Yokohama Rubber has started production at its Visakhapatnam plant in India. The new plant was built to expand the production capacity of Yokohama Off-Highway Tires (YOHT). Yokohama Rubber says the new plant was originally scheduled to begin production in the first quarter of 2023, but the earlier than planned startup will enable YOHT to respond more quickly to the expanding global demand for OHT tires.
YOHT also has two other tire plants in India—the Dahej plant in the state of Gujarat and the Tirunelveli plant in Tamil Nadu. The plants produce three of the group’s core OHT brands—the Alliance, Galaxy and Primex brands—which are used on agricultural, construction, industrial and forestry machinery. To meet the demand for its products, Yokohama Rubber says it began the construction of the Visakhapatnam plant in the third quarter of 2020 to supplement a 1.6-time expansion of production capacity at the Dahej plant.
Yokohama Rubber says its medium-term management plan includes a commercial tire strategy that positions the group’s OHT business as a future growth driver.
