Hammarsdale-based radial truck tyre recycler, Mathe Group, has processed its millionth radial truck tyre, bringing the total amount of rubber crumb produced for re-use in key industrial and construction applications to around 38 500 tons, according to CEO Dr Mehran Zarrebini.
Based on an infill of 100 tons of rubber crumb per full size artificial football field, this equates to 385 full size football fields or 700 full size hockey fields ( based on 55 tons needed to create the elastic layer underneath artificial grass).
The amount of rubber crumb produced would have provided the asphalt and seal needed to pave at least 8000 km of roads.
Dr Zarrebini, a British investor who initially acquired iconic KwaZulu-Natal based carpet manufacturer, Van Dyck, discovered Mathe Group as a small operation with just 20 employees operating in New Germany in 2016. He was looking for rubber crumb to manufacture acoustic underlays and acoustic cradles for flooring in high rise buildings – products that he has since improved and continues to export.
Having acquired a 49% shareholding in Mathe Group, he relocated the company to its present site in Hammarsdale, significantly boosting production through ongoing re-investment in plant over the past eight years. Mathe Group currently recycles approximately 700 radial truck tyres per day to produce 30 tons of rubber crumb. 70% of each 55kg truck tyre becomes rubber crumb and 30% is waste steel which is exported via the port of Durban.
Through its own research and development or through working with key partners, Mathe Group’s repertoire of products has grown to include non-slip paving and flooring for agricultural use, ballistics products and gym mats, rubber pavers and the infill for sports fields. Various sizes of rubber crumb are also key ingredients in bitumen for road resurfacing, non-slip paints, moulding of parts for the automotive industry, the retreading of tyres and the production of brake linings.
