Interview with Normunds Aspers – Commercial Director.
RECRO was founded in 2006, when the idea of developing the most advanced automatic transmission remanufacturing facility in Europe was born
Our company RECRO is located in Cesis – just 90 kilometers away from Riga – Latvia’s Capital City. The facility was opened in 2008 and RECRO now has over 40 employees. Our engineers also work as teachers in a nearby auto mechanics college – further proof of our family’s feeling and dedication to local community development in engineering.
Easy Engineering: What are the main areas of activity of the company?
Normunds Aspers: Our main activity is automatic transmission remanufacturing including components like torque converters, valve bodies
E.E: What’s the news about new products?
N.A: For us, new products refer to the latest gearbox models we receive for rebuilding. We’re noticing a shift from 6 or 7-speed models to more advanced 8 and 9-speed versions, such as the ZF 8HP and 9HP series, or Aisin 8-speed transmissions. Additionally, we’re encountering new versions of Direct Shift Gearboxes (DSGs) from Audi and updated releases of Continuously Variable Transmissions (CVTs) from Nissan and Toyota. These newer models are becoming more intricate, with a reduced tolerance for deviations and wear, resulting in a shorter lifespan.
E.E: What are the ranges of products?
N.A: Our product range when it comes to models and applications is nearly unlimited. The biggest “piece of cake” for us is all kind of passenger vehicle transmissions including transfer cases and differentials. We reman all models available from all makes including CVT and DSG type gearboxes as long as parts are available in market. On our “tables”, we see models starting from 50ties up to 2020 of course majority today are models after 2010. But as I said we have a great interest from classic cars owners, rebuilding very fancy old timer gearboxes from ‘50and ‘60ies ‘70. Besides that we’re pleased to see the growing demand for Off-Highway and Commercial automatic gearbox sector too.
E.E: What can you tell us about market trends?
N.A: Well statistics show that a number of automatic gearbox-equipped vehicles are growing. Besides the classic conventional automatic gearbox models, we see more and more demand for DSG and CVT-type models. I would say that the demand of CVT type gearbox repair is most growing today. One reason is the increasing number of CVT-equipped vehicles on the streets but another, shorter lifetime of CVT models. Unfortunately, a shorter gearbox lifetime is a general trend for all model types and makes today. Good for us 😊
E.E: What are the most innovative products marketed?
N.A: Our most innovative product lies in our advanced testing and diagnostics capabilities, which we have developed over the years since the company Recro was born. A notable development is our Three-Axel Dynamometer test bench, enabling us to assess the performance of any gearbox including All-Wheel Drive (AWD) and Heavy-Duty gearbox models. This, combined with our experience, accumulated diagnostics data, and the continuous enhancement of our test bench software, ensures a commitment to delivering the highest quality in our industry.
E.E: What estimations do you have for the rest of 2023?
N.A: We don’t see any major changes in estimations for the rest of 2023 End of year as usual in our industry will have some slow-down trend that will continue till March.
