IZMET, Turkey—Turkey's Ozka Lastik ve Kaucuk, a manufacturer of specialty tires and products for the retreading industry, is planning to increase its radial tire production capacity by 55 percent early next year, with the addition of its second factory in Turkey. It did not, however, specify any plans for the new facility.
Capacity today stands at 130 metric tons of tires per day, and, Ozka exports a significant part of its capacity to more than 80 countries. Since 2017, the company has experienced a 440 percent growth in the export of its tires, which are offered with a limited five-year warranty against manufacturing defects.
Ozka Tire produces 318 SKUs of bias and radial tractor front, tractor rear, harvester, garden-field, trailer, industrial, light truck and military tires, most of which are tires for industrial vehicles working on difficult field conditions. The tire maker employs 900.
Importer/distributor Taray International Corp., a U.S. corporation established in 1979, has been distributing Ozka's tires and tread rubber and throughout the Americas since 2016, and the tire maker has has sold more than 80,000 tires in the U.S. market throughout last three years.
Taray also representing a number of companies, offering retreading materials and equipment, tire repair materials and curing tubes among other items.
Ozka is part of Turkey's Kanik Group, which also includes IRC Automotive Inc., a producer of air springs, and Ilka Plastik, a producer of polyester bags, plastic carry bags and polyethylene films. Kanik Group was established in 1991.