LOS ANGELES (Sept. 5, 2013) — Vipal Rubber Corp. has opened a logistics/distribution center in Los Angeles to service customers in the western U.S. and western Canada.
This is the third warehouse distribution point for Miami-based Vipal Rubber, the U.S. subsidiary of Brazil's Borrachas Vipal S/A, a producer of tread rubber and inner tubes.
The addition of this center boosts Vipal's North American capacity to 1,500 pallets, the company said. Prior to this, Vipal said it carried more than 3 million pounds of precure tread rubber in inventory in its Miami and Norfolk, Va., logistics centers.
Vipal did not say how large the center is or where in the Los Angeles area it's located. JAS Forwarding (USA) Inc. is running the Los Angeles and Norfolk centers on Vipal's behalf.
Porto Alegre, Brazil-based Vipal is marking its 40th year in business as well as the 20th year of the U.S. operation.
Pliny Luca, director of sales and marketing for Vipal, said opening this warehouse reflects the growing interest in the Vipal product line, which up to now has been distributed in the Eastern U.S. and Canada.
Vipal describes itself as a leading producer of tire and inner tube retread and repair products, manufacturing at plants in Nova Prata, Rio Grande do Sul, and Feira de Santana, Brazil. The company employs more than 3,000 and reported more than $100 milion in export sales last year.
The company distributes in more than 90 countries and has distribution companies in Argentina, Australia, Chile, Colombia, Germany, Slovenia, Spain and the U.S.
It also owns a share of Fate Pneus do Brasil, a new tire manufacturer.