RAYONG, Thailand — Zhongce Rubber (Thailand) Co. Ltd. has brought on stream production capacity for bias industrial and motorcycle tires at its two-year-old factory in Rayong to support demand for these products in Southeast Asia.
The company, a subsidiary of China's Zhongce Rubber Group Co. Ltd., said daily capacity for motorcycle tires at the plant is set at 3,000 to 5,000 units but did not disclose the capacity for the industrial tires nor comment on the investment budgeted for the expansion.
Opened in 2015, the Rayong factory is rated at 5 million passenger tires and 1.4 million radial truck tires annually.
Speaking at a ceremony held to mark the start of the industrial and motorcycle tire production, ZC Rubber Vice President Zhang Liming said tires produced in Thailand are designed to meet the demand in the Southeast Asian market. As such, they are priced to be "competitive and affordable in the market."
Based on its fiscal 2015 sales of $3.4 billion, ZC Rubber is considered China's largest tire maker and No. 10 worldwide, according to Tire Business' annual Global Tire Report rankings. The company is represented in the U.S. by ZC Rubber Americas Inc. in Norwalk, Calif.