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VP latex (tyre cord)
What it is
Vinyl pyridine latex, a speciality terpolymer used in the RFL dip that bonds textile tyre cord - polyester, nylon or rayon - to the rubber carcass. Without it the cord and rubber separate under flexing
It is a small-volume, high-specification input made by very few global producers, and India imports most of its requirement
Impact on industries
- Critical-input status gives suppliers pricing power far beyond the volume involved, since no tyre can be built without a functioning bond
- Import dependence on a handful of global producers creates supply and price risk that a tyre or cord maker cannot hedge
- Qualification is exacting and slow, so switching source is not a commercial decision that can be taken on price
- Steel cord substitution in radials reduces textile cord content in truck tyres, so the addressable base narrows as radialisation advances