Tire Shortage Could Last Until 2008
Tires for construction equipment can be as much as 8 ft. in diameter and cost $8,000 each. Now, as demand for them is booming, the construction industry is suffering from a serious global shortage of large and medium-size off-road tires for wheel loaders and other equipment.
The shortage, which is getting worse, impacts production at major equipment manufacturers, making it more difficult to deliver on schedule to contractors. It also is hurting contractors (especially in the mining industry) who are increasingly experiencing problems obtaining larger wheeled equipment and replacement tires when they need them.
Equipment and tire manufacturers said the shortage rivals 2004’s crisis in obtaining steel and is due to surging worldwide demand for equipment as construction activity on highways and buildings roars ahead in the United States, China, Iraq and other global locations.
Manufacturers simply can’t keep up with the clamor for tires.
“I think 2005 will be the year of the tire shortage just as 2004 was the year of steel shortages and problems with steel pricing and availability,” said Nick Yaksich, vice president, global public policy, of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) headquartered in Milwaukee, WI. (Yaksich is based in Washington, D.C.)
Overwhelming Demand
Dave Wilkins, a spokesperson for over-the-road tires of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Akron, OH, told Construction Equipment Guide (CEG) that the tire industry “is struggling to meet demand from the construction industry,” particularly China, and predicted that the shortage in tires for construction equipment will probably continue until late 2007
see the rest of the story...
http://www.constructionequipmentguide.com/story.asp?story=5581
The shortage, which is getting worse, impacts production at major equipment manufacturers, making it more difficult to deliver on schedule to contractors. It also is hurting contractors (especially in the mining industry) who are increasingly experiencing problems obtaining larger wheeled equipment and replacement tires when they need them.
Equipment and tire manufacturers said the shortage rivals 2004’s crisis in obtaining steel and is due to surging worldwide demand for equipment as construction activity on highways and buildings roars ahead in the United States, China, Iraq and other global locations.
Manufacturers simply can’t keep up with the clamor for tires.
“I think 2005 will be the year of the tire shortage just as 2004 was the year of steel shortages and problems with steel pricing and availability,” said Nick Yaksich, vice president, global public policy, of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) headquartered in Milwaukee, WI. (Yaksich is based in Washington, D.C.)
Overwhelming Demand
Dave Wilkins, a spokesperson for over-the-road tires of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., Akron, OH, told Construction Equipment Guide (CEG) that the tire industry “is struggling to meet demand from the construction industry,” particularly China, and predicted that the shortage in tires for construction equipment will probably continue until late 2007
see the rest of the story...
http://www.constructionequipmentguide.com/story.asp?story=5581
posted by Arnold Cortez at 6:05 AM
