Kenda Rubber Industrial Co. reported it is increasing its global production capacity for passenger car tires by 50%, to 38,000 units a day by the end of 2013, in order to meet rising market demand.
Kenda plans to raise its capacity in Taiwan by 4,000 units a day. The company’s new plant in Tianjin, China, is expected to increase capacity by 5,000 tires a day by the end of this year, while its new factory in Shanghai will increase its production by 2,500 tires a day, according to a report in the Taipei Times. Currently, the tiremaker produces 22,500 tires daily in its Kunshan, China, plant and 4,000 units a day in its Yunlin, Taiwan, facility.
“Kenda’s new plant in Tianjin is operating on a trial basis and likely to become fully operational next month, instead of by the end of next quarter as we previously expected,” Chairman Yang Ying-ming said in a recent shareholders meeting.
He added that Kenda launched a subsidiary in Europe last month to promote its brand and conduct marketing in a bid to enter the European market in the near future.
