Boulder City, Nevada - Amerityre Corp. announced 1 May that it has started commercial production of solid polyurethane elastomer tyres, for Oxbo International Corp., a major manufacturer of specialised agricultural equipment
The US developer of PU tyres has a contract to make 15" x13" (38 x 33 cm) solid polyurethane elastomer tyres for Oxbo, following, "successful completion of a rigorous development programme," said Amerityre.
Oxbo, based in Byron, New York, currently supplies products to more than 20 countries worldwide, and will use the tyres in farm implements for chopping or baling alfalfa or hay. Other potential uses are in forklift and aperture tyres for the construction/material handling industry.
Amerityre said it has already started making commercial volumes for Oxbo: in the first year it will make some 1200 of the 50-lb. (23-kg) gage tyre, with a value of about $200 000.
"We believe Amerityre's tyre technology will allow us to achieve greater customer satisfaction through improvements in the durability and performance of our products," said Gary Stich, president and ceo of Oxbo, in the Amerityre statement.
Amerityre has spent a year working with Oxbo on a tyre-wheel combination tough enough to replace the previous steel gage wheels, said Gary Benninger, Amerityre's president and ceo, in the announcement. "We're currently working with Oxbo on other tyre projects utilising our solid polyurethane tyre technology," Benninger added.
This is the first of several solid PU elastomer tyre products Amerityre has been developing, said Benninger: the company has now proved that it can make forklift tyres "at the rate of a tyre per minute. "We hope to see this product go commercial in the near future," he said. LW
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