LYNNFIELD, Mass. (Sept. 5, 2002)—GreenMan Technologies Inc. has agreed to be the sole producer of roofing shingles made from scrap tires for U.S. Century L.L.C. of San Antonio, Texas.
U.S. Century has developed a patented “hail-proof” shingles product called FlexShake which is stamped from the tread of scrap tires, then coated and granulated to have a “slate look.” FlexShake shingles provide the resilience of a tire with more insulation value than traditional asphalt roofing products, according to GreenMan.
The tire recycler will produce the shingles for U.S. Century and is installing the first production line at its newly acquired Azusa, Calif., facility. Production is expected to begin in October, according to Chuck Coppa, CFO for GreenMan.
“Our agreement with U.S. Century establishes the first of what we anticipate to be multiple shingle production lines located throughout the country at other GreenMan locations in order to meet the projected demand for FlexShake,” said Bob Davis, GreenMan CEO. “We anticipate each FlexShake shingle production line to generate about $1 million per year in revenue.”
Mr. Davis said the agreement with U.S. Century underscores GreenMan's goal to recycle more than 90 percent of each tire and “realize value from almost all components of a tire.”
David Nowacek, managing partner for U.S. Century said the company has been developing its shingle product for several years and had no interest in entering the scrap tire business. He said the company believes “that by aligning ourselves with the nationally recognized leader in the scrap tire recycling industry, we position ourselves to better meet the national demand being created for our products.”