Rubber or Tyre Technologist, Solid Tyre Manufacturing

Position: Rubber / Tyre Technologist Solid Tyre Manufacturing
Department: Production / R&D
Industry: Forklift Solid Cushion Tyres / Industrial Rubber Products

Job Purpose

We are setting up a manufacturing facility for forklift solid cushion tyres and require an experienced Rubber / Tyre Technologist who can help establish the complete manufacturing process from rubber compounding to finished tyre.

The candidate should have practical shop-floor experience in tyre/rubber manufacturing and should be capable of developing and controlling the process independently.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop rubber formulations for base/core, cushion and tread compounds used in solid tyres.
• Select suitable raw materials including Natural Rubber (NR), SBR, BR, carbon black, reclaimed rubber, process oils, sulphur, accelerators, antioxidants and other chemicals.
• Establish mixing recipes and process parameters for Kneader/Banbury and Open Mixing Mill.
• Develop the complete solid tyre building process.
• Decide layer construction, thickness and weight of base/core, cushion and tread compounds.
• Develop and standardize bead wire construction, bead winding and bead positioning.
• Establish the green tyre building process and standard weight/dimensions for each tyre size.
• Establish vulcanization/curing parameters including temperature, pressure and curing time for different tyre sizes.
• Conduct initial tyre trials and modify compounds/processes based on results.
• Troubleshoot problems such as air pockets, poor bonding, cracks, under-curing, over-curing, tread separation, bead movement and dimensional variation.
• Establish quality-control parameters for raw materials, uncured compounds and finished tyres.
• Develop SOPs, batch sheets and production specifications for each tyre size.
• Work on cost reduction and economical compound development without compromising tyre performance.
• Assist management in selection of machinery, moulds, raw-material suppliers and testing equipment.

Preferred Experience

Minimum: 5 years
Preferred: 5–10 years of practical experience in tyre/rubber manufacturing.

Strong preference will be given to candidates having direct experience in:

• Forklift solid tyres
• Solid resilient tyres
• Cushion tyres

Candidates from other tyre manufacturing backgrounds may also be considered if they have strong knowledge of rubber compounding, tyre building and vulcanization.

Most Important Requirement

We are specifically looking for a practical shop-floor person who has actually developed/manufactured tyres, rather than someone having only laboratory or theoretical rubber-chemistry experience.

The candidate should be capable of taking responsibility for:

Raw Material Compound Formulation Mixing Bead Preparation Tyre Building Green Tyre Vulcanization Testing Finished Solid Tyre