Alternative re-use

An alternative destination for car tyres

We also use whole or shredded scrap tyres for different purposes than those they were manufactured for. A small proportion of the tyres collected - around one to two percent - are used for other purposes; for example as crash barriers at go-carting tracks, crash barriers on boats and at quay sides or are used in road construction and hydraulic engineering.

Our collection companies carefully sort the tyres and check whether the carcass on the tyres collected has suffered any damage before they consider retreading. Using specialist tools, the worn down tread is first rubbed off the tyre.

Re-use in road construction and hydraulic engineering

Can you make a sound barrier or bank up a road using old tyres? Yes, you can. Whole or shredded old tyres are used in road construction and hydraulic engineering. The scrap tyres form a filler layer for retaining walls or banked up roads and are also used to reinforce highway constructions such as tunnels, particularly in Scandinavian countries like Finland.

The end of life tyres ensure good water drainage and provide the underground with a robust and cushioning base. The effective drainage also means that the road surface has a longer lifespan, as
the layers underneath freeze more slowly and therefore crack less quickly. *

* source: Suomen Rengas Kerrätys

Go-carting tracks

Scrap tyres are used along go-carting track circuits. Many go-carting tracks make their circuit safe by installing crash barriers; sometimes with red and white crash barriers, and sometimes with black. Piles of tyres also ensure racers’ safety.

More alternatives

There are other alternatives when it comes to re-using scrap tyres. Livestock farmers use old tyres to make silos air-tight. Thanks to rapid technological developments, fewer farmers are using pit tyres. The Netherlands is also predominantly a water-loving country and scrap tyres are used on boats as a crash barrier or on quay sides top provide protection.

However it is in African countries in particular that the opportunities for alternative re-use of old tyres seem endless. Tyres have been used in exceptional alternative applications abroad for many years. In Africa, the
local markets feature a range of everyday products made from old tyres, including soles on shoes and slippers. Car tyres are also used as planters and flower containers. With just a little work, craftsmen turn old tyres into dishes, vases, ashtrays, carafes, baskets, photo frames or ingenious woven chairs. And tomato plants flourish good in a nursery garden made from piles of tyres.