Hadi Muslih Recycles Used Tires into Furniture

Hadi Muslih (47) has never been anxious about the furniture he has been producing since 1993. This set of sturdy, shatterproof, black chairs has never been stolen, even though they are displayed in the front yard of his workshop. The sturdy furniture is made from sliced ​​truck trailer tires, perfect for gardens and open spaces. The used tire furniture is also durable, lasting more than 5-7 years.

Muslih is the sole proprietor of a used tire craft business, labeled Tingkir Ban. He utilizes tire waste for environmental preservation.

“The chairs and tables are made entirely from woven used tires. There are no wooden or metal supports. So, the chairs and tables I make are 100 percent made from large truck tires. The only thing I do is glue them together with nails,” said Muslih, a Tegal native who has lived in Salatiga for a long time, in early November 2018.

We met Muslih at his used tire furniture workshop in Tingkir Lor Village, Tingkir District, Salatiga City, Central Java, which has been equipped with a new tire shop for the past year. The tire shop is quite busy, considering the workshop’s location on the road connecting Tingkir Terminal with the Salatiga-Bawen-Semarang toll gate.

At the workshop and furniture outlet, Muslih still has around 50 chairs and dozens of tables made from used tire furniture. Some of the tables are decorated with round glass. The chairs available vary in size, from medium to large. There are also plain chairs without backrests, chairs with backrests, and chairs with armrests on the left and right.

A set of his furniture, consisting of four chairs and a medium-sized table, is priced at a minimum of IDR 800,000. A single chair is priced at IDR 150,000. Many buyers simply purchase two chairs and a table, which can be placed on their porch or in the garden.

Besides furniture, Muslih also produces trash cans, flower pots, and spiral rope for furniture making. Trash cans were in high demand, as many city governments beautified city parks and open green spaces for tourism. Of these products, spiral rope for furniture accounts for nearly 60 percent of the market, with the market being in Pasuruan and Ponorogo, East Java.

At that time, a young couple from Suruh, Salatiga, came in, interested in buying used tire furniture. They needed a set of chairs, complete with a glass-topped table and two single chairs. Muslih patiently served them. To reassure the buyer, he even slammed his custom-made rubber chair on the floor several times. Of course, the chair bounced and remained undamaged.

“My chairs last up to 10 years, without breaking or changing color. If they’re broken in less than 5 years, please bring them here for me to exchange,” said Muslih.

According to Muslih, the key to customer service is patience. Patience in explaining the product and patience with customers who have already chosen one but then decide not to buy. Those interested in his rubber chairs are truly special customers. Many of them even dare to install a set of them to display in their living room. The chairs are intentionally uncushioned, as rubber is already soft. Chairs with backrests and legs made from recycled tire rubber are guaranteed to remain sturdy even when seated on a person weighing more than 90 kilograms.

Skills Required

Muslih explained that he is a craftsman who still makes used tire rubber chairs in Salatiga. This business has experienced ups and downs, even going on hiatus for five months due to the high price of used tires, which are used as a raw material for his crafts. At that time, the price of used tires soared to Rp 50,000 per piece.

When Muslih first started his business in 1993, and even 10 years later, the price of used tires remained around Rp 2,000-Rp 3,000 per piece. The tires he sought ranged from commercial vehicle tires to trailer truck tires. Back then, he had to go to garages to find used tires.

“After ten years, I’ve established a regular customer base. For large tires like trailer tires, I source them from the Tanjung Emas Port area in Semarang. For bus tires, I source them from bus garages with agents in Salatiga, Boyolali, and the surrounding areas. The current price for tires is around Rp 20,000 to Rp 30,000 per tire,” Muslih said.

Muslih admitted that when the price of used tires rose to Rp 50,000 per tire, he honestly refrained from buying any. He uses the remaining stock for his craft production needs.

“With a business injection of capital from Bank Jateng a year ago, I started upgrading my machinery and opening a tire shop, specifically for commercial vehicles. The Bawen-Salatiga toll road, extending to Solo, has actually boosted my business,” said Muslih.

Muslih explained that making furniture from used tire rubber requires special skills. Tires are also difficult to shape, given their round shape. Skilled workers use knives to carve the rubber layers according to the design. Often, steel knives are used because peeling rubber tires requires extra sharpness, requiring frequent sharpening.

With such durable furniture, the short-term risk is that customers will no longer return for his chairs. Ten years ago, he could sell 10-20 sets of chairs and tables a month. Now, demand for tire rubber chairs has decreased. He sells an average of 10 sets a month. The average monthly raw material requirement is 100 trailer tires and 200 non-truck tires.

To meet market demand, Muslih relies more on conventional marketing, namely through customer-to-customer promotions. If there are requests for chairs from outside the city, he usually delegates the shipping process to his workers.

When demand is high, Muslih employs around 20 people. However, during off-peak times, only 3-4 workers participate in the production process at his workshop. Although he admits he’s never participated in an exhibition, Muslih’s efforts have attracted Bank Jateng, which has entrusted him with the capital needed to strengthen his business.

Dengan pengalamannya sebagai pembuat kursi dari ban bekas, Muslih kerap diminta menjadi tutor untuk melatih perajin baru yang tertarik dalam usaha pembuatan kreasi ban bekas. Dia pernah diminta melatih perajin mebel ban bekas di Aceh pada 2005 namun tidak bisa dipenuhi karena tidak bisa meninggalkan kegiatannya di bengkel.