PROBABLY one of the most volatile commodities today, rubber has gone through a series of supply and demand gaps over the years, which has resulted in a sharp increase in pricing.
It is because of the price fluctuations, changing weather patterns and shortage of polymer in the market that reclaimed rubber is catching up with the virgin material.
Figuring largely on this scene is Indonesian company Pura Agung, which claims to be one of the largest manufacturers of reclaimed rubber, crumb rubber, carbon black and carbon filler in Asia.
Set up in 2006 , in Surabaya Margomulyo Industrial Area, East Java, the company’s first factory spanned 5,000 sqm and it had only 50 employees. Two years later in 2008, it moved 50 km to the west of Surabaya city, “to a very nice place in Mojokerto city, according to Co-founder / Managing Director Robert Mulyono Putra. The new facility spans over an area of 6 ha and it employs 250 workers.
With sustainability and recycling becoming popular catch phrases in the industry, Pura Agung founders Dragono Hudibjo and Robert have been quick to capture this viable opportunity of reusing rubber scrap like tyres and bladders. At present, the company has a capacity of 5,000 tonnes/month of re c l a imed rubbe r, which is export to more than 25 count r i e s . With its factory in Surabaya , in proximity to an international port, it gives the company the edge to facilitate its exports globally to Asia, the US, Australia, Europe and Africa.
According to Robert, the company utilises a patented vulcanised process in producing crumb and recycled rubber materials. While devulcanising is a standard process for reclaiming rubber, the ISO 9001-certified Pura Agung says it adds value to its products by incorporating the latest technology.
“The quality of our various grades of reclaimed rubber (Super, Prime and Ecco) is wel l known,” said Ribert. ” An important factor is that our reclaimed rubber has no odour and we do not use any harmful chemicals in our process. Plus, handling handling the rubber material is easy due to the neat packing and this allows for faster compounding.”
The company has been successful in the legislation-abiding markets of Europe and the US. “We have supplied our material to many well known tyre brands in Europe, so we have passed the strict quality of the European market, ” he added.
Owing to the recycling culture that has introduced innovations as well as solutions to abate the wasteage problem, reclaimed rubber has started partaking in a billion dollar reduce-recycle-reuse industry and has benefited various industries, from automotive tyres, rubber sheets and adhesives to shoes, fabrics and floorings.
In addition, In addition, the company invests in research and it has developed two new products. The first is the low SG Pura Carbon, an ultra – fine bla ck carbon filler made from high-grade processed carbon that
enhances the properties and appearance of black coloured rubber products.
The second new product, Pura Cell, is available in either powder or granulated form. Besides the rubber industry, both Pura Carbon and Pura Cell are targeted for use in PVC and PU resins. Both products are also said to boast good dispersion ability, surface quality, and compression set and are offered as alternatives to using conventional fillers such as calcium carbonate and china clay.
With the increased demand for rubber products, the wastage will go up proportionally. This should
augur well for Pura Agung ’ s endeavour to meld its social responsibility goal of innovating products for the sector. (PRA)
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