Agenda

• Tyre Industry
• Product Description
• Manufacturing Process
• Miscellaneous Information

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Industry

2
 Current Scenario

• Industry Size : 14,500 Cr.

• Capacity : 76.6 million units
• Growth Rate : Approx. 12 % y-o-y
• Top four companies contributing 77 % of market supply
• Very sensitive to raw material (rubber) prices

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Major Players

4
Product Description

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 Definition and
Classification
Definition : Tyres are Pneumatic enclosures used to protect and
enhance the effect of wheels
Classification - Based on Use
• Two Wheelers
• Passenger Cars
• Light Commercial and Utility Vehicles
• Vehicles for Agricultural use
Classification - Based on Construction
• Bias Tyre
• Belted Bias Tyre
• Radial Tyre
• Solid Tyre
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 Cross Sectional View

• Cap Plies
• The Bead Bundle
• The Sidewall
• The Body
• The Tread
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• The Belt
 Components

• The Bead Bundle

 Loop of high-strength, steel cable coated with rubber.
 Provides strength to tyre to stay seated on the wheel rim and
to handle the forces applied by tyre - mounting machines
when the tyres are installed on rims.

• The Body
 Made up of several layers of different fabrics, called plies.
Most common ply fabric is polyester cord.
 The cords in a radial tyre run perpendicular to the tread.
 Coated with rubber to help them bond with the other
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components and to seal in the air.
 Components

• The Belt
 Belts made from steel are used to reinforce the area under
the tread.
 Provide puncture resistance and help the tyre stay flat so
that it makes the best contact with the road.

• Cap Plies
 Some tyres have cap plies, an extra layer or two of polyster
fabric to hold everything in place.
 Mostly used on tyres with higher speed ratings to help all the
components stay in place at high speeds.
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 Components

• The Sidewall
 Belts made from steel are used to reinforce the area under the
tread.
 Provides lateral stability for the tyre, protects the body plies
and helps keep the air from escaping.

• The Tread
 The tread is made from a mixture of many different kinds of
natural and synthetic rubbers.
 The tread and the sidewalls are extruded and cut to length.
The tread is just smooth rubber at this point; it does not have
the tread patterns that give the tyre traction.
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Tyre Identification

A Manufacturer’s name
B Tyre Size and Speed Rating

C Type of Construction

D Application

E Pressure Marking

F Type Approval Mark and Number

G Compliance and Identification

numbers
H Country of Manufacturer

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 BIS standards

Standards Explanation

IS 15627: for Automotive Vehicles – Pneumatic Tyres for Two and

2005 Three-Wheeled Motor Vehicles {Superseding IS
10914 (Pt.1):1991, IS 10914 (Pt.4):1992, IS
10914(Pt.5):1995, IS 11157:1984 and IS 12151:1987}
IS 15633: for Automotive Vehicles – Pneumatic Tyres for Passenger Car
2005 Vehicles – Diagonal and Radial Ply {Superseding IS
10914 (Pt.1):1991, IS 10914 (Pt.3):1991, IS
10914(Pt.5):1995 and IS 12441(Pt.1):1995}
IS 15636: for Automotive Vehicles – Pneumatic Tyres for Commercial
2005 Vehicles – Diagonal and Radial Ply {Superseding IS
10914 (Pt.1):1991, IS 10914 (Pt.2):1992 and IS
10914(Pt.5):1995}
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Manufacturing Tour

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 Raw Materials

Raw Materials

• Rubber (Natural and synthetic) 38%

• Fillers (Carbon black, Silica) 30%
• Reinforcing materials (steel, rayon) 16%
• Plasticizers (oils and resins) 10%
• Chemicals for vulcanization 4%
• Chemicals as anti-oxidants 1%
• Miscellaneous (e.g. catalysts) 1%

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 Mixing the Materials
• Various grades of natural and
synthetic rubber are combined
with carbon black, sulphur and
chemical products in an internal
mixer to meet specific compound
requirements.
• Resulting blend is called the
"master batch", which is formed
into rubber sheets, and cooled.
• Some rubber is used for additional
processing while the majority is
prepared for the extruding stage.

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Mixing the Materials

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 Extruding the Thread
• Heat is applied to the rubber to
make it more elastic
• It is put through extruders
machines where the tread and
sidewalls, which require two
different rubber compounds, are
formed into the required shapes.
• The extruders produce a
continuous sheet of tread rubber
• This sheet is cooled and cut to
specific tyre lengths.

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Extruding the Thread

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 Weaving the Plies
• Spinning cords such as rayon,
nylon, steel and polyester
undergo a process called
“calendering”,
• In this process, they are woven
into sheets and coated with
rubber on both sides.
• The sheets are then cut at the
proper angle into specific widths
and lengths and eventually used
for casing and cap plies
• The steel cords are used for the
belts.

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Weaving the Plies

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 Preparing the Bead
Core
• The bead core is formed by aligning, and then coating plated steel wires
with rubber.
• It is then wound on a coil a certain number of times to form bead rings,
which provide a specific diameter and strength for a particular tyre.

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 Building Process
• Stage 1:
– Beginning with the woven
sheets, the inner liner, body plies
and sidewalls are placed on the
building drum.
– The correctly-positioned beads
rings are then attached, which
results in the automatic wrapping
of the ply edges around the bead
core, and the simultaneously
movement of the sidewalls into
position.

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 Building Process
Stage 2:
– The tyre is shaped by inflating
the rubber and applying
sidetread rubber, two steel belts
and a cap ply to achieve a
"green" tyre.

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Building Process

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 Vulcanization

• The “green” tyre is placed in a

curing press for a certain
period of time (10-15 minutes)
at a specific pressure and
temperature
• Once heat and pressure has
been applied to the tyre, it is
then removed from the mould
• The tyre has now achieved its
final size, shape and tread
pattern.

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 Trimming

• Excess rubber from the curing

process is removed, and the tyre is
trimmed to order

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 Final Inspection
• Each tyre is visually and
electronically inspected for
balance, quality and uniformity.
• This final check ensures
consistent and reliable
performance.

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In a Nut Shell…

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Manufacturing based
Classification of Tyres

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 Beading Process

Cross Ply

Radial

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 Building Process
Cross Ply

Radial

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 Comparison

Cross-ply Radial
Vehicle Steadiness √ X
Reparability √ X
Self Cleaning √ X
Cut Resistance - Sidewall √ X
Cut Resistance - Tread X √
Traction X √
Heat Resistance X √
Wear Resistance X √
Flotation X √
Fuel Economy X √ 32
Miscellaneous
Information

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 Process
Characteristics
• Some Manufacturing Process characteristics.

Facility Size Moderate

Process Flow
Labor Content/Skill Level
Material Requirements
Nature of material
Dominant Patterns
Mixed
Tend to be predictable
Early on, rubber is non – discrete
but is quickly converted to discrete

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 Product – Process
Matrix
• Tyre manufacturing is a Batch Process

One Off Low High Mass

Volume Volume Production
Jumbled

Jumbled but
dominant Batch
Line Flow

Continuous
Flow
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 Supply Chain

• Decoupling point :

• For specialized applications like F-1 and aircraft tyres, it is

early in the process (Engineered to Order – Made to Order).
Hence Manufacturing Lead Time is high.

• For applications in the retail market, it is the later in the

process (Made to Stock). Hence, Manufacturing Lead Time is
low.

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 References

• Tire manufacturing Process: James S.Frederik

http://www.ilo.org/encyclopedia/?print&nd=857200086

• Bridgestone Europe Tire Manufacturing Process

http://www.bridgestoneeu.com/bfe

• http://www.energymanagertraining.com/tyre/tyre_manufact
uring_process%20.htm

• http://auto.howstuffworks.com/tire1.htm

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