The BFGoodrich Kitchener tire plant closure in 2006 highlighted North American tire industry restructuring and the growing challenge of managing end-of-life tire waste streams as production consolidates and volumes shift internationally.

The closure of the BFGoodrich tire manufacturing plant in Kitchener, Ontario — and the associated shift of North American production capacity by Michelin — was part of a broader restructuring of the global tire manufacturing industry in the mid-2000s. As major tire producers consolidated operations, relocated capacity to lower-cost markets, and modernized facilities, communities with legacy tire manufacturing operations faced economic transition challenges.

These shifts in tire production geography also had implications for the geography of end-of-life tire waste streams. As manufacturing consolidated, the volume and distribution of scrap tires changed — affecting feedstock availability for tire recyclers, the economics of collection and logistics, and the regional distribution of tire-to-energy and tire pyrolysis project opportunities.

How tire industry restructuring created new opportunities for advanced tire recycling and pyrolysis

Paradoxically, the consolidation of tire manufacturing made the business case for advanced tire recycling infrastructure stronger, not weaker. Concentrated waste streams, predictable feedstock volumes, and the development of regional collection networks created more attractive economics for capital-intensive tire recycling technologies like pyrolysis. The challenge of managing scrap tires was not diminishing — it was becoming more tractable for industrial-scale solutions.

Klean Industries has developed commercial tire pyrolysis systems that recover fuel oil, recovered carbon black, steel, and combustible gas from end-of-life tires. Our systems are designed to work with the kind of concentrated feedstock volumes and regional logistics networks that emerge from tire industry consolidation.

Learn More

• Tire-Derived Oil as an Advanced Fuel Component
• Oil Industry Greenhouse Gas Reporting and Low-Carbon Shift
• Sustainable Tire Industry and Recovered Carbon Black
• Klean Tire Pyrolysis Project — Australia
• Hydrogen and Scrap Tire Logistics Innovation

Developing tire pyrolysis and advanced tire recycling projects?

Klean Industries provides commercially proven tire pyrolysis technology and project development services. We work with tire recyclers, industrial operators, investors, and developers to design, finance, and deploy tire pyrolysis systems that convert end-of-life tires into valuable commercial outputs.

Contact Klean Industries to discuss tire pyrolysis technology and project development » GO.