Romanian news portal romania-insider.com stated on 21 February that Pirelli has begun the production of GP2 series racing tyres at its Slatina factory. Further details were not given, however the site notes that the Slatina factory, which is located 110 miles west of Bucharest, also produces GT series tyres.
Pirelli intends to present its new 2013 – 2017 industrial plan to the financial community on 8 May 2013, in London. As a result, the Italian firm’s Board of Directors meeting, which will review the operational results for the three months ending 31 March, will now take place a day earlier, rather than on 8 May as announced. Furthermore, Pirelli’s annual shareholders’ meeting will now be held on 8 May 2013, and not on 13 May as previously announced.
On 20 February, Goodyear Tire & Rubber announced that a public offering of its 8-year senior notes had commenced and will close on 25 February, subject to market and other customary conditions. The notes will be senior unsecured obligations and Goodyear says the offering has an aggregate value of US$900 million. They will be sold at 100 per cent of the principal amount and will bear interest at a rate of 6.5 per cent.
Continental’s Specialty Tires business unit has added an eco-friendly product, LifeCycle, to its portfolio. The solid rubber tyre is retreaded upon selected used casings, the utilisation of which is said to lead to considerable savings in energy raw materials used in the production process, and this lowers product price. “With customers’ help this large-scale recycling initiative will help to bring down the number of scrap tyres needing disposal as well as the emission of climate-changing CO2,” shared Continental in a written statement. “Continental LifeCycle protects nature and offers cost savings.”
Maurice Taylor’s run for the Republican Party nomination in the US presidential election of 1996 ended in failure, and following recent events it is also unlikely the party will keep him in mind as a future Secretary of State. As expected, French industry minister Arnaud Montebourg has responded to the Titan boss’s strongly-worded letter with a few choice comments of his own.
At last September’s IAA Commercial Vehicles show in Germany, Hankook UK sales director Barrie Horrocks told Tyres & Accessories of plans to introduce a bead-to-bead retread range in 2013. He also shared that the UK would serve as a pilot market for the new truck tyre retread line, which will be marketed under the ‘Alphatread’ brand name. Hankook now reports it will unveil its first Alphatread products at the Birmingham-based Commercial Vehicle Show in April, ahead of their UK launch in the second quarter of 2013.
Motor Wheel Service Distribution (MWSD) has announced an expansion to the xlite forged aluminium wheel range, manufactured by Wheels India, launching two of the lightest super single wheels on the market. The 11.75×22.5 wheel, with a 0mm inset and 10x26mm mounting holes, boasts a weight reduced by 1.6kg to 22.1kg. The new 120mm inset wheel weighs 3.7kg less than its predecessor at 24.3kg. Both wheels have an increased load index from 4,500kg to 5,000kg.
So you’ve accumulated a decent amount of ‘friends’ on Facebook, but how many fans do you have? Nitto Tire U.S.A. has more – in fact, the brand has hit the 3 million fan mark. Half a million of these signed on within the last two months.
The first employees are making themselves at home in Goodyear’s new global headquarters. According to the Akron Beacon Journal, around 200 employees from the tyre maker’s information technology and finance departments started work in the new US$120 million facility on 18 February. Eventually as many as 2,000 employees will work there.
He stopped short of deploying the phrase “lunch eating laziness monkeys” – but perhaps only just. Titan International chairman and CEO Maurice Taylor has penned a letter to France’s industry minister Arnaud Montebourg, mocking the latter’s well meant but ultimately misguided request for Titan and Taylor to reconsider buying the agricultural business at Goodyear’s Amiens Nord plant. Taylor, a man known for his forthrightness, also took the opportunity to express his feelings towards the Amiens plant workforce.
Two new products, the Nordman Forest F and the Forest King F2, have been added to Nokian Heavy Tyres’ forestry range.
At Hankook Tire America’s annual ‘Partners Day’, the tyre maker gave an overview of its recent successes and shared it plans to build upon these accomplishments. US industry publication Tire Review was there and shares news of the event held in Cancun, Mexico.
MTS Systems Corporation describes the tyre testing system it has installed at the US-based National Tire Research Center (NTRC) as the “world’s most advanced tyre testing system”, and reports the facility is now fully operational.
A significant milestone in the construction of Continental Tire the Americas’ Sumter plant in South Carolina was reached with the securing of the final beam of the million square foot (93,000 square metre) greenfield plant’s basic structure on 19 February. The tyre maker celebrated the achievement with an event attended by local and state dignitaries, who were given the opportunity to see construction progress first-hand. It is now eleven months since the groundbreaking ceremony at the 330 (134 hectare) acre site was held.
Cooper Tire & Rubber intends to open a new technology centre at its US headquarters site by the end of this year. According to Tire Review, the tyre maker plans to hire approximately 40 new employees, including engineers, scientists, researchers and technicians, to perform research at the Findlay centre. The trade journal adds that local reports indicate a US$2.8 million grant from the state of Ohio will go towards establishing the centre; Cooper said it aims to invest $40 million in the project over the next five years.
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