KRAIBURG Austria can look back on a good 2020. The retreading specialist is closing with sales and turnover on a level with the previous year. In view of the exceptional global situation caused by the Coronavirus pandemic, the company sees this result as a great success. Many factors have contributed to this: A widespread roll-on campaign dispersed the initial uncertainties regarding possible delivery chain bottlenecks. KRAIBURG Austria also demonstrated its versatility and flexibility in times of crisis and immediately integrated hygiene measures at the Geretsberg site in March. Production could therefore be maintained continuously whilst guaranteeing the highest safety standards for all employees. Parallel to this, the company created home office and smart working capacities and asserted itself constantly as a reliable partner for customers with adequate services. The team responded quickly and individually to different needs and requirements as well as in close cooperation with the retreaders. The extremely strong summer months and the continuing good autumn business ultimately contributed to the positive total result.
Confidence for 2021 despite increased prices
Despite the continuing pandemic, KRAIBURG Austria looks confidently at the current business year. “The demand in the first quarter is on the expected level so far,” Holger Düx, Sales Manager KRAIBURG Austria explains. “However, in view of the extremely dynamic development of the pandemic at the moment, it is almost impossible to make reliable forecasts for the market progression in 2021. We can only observe tendencies.” Fact is that the current cost development represents a great challenge. On the one hand, because the transport costs have increased approximately sixfold in the last five months due to artificial scarcity of volume and lack of container returns from Europe. The raw material suppliers naturally pass on these extra costs to a large extent. On the other hand, the raw material prices for natural and synthetic rubber as well as for soot have been rising continuously for months. “Since no changes are in sight in the short term, we have no choice but to increase our prices as of the 1st of April,” Holger Düx adds. “This will be between 15 and 20 cents per kilogram depending on the product group.” Most premium new tyre manufacturers already adapted their prices throughout Europe by two to three per cent at the beginning of March. “The increases at the Asian manufacturers will probably be even more drastic to partly compensate for the increased transport costs,” Stefan Mayrhofer, Managing Director KRAIBURG Austria says. “Consequently, competitive products from the Far East which sell, above all, by price, could lose a lot in attraction. Plus the fact that the Asian manufacturers, just like the established European manufacturers, are still battling with structural delivery bottlenecks.”
New opportunities for quality retreads
KRAIBURG Austria assumes that new opportunities for high quality retreads will arise from these parallel developments in 2021. And this is exactly what the Upper Austrian material supplier has stood for for more than 70 years. KRAIBURG Austria wants to continue to score here and convince its customers with an extended product portfolio in proven quality, new tread patterns as well as individual and efficient service. One or the other innovation is also in the pipeline – for one thing, their own TPM system which will be presented in the next few weeks. Further information visit: kraiburg-austria.com
