Business analysts forecast that making the right moves will be essential in the year ahead - there'll be little room for error, they say. Analysts predict that in order to stay competitive, business owners need to gear up to grow or simply stay on target as rising costs eat into so-so profits.

Topping the list of important moves business owners should make in 1998 is investing in your business via technology, product development, training, or education. Also important - start hunting for investors before you need financing; consider expanding your business through acquisitions or strategic alliances; and explore global markets to find buyers wanting U.S.-made goods and services.

Tire and rubber recyclers will have the opportunity to cross several of these items off their 1998 to-do lists by participating in a Spring line-up of programs chock-full of business-boosting ideas and information.

Plan now to catch this wave of good, if not great, moves in 1998 by attending the 41st World Tire and Transportation Services Conference & Exhibition, April 2, 3, 4, and 5 in Louisville, Kentucky.

This year the Conference & Exhibition has a new name, new events, and new functions. And a new segment of the industry - the Service Station Dealers - will participate as co-sponsors. These companies and individuals not only service and sell tires, but they seek out services and products to properly manage scrap tires and other scrap materials generated in the course of business.

For the eighth year, ITRA's Conference & Exhibition planners, together with the Association's Tire and Rubber Recycling Advisory Council (TRRAC), have designed first-rate programs and exciting indoor and outdoor exhibit areas for tire and rubber recyclers. The combination is tailored to offer tire and rubber recyclers access to the latest information on the technologies, products, training, services, and educational tools they need to successfully navigate the ever-changing recycling industry.

TRRAC members delved into market issues, political trends, technical developments, and business forecasts to design ten outstanding Workshops. Beginning on Thursday, April 2, the line-up includes an exclusive prepublication look at the findings of Oregon State University's (OSU) five-year asphalt rubber study slated for completion this year. In the session Rubber Modified Asphalt - Could Demand be Rising?  Dr. Jim Lundy - one of the study's lead researchers - will report key findings on the performance, cost and environmental impacts of the rubber modified asphalt. A stellar panel of asphalt rubber producers, contractors, and end-users will analyze the effect the OSU findings may have on increasing market opportunities for rubber modified asphalt nationwide. Be there to learn more about the future of this proven material.

Tire Derived Materials and Civil Engineering - The Dynamic New Frontier also features critical but not yet released findings of a study being conducted by the Federal Highway Administration, highway agencies in Oregon and Washington, and industry groups to gather new and additional information on the use of tire chips in road-fill applications. Dr. Gunner Schleider heads up the research team studying a tire-chip fill project in Oregon. In addition to technical, scientific, and engineering data, Dr. Schleider will discuss some of his own first-hand observations of what to expect from tire chips in these types of projects.

Also scheduled for this session, a panel of construction contractors and state officials will talk about the growing use of tire chips in septic drain applications in Virginia, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina.

Tire and rubber recyclers certainly want to see what's ahead and where the opportunities lie for expansion in industrial rubber scrap processing. New Business Opportunities Found in Factory Scrap will explore the issues and trends driving this segment, demonstrate advances in processing techniques, and identify ways to add this segment to a tire processing operation.

States continue to be active in the tire and rubber recycling arena. This year a panel of regulators, processors, and others from Ohio, Kentucky, and South Carolina look at the diversity of ways states manage scrap tires and rubber. From Monofilling to Markets...The State's Perspectives is sure to be crammed with useful market building tips.

The challenge of managing, recycling, and disposing off-the-road (OTR) tires has grown in recent years. By popular demand, OTR: Over the Rim With Markets returns to the Workshop program this year with a lineup of processors and recyclers who will explore options for recycling and reusing industrial tires and other off-road use tires.

The Scrap Tire and Rubber Industry Networking Session is new this year. Using an informal setup, this Session will pool the resources of five segments of the industry; scrap tire processors, rubber compounders, rubber modified asphalt contractors, civil engineers, and scrap tire generators to share insights on technologies, products, processes, and equipment systems that work. They will also identify weaknesses that plague the industry's ability to grow at a faster pace to deliver both the quality and volume of products needed for long term market stability. This interactive session is a sure-fire bet for getting the real low-down on tire and rubber recycling from colleagues, industry experts, and competitors alike.

To fully understand tire and rubber recycling we must first understand the entire life cycle of the materials and products involved. On Friday in The Road to Tire Recycling Begins With a Responsible Generator, leading industry and government panelists will explore criteria for identifying responsible generators, what generators can do to be a part of the solution to tire recycling, and how generators can benefit from a strong, well-structured, profitable scrap tire recycling industry. New this year, this Session is sure to draw participation from all segments of the industry.

Tire and rubber recyclers know that the key to tire recycling is real world, practical markets. They know that today's processing progress depends on expanding the existing markets and ferreting out new markets and applications which can use the growing volume of scrap rubber. A panel of tire and rubber manufacturers, processors, and marketers discuss The Next Generation - Moving Recycling From the Laboratory to Market.

One of the fastest growing markets for recycled rubber is as a component of resilient surfacing manufacturers. Crumb rubber producers, installers, and binder manufacturers will take A Realistic Look at the Resilient Surfacing Market segment of the industry during this Workshop.

Safety: A Focus on Proper Material Handling will address plant operations and processing systems with a critical look at reducing opportunities for fire or other hazards. This Workshop is one of several scheduled in a new afternoon time slot allowing attendees to visit the exhibit floor before and after the session.

On Saturday, April 4, TRRAC will host its second annual Town Meeting. Tire and rubber recyclers will have an opportunity to voice their opinions and concerns about what's working, and what's not, and offer suggestions to the Association and other industry leaders about how to improve and advance the tire and rubber recycling industry.

Plan now to attend. Register on-line by using this convenient World Tire and Transportation Services Conference & Exhibition Registration Form link. Or call 800-426-8835, 502-968-8900, fax 502-964-7859, or e-mail itra@itra.com for more information.

Contact ITRA at 502-968-8900, 800-426-8835

Fax 502-964-7859

Shipping address:
3332 Gilmore Industrial Blvd. Louisville, Kentucky 40213-4113 USA

PO Box 37203, Louisville, Kentucky 40233-7203 USA

Send e-mail to mary@scraptirenews.com
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