How Passenger, Truck and Bus Tires Are Made
Dependable tires are necessary for safe, efficient transportation. Careful manufacturing combines layers of quality material and strict production processes to ensure the final product meets current federal and safety guidelines.
Making a Tire for a Passenger Vehicle, Truck or Bus
The process of making tires involves several key manufacturing stages.
1. Blending
Tires are made of more than rubber. Manufacturers add various ingredients, including up to 30 types of rubber and other materials, into a large blender to create a robust, durable compound suitable for countless miles on the road.
2. Milling
The rubber compound is then sent for milling, which involves cooling the rubber and cutting it down into strips. At this point, manufacturers create several parts of the tire, and some are coated in rubber to protect them.
3. Building
Before building, the tire looks like goo or strips of material. This stage produces the “green tire,” which begins to look like an actual tire. A machine assembles the components of the tire, including the beads, tread, ply, steel belts and other parts.
4. Curing
A curing machine takes each green tire and vulcanizes it with hold molds. This gives the tire its shape and compresses all components of the tire into one cohesive whole. Many things take part in the curing process. Manufacturer’s logos are added, for instance, so tires start looking different from each other at this stage.
This stage of the process can be challenging. A number of issues can arise that may affect the final look of the tire, so manufacturers take precautions to prevent this.
For example, tire elements can stick to the mold, potentially affecting the tire’s appearance. Manufacturers can prevent this issue by applying tire mold release agents to the mold’s surface during the curing process to ensure an easy release. These products have other benefits, such as preventing mold fouling.
5. Inspection
Even seemingly minor problems and blemishes in a tire can affect its safety, performance and its appeal for customers, and the inspection process is intended to ensure all tires offered for sale meet stringent standards. The inspection ensures unsafe tires or blemished tires are less likely to make it to your passenger vehicle, truck or bus. Today, special machinery is used to examine tires individually to ensure they are safe.
Trained inspectors use this machinery and even run tires through X-ray-style machines to ensure no manufacturing issue has caused any internal problems with the tires. Once the tires have passed the inspection process, they are ready for the next stage of their journey, which is transport for sale.
W.N. SHAW’s Products for Tire Production
W.N. SHAW & CO. has supported tire manufacturers since 1995, and our engineers call on over a century of combined industry experience to ensure efficient, consistent and responsive product development. As a custom formulator, we help automotive tire companies build tires by providing them with formulations that reduce mold fouling and other sensitive issues. We leverage advanced technology to research, develop, analyze and test solutions to deliver innovative products that consistently meet our stringent quality standards.
Explore our line of rubber release agents to find the ideal product for any application, including:
- Inside and outside green tire lubrication
- Tire bladder coating and touch-up
- Green tire tread lubrication
- Tread lubrication mold spray
- Bead and grinding lubricant
- Rust prevention
- Retreading touch-up
These products extend tire life, improve mold release and prevent common problems like dry tire bladders.
Contact Our Experts for More Information About Tire Molding Release Agents
Our team takes pride in formulating effective water-based products for tire manufacturers. Whether you know which release agents will benefit your process or you require expert recommendations to address challenges in your tire production process, we can help. Contact us today to learn more about our custom solutions.