consumption of the recycled. In the words of Salvador Pérez Lucena: “It is not enough to recycle. You have to consume the recycled. And in that, the distance has all the sense … and the whole future.” There is only greater ambition to save a key sector to “roll” the circular economy and not the “unfair competition”.