As part of its growth and investment plans to continue supplying cyclists with advanced and sustainable bike tires, Vittoria opened a factory in Thailand with dedicated production of cotton tubular and clincher bike tires.
The €20 million investment expands the Vittoria Tyres Thailand (VTT) factory from 36,000 square meters to 51,000 square meters in the Bangpoo Industrial District, near VTT’s headquarters. The 10,000-square-meter plant will employ approximately 200. Building operations started in January 2022 and finished in March 2023.
The new Vittoria Cotton Tires Factory features electric vulcanization processes, solar rooftop panels, reliance on renewable energy, paperless operations, electric automated guided vehicles, and carbon credits, earning the plant CarbonNeutral certification.
The new facility will produce cotton bike tires for pro and amateur cyclists worldwide, including the Vittoria Corsa Pro road bike tire that won the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France, Vuelta a España, World Championship and other World Tour-level competitions in 2023.
The building will also manufacture a sustainable gravel tire to be released in spring 2024, made with recycled materials featuring organic rubber compounds. With this project, Vittoria aims to “revolutionize bike tire production by relying less on new nylon fibers, plastics and synthetic rubber in the tire’s construction.”
The new factory follows last year’s inauguration of the Vittoria Park at Vittoria Group HQs in Italy—the first bike park dedicated to all cycling disciplines and the opening of its U.S. offices in Bentonville.
The relationship between Vittoria Group and Thailand has deep roots. Since opening its first factory in Bangkok in 1988 under the name of Lion Tyres Thailand (LTT), it has become a global producer of bike tires. Operations span five buildings in Bangkok and Rayong, including the Graphene compound research and production facility and the 4C extruder, merging four compounds in one bike tire tread.
The new Vittoria Cotton Tires Factory had its inaugural opening celebration on October 3.
Photos courtesy VTT