Apollo Vredestein BV (AVBV) today organised a meeting with its employees in the Netherlands to discuss the future of the plant in Enschede and the company's plans to build a more sustainable business for the company in the Netherlands. AVBV intends to specialise the production in Enschede to a level where only high-performance Vredestein tyres will be produced at a profitable level.
Within the current operating environment, certain tyre sizes can no longer continue being produced in Enschede at a sustainable and competitive level. The company, therefore, intends to specialise the plant towards high-value tyres and to secure a sustainable future in the Netherlands.
The strategic aim is to specialise in the Enschede plant, to an extent where AVBV will only produce agricultural tyres and high value - niche segment passenger car tyres with a short production run. The plant in Enschede will become the centre of excellence for quality, innovation and production agility.
The company regrettably announced that aligning the plant to the intended specialised and sustainable production level, will also, unfortunately, result in AVBV having to reduce its workforce in the Netherlands by approximately 750 full-time employees, over a period of 24 months.
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"The operating environment for AVBV and the entire tyre industry has changed significantly over the last few years. Despite large investments made in recent years in modernising the plant, the factory employees' dedication and continuous efforts to make the site economically viable, have proved ineffective against the accelerated market transformation and has required a strategic adaption of the site to secure it has a sustainable future in the long run", says Benoit Rivallant, President of Apollo Vredestein in Europe.
"After a deep analysis of the profitability and sustainability of the products currently produced in the Enschede Plant, we regrettably could not arrive at a different conclusion. We are aware that our employees and their families will face a great deal of uncertainty as a result of this difficult decision. They are a committed and dedicated workforce throughout the many years and that has strongly influenced our attempt to secure a sustainable future."
"As a responsible employer, we will comply with all statutory obligations towards our employees. We will regularly inform our employees about developments within this process and offer them all necessary support and assistance."
About Apollo Vredestein B.V. : Apollo Vredestein B.V. is a popular tyre manufacturer in the Netherlands. The company came into existence when Vredestein Banden BV (VBBV) was acquired by Apollo Tyres Ltd of India in 2009. Apollo Vredestein B.V. has its head office in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and a single production unit located in Enschede. The brand designs, manufactures and sells tyres under the two different brands - Apollo and Vredestein, in both Europe and North America.
Vredestein's product portfolio includes car tyres, tyres for agricultural and industrial applications as well as bicycle tires. A significant number of the car tyres are designed by the Italian company Giugiaro Design, a design and engineering company and brand based in Moncalieri, Italy.
