Saving and safety: tire retreading !

227 million: this is the annual number of used tires in the European Union. Through retreading, which is a re-manufacturing process on tires, to replace the worn out tire tread, it is possible to recycle up to 70% of the original rubber, so reducing the environmental impact and costs.
Retreaded tires have all the same features (performance and safety) of original tires, but allow significant savings, especially in road transport. If we consider tires for a 44 tons semi-trailer truck (data source, AIRP 2012) with annual mileage of 120,000 kilometers, we will be spending a total amount of EUR 3900 for a new set of tires, compared to EUR 2200 for a set of retreaded tires (saving 43%). It is estimated that, in private transportation fleets, the percentage of retreaded tires employed is 30% (although in some countries, such as the United States, this share reaches as much as 50%).
To unquestionable economic benefits (direct and measurable) for drivers, we have to add environmental advantages due to a delayed tire smeltering process.