HARDENBERG, Netherlands—Magna Tyres Group has initiated production of off-the-road tires at its expanded and re-engineered OBO Tyres retread plant in Hardenberg, and is in the process of increasing curing capacity further to keep up with demand, company officials disclosed Jan. 11.
Waalwijk, Netherlands-based Magna Tyres—a privately held contract manufacturer of OTR, industrial and truck tires—is starting production at Hardenberg with three heavy-duty off-highway lines at the expanded OBO Tyres plant: the MA02 grader/loader line, M-Terrain articulated dump-truck line and AG24 agricultural line.
The start-up was an important development for Magna Tyres, CEO Michael de Ruijter said at the plant christening, noting that the company is struggling to keep up with growing demand for its products worldwide.
"We have invested heavily in the factory and can significantly expand our production capacity to meet the rising demand," he said.
The CEO added that additional investments "are already made in order to increase press capacity even further."
Magna did not disclose the plant's capacity or the scale of investment it budgeted to add new tire capacity.
Peter Schrijver, general manager of OBO Tyres, acknowledged that some people might question if it was economically viable to produce new tires in the Netherlands, but said, "Our efficiency, lower transport costs and lower import duties make it very cost-effective to produce locally and to invest in more production capacity."
Magna, up to now, has contracted manufacturing out to tire makers in China and Taiwan, while maintaining a design and engineering staff in Europe.
The company was founded nearly 40 years ago.