Sri Lanka pioneered Asian rubber industry in 1876 with the planting of rubber trees in Henarathgoda. While the latex coming out from the rubber tree, after processing, is used in the manufacture of various rubber products, even the timber is used, in treated from, for producing valuable furniture and other timber – based products.
|
The rubber industry provides employment to a vast number of people mainly form rural areas, where the plantations and smallholdings are located. Starting from planting rubber trees, tapping of latex to the manufacture of semi finished or semi processed rubber and products (primary products) and moving forward to the manufacturing of value added products combined with those involved in trading the rubber industry provides employment to more than 200,000 people. |
In the year 2005 approx. 104,400 metric tons of rubber was produced in Sri Lanka out of which 55000 was consumed within the country. Accordingly about 605 of the total production is used by the local industry for manufacture of products, both for local consumption as well as for export markets. Value of Sri Lanka’s rubber industry exports has been growing steadily form approx. US$ 135 mn in 1995 to more than US$ 440 mn. in 2005. Out of this value, rubber products export values consists of around 87%.
Sri Lanka produces tyres, tubes, carpets, hot water bottles, auto parts, rubber bands, industrial components, surgical and household gloves and condoms, balloons boots / shoes with rubber components out of rubber. The country now has a premium quality natural rubber type known as Lankaprene which is an odor free (more or less) light coloured, clean, rubber which is ideally suited for medical equipment and up market, value added products.
Sri Lanka produces tyres, tubes, carpets, hot water bottles, auto parts, rubber bands, industrial components, surgical and household gloves and condoms, balloons boots / shoes with rubber components out of rubber. The country now has a premium quality natural rubber type known as Lankaprene which is an odor free (more or less) light coloured, clean, rubber which is ideally suited for medical equipment and up market, value added products.
Sri Lanka also supplies ribbed smoked sheets (RSS) pale crepe, sole crepe, brown crepe technically specified rubber (TSR) centrifuged latex and specially rubbers and Sri Lanka is the major world supplier of crepe rubber.
Sri Lanka rubber makes it’s way to sophisticated markets such as Europe and America. Having Asia’s oldest research institute, the Rubber Research Institute (RRI) of Sri Lanka carries out research activities, provides plants from it’s nurseries for replanting and also introduce new, improved clones to the industry. Testing of rubber and products is carried out by the RRI as well as the Industrial Technology Institute (ITI) and, combined with highly trained chemists, technologies, engineers and technicians Sri Lanka’s export markets include USA, Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, Japan, Netherlands etc.
Sri Lanka can boast of internationally accepted products such as solideal branded industrial tyres manufactures by Loadstar Ltd., Dipped Products Ltd., exports their products all over the world, their household and industrial gloves being marketed under many brand names. There are multinational companies too in operation in Sri Lanka namely Ansell Lanka Ltd., which manufactures latex based products and Trelleborg Lanka Ltd., which provides solid tyres to the global market.
As a local resource based industry the rubber sector has of very promising future and the government has recognized the strategic significance of the rubber industry and provide support to the Sri Lanka Rubber Cluster to develop and implement competitive strategies. As one of the key strategies, Sri Lanka’s private sector and the government has already ventured out to grow rubber jointly in Monaragala which is a non – traditional area ideally suited for planting rubber. The rubber industry in Sri Lanka could emerge as a high export earner, which provides high quality employment to a vast number of people in the country. Added attraction of the rubber industry is its high degree of environmentally friendliness compared with all other industries, rubber plantations add to forest cover and sequester carbon in great volumes and therefore qualify for carbon trading benefits.
