Canada-based Kal Tire says retreading earthmover tyres on mine and quarry vehicle fleets produces fuel and other cost savings. But senior company executive Darren Flint said Kal Tire had long maintained reduced carbon emissions and other environmental benefits could be tracked and this now could be recognised officially via the carbon calculator and Kal Tire's Maple Program.

"Retreading reduces a tyre's operating cost per hour, and it has become increasingly important to customers to reduce their impact on the environment. We look forward to providing customers with actual data on the environmental savings they achieve," Flint said.

New environmental laws in Chile will prescribe "responsible tyre recycling", including retreading, from 2021.

Pedro Pacheco, Latin America vice president with Kal Tire's Mining Tire Group, said the company's Chile customers using the Maple Program saw value in receiving a certificate. "This program gives us a framework to promote the environmental value of our retread product and process and provides solutions for customers within this new law. As we can offer incentive to increasing the amount of tyres retreaded, we're giving tyres another life at a much lower cost and environmental impact, with the added benefit of reducing the number of casings going into the waste stream."

Kal Tire has launched the program in Chile and the UK, and plans to roll it out in other regions.

The company's calculator R&D included analysis of more than 125,000 Kal Tire retreading production records spanning 20 years. After a six-month approval phase, the carbon calculator was validated by SCS Global, with the verification applying to Kal Tire retreading facilities in Canada, the UK, West Africa, Chile and Mexico.

Kal Tire started offering retreading services in the 1970s and recently developed proprietary Ultra Repair technology to fix large ‘injuries' on tyres that would otherwise be scrapped.

The company services more than 150 mine sites on five continents, has over 6,500 employees, and owns and operates six earthmover retreading facilities in Canada, Chile, Mexico, UK and West Africa.