Yokohama Aero Tyre Equipment Heading to UK Following DATL Acquisition

Testing and manufacturing equipment made available following Yokohama Rubber’s decision to withdraw from the aircraft tyre from the aircraft business has been acquired by Dunlop Aircraft Tyres. The Birmingham based manufacturer has signed an agreement to purchase several pieces of radial and crossply tyre manufacturing equipment including an additional dynamometer. These products should enable Dunlop Aircraft Tyres to expand manufacturing capacity and enable the company to offer new products, such as radial main tyres for the Boeing 777.

“Yokohama has an excellent reputation in Japan with products developed to meet a harsh operating environment,” commented Dunlop Aircraft Tyres chairman Ian Edmondson. “These include tyres for Boeing 777s that are heavily utilised on domestic services. By acquiring Yokohama’s equipment we are enhancing our global manufacturing capability and putting Dunlop Aircraft Tyres in a strong position to expand its comprehensive product range.

“We are aiming to have the equipment up and running in our UK manufacturing facility within a few months,” Edmondson continued. “This agreement means that Yokohama’s former aircraft tyre customers will continue to have the opportunity to benefit from bias and radial tyre products under the internationally recognised Dunlop brand name.”

Yokohama Rubber announced the decision to wrap up its aircraft tyre operation on March 30, 2009, closing the lid on almost seventy years in the business. In justifying its decision, the company stated aircraft tyre sales “are a minor part of Yokohama Rubber’s whole business and they have no strong growth potential for the future.” According to the timetable set out last March, product deliveries were to have ceased by the end of 2009 and follow-up services this year.