This classification covers businesses that primarily repair and retread automotive tires. Industry firms either retread customers' tires or retread tires for sale or exchange.
326212 (Tire Retreading)
811198 (All Other Automotive Repair and Maintenance)
Tread increases a tire's traction, particularly on wet roads. The forward portion of a tire's contact area wipes away water so the rest of the contact area will grip a dry surface. Continuous channels from the center to the edge of the tread propel water outward, eliminating potentially dangerous "aquaplaning." Snow tires and off-road tires have deeper treads designed to grip through snow and dirt. After tire treads wear down, tire retreading and repair shops repair the tires by cutting or stamping new treads into the rubber on the tire.
Because about 70 percent of a new tire's cost is in its body rather than its tread, tire retreading shops provide a valuable and cost-effective service, especially for companies running a large vehicle fleet. A typical retreaded tire costs about 50 to 70 percent less than a new tire. And retreads typically offer service, mileage, dependability, and warranties comparable to new tires. Most truck tires can be retreaded two or three times, resulting in up to 750,000 miles of service.
Although pneumatic automobile tires—invented in 1888—were used in the United States during the early 1900s, treads, which reduced "sideslip," were not introduced until 1910. Soon after, treads became standard on all types of tires. The massive expansion of the automobile industry, combined with the development of a national highway system, generated a strong demand for tires and retreading services during the mid 1900s. By the early 1980s, tire retreading industry revenues topped $935 million.
Because of advances in technology and gains in manufacturing productivity during the 1980s, automobile tire retreading became more cost-effective than it was during the 1960s and 1970s. Still, industry revenues grew meagerly, to about $1.1 billion by the late 1980s as the incidence of truck tire retreading slowly increased. Eventually the industry disproved consumers' perceptions that retreaded tires were not as durable as new tires and that they "unraveled," so that by 1995 retreaded tires outsold new tires in the replacement market. The industry also benefits the environment. It takes 7 gallons of oil to retread a truck tire compared to 22 gallons to manufacture a new one. Overall, retreading conserves more than 400 million gallons of oil a year. Further, the new tread applied can contain up to 10 percent recycled, reprocessed rubber. In addition, retreading tires reduces solid waste disposal problems by up to 75 percent. Because of these environmental benefits, President Clinton signed an executive order in 1998, which superseded one issued in 1993, that mandated the use of retreaded tires on all federal government vehicles.
In addition to government vehicles, nearly all off the-road, heavy duty vehicles, and all of the world's airlines use retreaded tires, as well as school buses, trucking fleets, taxis, race cars, and emergency vehicles. Marvin Bozarth stated: "Aircraft tires routinely receive 12 or more retreads; haulage and local pickup and delivery truck tires are often retreaded five times or more; and high-speed long haul truck tires generally receive two or three retreads. Passenger tires are usually retreaded only once." Safety standards developed by the U.S. Department of Transportation govern the manufacture of retreaded passenger car tires, and manufacturers of retreaded truck tires must comply with industry standards. The Federal Aviation Administration approves commercial aircraft retreads, while the military branches approve military aircraft retreads.
During the 1990s, the industry underwent considerable consolidation. According to government statistics, there were 1,845 companies in this category in 1992, down from 1,930 in 1987. Most of these were small, local tire repair shops. Total annual receipts for the industry were $1.3 billion in 1992, a 19 percent change from the 1987 sales total of $1.1 billion. In 1997, there were 632 companies, operating 754 establishments. Their shipments were valued at $983 million. The top five states, in terms of establishments, were Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Illinois. In 1992, 12,898 workers served the tire retreading and repair shop industry, down from 13,808 in 1987. By 1997, the number of workers had dropped to 7,939. The Tire Retread Information Bureau reported in its 1999 Fact Sheet that "Approximately 30.9 million retreaded tires were sold in North America (produced by some 1415 plants in the United States and Canada) in 1998, with sales totaling more than 2 billion dollars." Most plants were independent owner/operator businesses; others were owned by new tire manufacturers and a major tread rubber supplier.
Two industry leaders are Treadco Inc., of Fort Smith, Arkansas, and Bandag, Incorporated of Muscatine, Iowa. Treadco, which retreads more than 500,000 truck tires annually at its 26 production facilities, had 1998 sales of $181.3 million. A subsidiary of Arkansas Best Corporation, Treadco also sells new tires at 29 stores strategically placed by interstate highways. Bandag supplies about 15 percent of the market for light and heavy-duty truck retreaded tires; the company had 1998 sales of $1.06 million. New tire manufacturers, including Goodyear, Michelin, Bridgestone, and Marangoni, also participated in retreading, albeit to a lesser extent.
According to The Tire Retread Information Bureau, "Because of the competitive nature of the retreading industry, [customers] can expect to see continuous improvement in quality, durability, and reliability, as the major retread suppliers annually invest millions of dollars in research and development."
Bozarth, Marvin. "Retreads — Best Buy in Recycling." Tire Retread Information Bureau. Available from http://www.retread.org/packet/index.cfm?ID=10 .
"Current Industrial Reports: Tire Retreading — 1997." U.S. Department of Commerce. Bureau of the Census. August 1999. Available from http://www.census.gov/prod/ec97/97m3262b.pdf .
Darnay, Arsen J., ed. Service Industries USA. 3rd ed. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale Group, 1996.
Deierlein, Bob. "Retreading Has Finally Been Accepted." Beverage World, 15 June 1997.
Hoover's Online Company Capsules. Available from http://www.hoovers.com/ .
Tire Retread Information Bureau. "Fact Sheet" and other documents. 1999. Available from http://www.retread.org .
Comment about this article, ask questions, or add new information about this topic: