Kabat Company Increases Capacity 60%

At the beginning of 2009 Polish tyre tube and rubber product manufacturer Kabat Company reported that it increased its annual production capacity by 60 per cent after purchasing equipment from Goodyear-Debica.

The Budzyñ, Poland-based Kabat Company was founded by brothers Andrzej and Tadeusz Kabat in 1983. At the beginning they ran a small workshop offering tyre and inner tube repair services in a 21 square metre space. Since then the operation has expanded considerably to the point that the company produces millions of inner tubes each year; operations now take place in 18,500 square metres of covered space; and a total of 500 employees now work for the firm.

However, the company’s expansion is a story of consistent growth rather than overnight success. The first step, two years after the company’s foundation in 1985, was to add passenger car retreading facilities to the offering. Two years later a new 400 square metre rubber products workshop was added to the tiny original space. The first products produced were inner tube flaps for trucks, and then mud flaps for cars, car rugs etc. In 1989 inner tube production really took hold as the company’s core business, something which remains the same today.

Although developing all the time, company literature describes Kabat as “still…a family business, run by two brothers Kabat – 100 per cent shareholders of the company.” However, while its remains a family business at its core, the company’s reach stretches much further than its Budzyñ, Poland base.

“We cooperate with companies from over 40 countries in Europe, Africa, Asia and America. But we don’t limit ourselves to this area – we’re open for cooperation with companies worldwide. Within 2-4 weeks we produce and dispatch goods to companies in Europe, Africa and other continents. On smaller orders we’re even faster,” company representatives told Tyres & Accessories.

To put this in perspective, Kabat’s export plans stretch to markets as exotic as Mongolia and the company is a regular exhibitor at international trade shows. For example, between 23 and 26 April this year the company took part in the Eurasia Tire Rim/Alloy Wheels, Battery & Service Equipment Fair in Turkey. Kabat also participated in the 12 Tyres & Rubber 2009 in Moscow between 10 and 13 March 2009. Next year the company will also appear at Reifen Messe Essen 2010.

Kabat Company produces inner tubes for trucks, passenger cars, light trucks, agricultural equipment, heavy equipment, forklifts and industrial vehicles, motorbikes and bicycles; not to mention rubber compounds; flaps, car accessories (rugs, o-rings) and mats. Production processes conform to ISO 9001-2008; environmental management system 14001:2004; health and safety norm PN-N-18001:2004 (verified by Bureau Veritas).