This year is turning out to be one of investment and expansion for some of the country's leading independent retreaders. A number of retreaders have told moderntiredealer.com they are making big changes at their operations.
They include:
* Allied Retread Technologies of Omaha, Neb., which plans to increase its production by 10%;
* Free Service Tire Co. Inc. of Johnson City, Tenn., which plans to update its equipment and expand its OTR retread plant to handle 51- and 57-inch tires;
* Central Tire Corp. of Verona, Va., which will add new AcuTread matrices and tread designs and also will add new extrusion and rubber testing equipment;
* Eastern Iowa Tire Inc. of Davenport, Iowa, which says it will add a new plant through acquisition;
* McCarthy Tire Service of Wilkes-Barre, Pa., which is adding new machinery;
* RDH Tire & Retread Co. of Cleveland, N.C., which has plans to boost its production by 35%;
* Service Tire Truck Centers of Bethlehem, Pa., which will add a new plant during the rest of the year.
These moves are in line with a growing market. The Rubber Manufacturers Association estimates tread rubber shipments will increase by 2.3% this year.
