Michelin's tyre factory in Valladolid will be 50 years old in 2023, and it has already started celebrating. The celebrations began during the Agraria 2023 fair, which was held at the end of January. The company attended the fair to showcase the latest developments in a range for which this plant is key to worldwide production.

One of the world's leading producers of agricultural tyres, the French company's headquarters for Spain and Portugal are also located at its Valladolid facility. The plant, the ‘youngest’ of four in the country, produced its very first tyre on 2 October 1973. Production of agricultural tyres started in 1975, and nowadays the factory specialises in top-of-the-range agricultural tyres, which are shipped to customers all over the world.

European and American market
In 1975, the first tyres for European passenger cars were also manufactured at the plant in Puebla, as the first two years of operation had been devoted to covering the passenger car needs of the American market. Today, it produces tyres for both passenger cars and agricultural vehicles, as well as semi-finished tyres and truck tyre re-treading.

In terms of volume, the plant produces 90,000 tonnes of tyres per year, plus 170,000 tonnes of semi-finished tyres destined for its own facilities and for the Aranda de Duero (Burgos) factory. It employs 1,610 people on the production lines, plus 120 in the offices at its Iberian Peninsula headquarters.

A benchmark in digitisation and Industry 4.0
Michelin's Valladolid plant is now equipped with automatic chains for the manufacture of medium-high range passenger car and winter tyres featuring the latest technological advances. It supplies customers all over Europe and has, as the company itself explains, become a benchmark for digitalisation and Industry 4.0 within the Michelin Group. In 2022, it was in fact a finalist in the Connected Industry 4.0 awards organised by the Spanish Ministry of Industry.

The latest technology is also used in the truck tyre retreading business, and it has been distributing retreaded tyres under the Michelin Remix brand since November 1975, mainly in Spain, Portugal and France. Michelin's facilities in Valladolid cover a total of 631,825 square metres, with a floor area of 251,780 square metres. The company's investments in its Iberian subsidiary have averaged around 130 million euros over the past ten years.

^{Photo: Michelin}