While the tire market is getting better for smaller mining trucks, the supply for ultra-class trucks is still a problem, says Ed McCord with Caterpillar.
McCord, who manages the large mining trucks product segment, says demand is slowing, supply is increasing and the market is moving towards equilibrium. McCord was speaking at a press event on Saturday before MINExpo.
Ultra-class trucks have the largest and highest payload capacity, like Caterpillar’s 797 series.
The major tire manufacturers, such as Goodyear and Bridgestone, are investing in tire production, increasing demand. Miners have also made strides in tire management, extending the life of tires.
Caterpillar has been selling some tires to miners that it happened to have on hand.
“We are not in the tire business,” noted McCord.
4 Comments
Mark
This makes no sense. Economically slowing demand and increasing supply would mean that tires are inexpensive and relatively easy to find. The title of this article compared to the contents is very misleading.
Guest
Confusing Economics
Divyanshu Dayal
Confusing economics
Hal
tyres were very expensive, now maybe really expensive – in the larger sizes. Not confusing at all.