2009 - Page 33 of 205 - Tyrepress

Bridgestone NZ Running at a Loss Since 2007

Although the announced closure of Bridgestone’s sole manufacturing facility in New Zealand has been understandably met with disappointment by the local industry, records show the tyre major has operated in the red there during the last two years. Information held by the New Zealand government’s Companies Office shows Bridgestone to have experienced a loss of NZ$7.1 million (£3.28 million) on annual revenues of $217 million (£100 million) in the 2008 calendar year. In 2007 the company’s loss amounted to $3.8 million. Indeed, Bridgestone’s bottom line has not seen plus figures in New Zealand since 2006, when its net plus came to $1.2 million.

27th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Watts Tyre Group Sold in Management Buyout

Premia Group Ltd, a private consortium led by Watts Tyre Group chief executive Jean-Paul Mindemann, has bought the Lydney, Gloucestershire-based industrial tyre producer and distributor. According to the company, Premia is owned by Jean-Paul Mindermann, Paul Morey and Andreas Karnein (Watts’ finance and technical directors) and the company will continue to trade under the Watts name.

A company spokesman told Tyres & Accessories/tyrepress.com that, prior to the completion of the deal, talks had being going on for a period of “weeks or even months” and the move was “a question focus” for both companies. Watts of Lydney Group apparently wants to focus on its commercial vehicle franchise business, Watts Truck & Van, Watts Urethane Products and Plysolene (its extruded plastic sheet manufacturing business).

27th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Q3 Figures Show Improvement

Michelin reports its decline in unit sales during the third quarter of 2009 and over the first nine months of the year is “in line with the decline in global tyre markets.” During the most recent quarter the manufacturer recorded a 14.0 per cent drop in unit sales, a figure that shows a lift in sales compared to the preceding months: in the first nine months of the year unit sales were 20.1 per cent down. The French tyre major generated net sales of 3.754 billion euros in the July to September quarter, a 10.9 per cent decrease on the corresponding three months in 2008. During the nine months to September 30, 2009 net sales amounted to 10.888 billion euros, a year-on-year decline of 12.5 per cent. Deutsche Bank analysts comment that third quarter sales were “slightly better than expected”; sales also beat the expected average of 3.727 billion euros gleaned from and a Reuters survey of six analysts. While volumes were as bad as Deutsche Bank’s analysts anticipated, Michelin’s four per cent price-mix for the quarter was a pleasant surprise. Price mix during the nine months was 7.6 per cent.

27th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Rossi Crowned MotoGP Champion Despite Stoner Dominance in Sepang

Following scorching weather at the weekend, the Malaysian MotoGP was delayed following rainstorms best described as tropical, leading to every rider starting on Bridgestone’s wet tyres. With the track wet throughout the race, making it the only Grand Prix this season to be run in its entirety in wet conditions, Casey Stoner delivered a dominant performance from fourth on the grid to take the lead on the first lap. A masterful display saw the Ducati Team rider take his fourth win of the season. Valentino Rossi and Fiat Yamaha teammate Jorge Lorenzo also set a very fast pace as they cut through the field making good use of their wet tyres in the slippery conditions. After closing on Dani Pedrosa in the latter stages of the race, Rossi finished on the final step of the podium to claim the 2009 World Championship title.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Italian Brokers Believe Pirelli to Separate Tyre Unit from Real Estate Business

A Reuters report suggests that Pirelli is preparing a full separation of its tyre business from its real estate concerns in order to boost the Group’s value in the wake of improving tyre financial results. The Milanese broker Equita is reported as saying, “We believe some recent moves at the corporate level are clear pointers that will lead to a separation of Pirelli & C Real Estate PECR.MI from the group to transform Pirelli & C from a holding company to a tyre maker.” While the move is unlikely to happen in the short-term (separations of this kind generally take up to a year, says Reuters), the concentration on its tyre business could be motivated by the fact that Pirelli trails the market caps of Michelin, of whose cap the report states Pirelli’s is about a quarter at 2 billion euros, and Continental, though it is active in similar markets and sectors.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Dunlop Signs European Road Safety Charter

Goodyear Dunlop Tires Europe has joined the European Road Safety Charter, a pan-European initiative with the aim to increase road safety across Europe. The signing ceremony took place in Gothenburg, Sweden on October 26, 2009, in the presence of the Swedish minister for enterprise, energy and communications, Åsa Torstensson, representatives from the European Commission and the ERSC Secretariat.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

FIA Elects Jean Todt as New President

World motorsport and motoring body the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (or FIA to its friends) has announced Jean Todt as its new president for a four-year term. The FIA General Assembly staged its annual meeting, at which voting was completed, in Paris last week. Todt scooped 135 votes, while the other candidate, Ari Vatanen managed 49. 12 abstained or produced invalid votes. Voting in the General Assembly was made by secret ballot. The votes were counted in private by the FIA legal department, under the supervision of scrutinisers proposed by the two presidential candidates and designated by the General Assembly. The entire voting procedure was supervised by an external Huissier de Justice (French state-appointed public witness).

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Marangoni Makes Additions to Ringtread Winter Range

Marangoni has added two new lines to its Ringtread precure tread range – the Grip series 60 and 70 for central European climatic conditions, and the RSY397 for long distance driving in extreme conditions.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

New Law: No More Lead in California

(Tire Review) As of 1 January, 2010 lead wheel weights are banned in the state of California. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed Senate Bill 757 into law on Oct. 11, bringing to a close a more than five-year effort by environmental groups to ban lead wheel weights in the state. The ban specifically makes illegal the sale and installation of lead wheel weights on passenger vehicles and trucks. The bill was co-sponsored by the Center for Environmental Health and Clean Water Action. Currently there is no federal law regarding lead wheel weights, though the EPA has asked automakers and the aftermarket to voluntarily cease using such weights.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

ATMA Director General: 5-6% Rise in India Tyre Consumption

With India’s auto sales back on the rise in September year-on-year comparisons, Rajiv Budhraja, director general of the Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association, told the Press Trust of India that tyre consumption will follow “by five to six per cent in the next six to eight months”. The increase in auto sales has risen by 17.1 per cent overall in September 2009 compared with the month in 2008, while the rise was particularly felt in the passenger car segment, where that increase topped 20 per cent (Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers figures).

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

106 Vehicles Damaged as Serial Slasher Stalks Stoke-on-Trent

Residents in the former pottery town of Stoke-on-Trent, home to the UK’s premier tyre business magazine Tyres & Accessories, are being advised to be alert, as reports show that over 100 vehicles’ tyres have been slashed in the past seven weeks. Local newspaper The Sentinel reports that the Serial Slasher’s reign of (rubber) terror has so far been limited to Longton, where 73 cars have been damaged, and Stoke, in which 33 have been affected. Flummoxed police officers are appealing for help in catching the criminal, who is said to be using “either a knife or a sharp screwdriver” to slash or puncture tyres across the city.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

ITA Releases Solid Tyre Fitment Guide

The Industrial Tyre Association (ITA) has issued a new guidance note about the fitting of industrial solid tyres using tyre presses. The industry association reports it was keen to raise standards in the industry after hearing incidences of serious injuries caused by the incorrect use of tyre presses. As a result, the ITA became involved with a working group, consisting of industrial tyre fitters and trade bodies as well as the Health & Safety Executive (HSE), to form a best practice approach.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Hankook Evaluates Southeast Asian Sites for New Plant

International News

Hankook Tire intends to build a new factory – its sixth overseas plant – somewhere in Southeast Asia. South Korea’s Yonhap news reports company CEO Suh Seung-hwa as stating on October 23 that Hankook may spend between US$250 million and $300 million building the new facility, which is expected to have an annual capacity of ten million units.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

ITDN – Helping Independents Remain Independent

The ITDN has been providing a tyre breakdown service to independent tyre dealers for 24 years, and in the past 12 months the network has gone through tremendous change to update and enhance systems. The company has recently developed a state of the art in-house breakdown logging system and its ‘ITDN Interactive’ web-based member programme. ITDN has recognised the increased need for up-to-date information flow to its members and fleet customers and will continue to offer extra benefits and ongoing development. Furthermore, the Devon based company now has an internal IT development team. Despite these many changes, the company reports that its chief concern remains, as always, to provide support for its membership to help their independent tyre dealers grow.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Best Choice Plans to Broaden Sunew Range

Taking pride of place on Best Choice International Trading’s stand at CITExpo was the current product range within the company’s “Sunew” own brand. The Beijing headquartered business now offers its “Sunew YS618” in 22 16 to 18-inch high performance sizes, and European region sales and export manager Stephen Wu reports that before the end of the year a further six 15-inch sizes will be added to the range – a line-up that, until recently, was marketed under the manufacturer’s “Yellow Sea” brand name. The coming year will see further additions to the Sunew portfolio; the range’s rim diameter ceiling will be pushed upwards with the addition of 19 and 20-inch products. Yet despite these plans to think big, Stephen Wu explains that the company is by no means turning its back on the smaller Sunew sizes. “They are under-represented in our range,” the manager explains. In the future, Best Choice also hopes to establish itself more firmly in France, Italy and Eastern Europe. At present the company is most strongly represented in the UK, Germany, the Benelux countries and Spain.

26th October 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

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