Czech-based tyre company Mitas has been manufacturing Continental brand tractor and machinery tyres for 10 years and now appears to be planning its exit strategy.

The company opened its new tractor tyre factory at Otrokovice in the Czech Republic last year using new tyre manufacturing technology to boost its opportunity for brand independence.

One of the key features of the visit to the factory was the ability to see the new Mitas PneuTrac concept tyre in action.

Mitas is developing its PneuTrac line in association with the inventors of the concept, the Israeli-based Galileo Wheel Ltd. The PneuTrac will give the Mitas brand new identity for a future without Continental.

Although we would have preferred to have seen the larger 600/65R 38 version of the tyre in action on a full size tractor, we got an opportunity to see the smaller 280/70R 18 tyre on a Lindner mini farm truck.Mitas claims that the PneuTrac represents the best of both worlds from traditional tyres and rubber tracks.

It claims to provide better traction efficiency with lower slippage, which results in lower operational costs and potentially higher crop yields, when compared with standard tyres and rubber tracks.

PneuTrac claims to give stable driving at low inflation pressures, giving comfort and safety with no need to adjust inflation pressure.

Mitas testing of the PneuTrac concept has so far been mainly on this smaller 18in wheel rim. The test results show that the PneuTrac footprint is 53% larger compared with the standard tyre and it provides a higher tractive force.

There is significantly more development work to be done with the PneuTrac. There are issues around side wall strength and more especially the ability of the tyre to withstand loads at speed over longer periods of work.

The Mitas team seems confident that they will crack these issues and they are currently working with universities in Czech Republic and Germany on these and other issues. During a visit to the company’s tyre testing centre, we saw another variation of the tyre, with additional side wall support, while retaining the ability to flex into a track type feature.

“Mitas PneuTrac is not yet commercially available. There is still some way to go, but we have all the technologies and know-how to offer it to worldwide markets after we finish the development, testing and monitoring of PneuTrac,” said Andrew Mabin, Mitas’s sales and marketing director.