Vipal Rubber opens tread rubber plant in Argentina

PEREZ, Argentina—Retread materials manufacturer Vipal Rubber Corp. has commissioned production of tread rubber at a new plant in Perez, the company's first plant outside of Brazil.

The 80,000-plus-sq.-ft. plant will produce precured tread for tire retreads that will supply Argentina, Latin America and other markets abroad. Vipal said the investment in the facility was $20 million.

The plant has a capacity of 1,000 metric tons of rubber mixture per month, with 600 tons per month designated for production of precured treads.

The complex in Perez spans more than 160,000 square feet, including a distribution center that can hold up to 1,000 tons of product. The facility has 41 employees and is expected to employ 120 eventually.

Leandro Rigon, Vipal's international business director, said the company's main objective with this investment is to meet market need, both in Argentina and in other Latin American countries, improving "our capacity to serve the local market, with more efficient logistics, in addition to using the new platform for exports to neighboring markets with greater synergy.

"After 25 years working in the Argentine market, today we have come to bring a novelty that will further strengthen our commitment to the country, something that fills us with pride and joy: Vipal now produces precured treads in Argentina," he said.

Vipal Rubber, which was founded more than 45 years ago in Nova Prata, Brazil, said its combined capacity at its four plant is more than 19,000 tons per month, producing product for all areas of the world.

"The company employs all the expertise and technology developed through its more than 45 years of history acting in the most diverse and demanding markets in the world," Adalberto Fernandez, manager of Vipal Argentina, said.

The operation in Perez operation will mobilize the tire retreading market in Argentina, according to Vipal.

The company already has exported precured tread manufactured at the Argentina plant to Mexico.

"(Retreading) is a common practice in the transportation segment. Historically, since the beginning of retreading as a global activity, it has been present in the country. The market recognizes the economic and ecological advantages of the retreading," Rigon said. "The Perez plant is helping to promote savings for commercial transportation and support the circular economy."

Vipal operates 13 D/Cs across the world, and is present in more than 90 countries.