The Tyre Industry Association’s (TIA) Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) has introduced a glossary containing definitions of key terms and technologies used in the tyre and rubber recycling industry.
As more businesses become concerned with sustainability, the glossary is expected to help improve knowledge and communication and serve as a valuable resource for anyone working in the tyre recycling industry, said Dick Gust, EAC Chairman.
TIA’s glossary builds upon a terminology guide introduced nearly 25 years ago by the former Tyre and Rubber Recycling Advisory Council of the International Tire and Rubber Association, which later merged with the Tire Association of North America to create TIA. At the time, tyre recycling was growing in importance as various states enacted laws to better manage scrap tyre flow.
The latest glossary contains specific “core” terms that represent the foundation for scrap tyre and rubber recycling and is not meant to be inclusive. Additional terms may be added to future publications as the industry changes.
State regulators will find the glossary a handy reference when drafting rules and regulations to manage the flow of scrap tyres, as will tyre dealers when dealing with customers who wish to learn more about where scrap tyres go when removed from their vehicles.The glossary also should be of help to manufacturers who use recycled scrap tyres as a raw material in developing product and raw material specifications.
“The EAC recognised that the original guide was an excellent starting point to update the terms,” Gust said. “Since then, new technologies have developed, processing equipment has improved significantly, the value of the raw material has been found to enhance the performance of various products and the importance of sustainability has become a corporate directive. The new glossary keeps pace with those changes.”
The glossary can be found on the TIA website, www.tyreindustry.org, under the Resources tab and the Industry Resources category.