Cimcorp to Supply Turnkey Automated Handling System to Turkish Tyre Maker

Cimcorp has won a significant order to supply a fully automated handling system to Petlas Tire Corporation at its factory in Kirsehir, Turkey, about 100 miles southeast of Ankara. Based on Cimcorp’s Dream Factory solution, the automation will take care of the handling of PCR (passenger car radial) finished tires in the tire-finishing and palletizing areas. Work on the order – Cimcorp’s first project for Petlas – is already underway and the turnkey material handling system will become operational in the autumn of 2017.


Growing demand

The order for Cimcorp is part of a huge investment program to expand the Kirsehir plant in order to increase Petlas’ PCR production capacity and meet growing demand. Turkey achieved record car production and export levels in 2015, with production up by 16 percent and exports up 12 percent over the preceding year. This growth rate is higher than in any other European country and, with its automotive plants rolling out 1.36 million vehicles in 2015, Turkey is now the seventh largest automotive producer in Europe.

Robotic handling

With the production equipment – the tire-building machines, presses and testing machines – already installed, Petlas is commencing the automation of the plant’s material handling. This comprises Cimcorp’s robotic buffer stores, tire conveyors and control software – Cimcorp WCS (Warehouse Control Software) – to take care of all material flows. Using linear robots operating on overhead gantries, the system will automate the handling and transfer of finished tires from the trimming stations, through visual inspection and uniformity testing, to palletizing.

Commenting on the order, Yahya Ertem, General Manager at Petlas Tire Corporation, said: “We think highly of Cimcorp’s software, which integrates the machines into one entity and keeps the flow of material and data under complete control. Cimcorp’s Dream Factory automation fits with our vision to achieve ‘excellence in business’ and will help us to achieve our strategic goals.”