Last year Marangoni promised to serve more as a full-service supplier and total solutions company for independent retreaders.
This year, the company is fulfilling that promise.
In a move that will take advantage of plant expansion and newly increased production capacity, Marangoni Tread North America (MTNA) has launched a new category of retread product — performance-specific treads for fleets.
In order to meet the production demands of a new product category, MTNA made a $10 million expansion investment at its Madison, Tenn., plant in 2011. That allowed the company it increase production capacity of its Ringtread spliceless retread technology by 30%.
Now that increased production also will be utilized for three products in Marangoni’s new performance-specific tread category: the Energeco, the RDG 100 and the Marangoni Ring One line for wide-base tires.
“Everybody else has application-specific retreads and these are for performance improvements,” explains Bill Sweatman, Marangoni’s CEO and president, North America Retreading Systems. “I wanted to differentiate this line. When you’re looking for specific performance like fuel economy, application doesn’t really matter — it could be on a truck, bus or OTR. But what is the performance you’re trying to achieve? In this case we think we’ve achieved fuel economy equal to the best mileage treads, as well as low rolling resistance.”
Energeco
Energeco is a combination of Ringtread technology and premium low rolling resistance tread rubber compounding to achieve good fuel economy with high mileage. This means that Energeco stays in service longer, delivering total life cost savings. “We have been able to achieve an 8% fuel savings and up to 10% improvement in mileage compared to some existing Ringtread products, and as much as 30% more mileage versus conventional flat precure treads,” said Sweatman.
The Marangoni Energeco line includes the RDA-E, a solid shoulder drive tread with 23/32-inch tread depth delivering very long miles. The RTA-E is a 12/32-inch deep trailer tread with very low rolling resistance and resistance to irregular wear.
RDG 100
The RDG 100 was designed to increase traction and shorten stopping distance while delivering long reliable mileage. A Marangoni original Ringtread open shoulder tread design with interlocking, siped tread blocks and premium performance compounding delivers both high mileage and strong traction.
Marangoni said users of the RDG 100 report they are getting the same long mileage they expect for Marangoni Ringtreads while getting increased traction and shorter stopping distances.
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Wide Base Ringtread
Wide base tires that replace duals offer a unique challenge to retreading. Marangoni said its Ringtread technology offers the advantages of no splice and no distorted flat precure tread.
Tread depth is optimized to run cool and run for long mileage. The spliceless design means there is no heavy spot and no tread distortion
Marangoni said its Ring One line is easier on the wide base casings to help achieve long life. The product’s tapered shoulder reduces high shoulder flexing, promoting even wear. The RDA One features high performance compounding in a 23/32-inch deep tread for drive tires. The RTA One features the same high performance compound in 12/32-inch tread depth for the trailer position.
Wide-base casings benefit from the spliceless, contoured shape of the Ringtread. This helps reduce stress at the belt-edge and reduces the treads effect on rolling resistance. Some of the problems with wide-base tires are “repairability, retreadability and predictability,” said Sweatman. “With our Ringtread technology, we make the tread in the shape of the tire so it’s double contoured. It doesn’t have a slice. It gives that casing a better chance to perform its full life.”
A ring of truth
“The performance is what you’re really looking for — all the benefits of the Ringtread technology,” said Sweatman. “The additional specific performance you also get is lower rolling resistance. We’re confident that our Ringtread line, because of the nature of the way it’s manufactured, gives an advantage for lower rolling resistance.”
Sweatman said the company’s Ringtread product is manufactured in a centripetal press. The completely circular press produces a tread that is contoured around the circumference of the tire in a circle.
“The molecules are actually bonded in the round shape instead of being flat and then bent around,” Sweatman explained. “Then instead of being completely flat, it also has a contour from side to side.
“Across the face of the tread it comes down a little bit around the crown of the tire, and there’s a contour. You don’t have the distortion that you have in conventional flat treads where you have to bend it around the shape of the tire. We mold it in the shape that it’s going to be running in.”
Marangoni is also currently completing another expansion at its Madison plant that Sweatman said should be completed by the end of summer. That expansion will give the company an additional 15% Ringtread production capacity.
“Then another major expansion is scheduled to be completed late-2013.” ■
