Next Tuesday, at 9am local time (2pm BST, 3pm CEST), Goodyear Tire & Rubber will hold a conference call to discuss details of its newly ratified master labour contract with the United Steelworkers union. Participating in the conference call will be chairman and chief executive officer Richard J. Kramer and Darren R. Wells, executive vice-president and chief financial officer.
Michelin has introduced a new size in its TB5 range of road legal race tyres aimed at young classics. The 17/58-14 or 185/60VR14 is suitable for Peugeot 205GTi, VW Golf GTi, Toyota Corolla Gti, Alfa Romeo Alfasud Ti and Ford Escort XR3i. Vintage Tyres, which distributes the Michelin classic line-up, says the new TB5 fitment “will offer the ultimate in performance for both track and road on these cars.”
More than a year and a half after the event took place, Carlisle Magistrates’ Court has heard the case of a worker injury at the nearby Pirelli plant. The case was brought to court by the Health and Safety Executive, which prosecuted Pirelli Tyres Ltd after an investigation found that the safety procedures for carrying out maintenance work on the machine were poor.
Mak has released its new Rennen wheel, designed specifically for Porsche. Mak says it has put in plenty of its heritage and experience at the top of the wheel market into the latest multispoke design – an elegant twist on the classic ‘Y’ spoke genre. Each pair of spokes curves into the factory-styled stud bowls, balancing concavity with a lengthened spoke design to create an impression of strength, lightness and size.
Škoda has unveiled the world's biggest ice cream van, just as Britain gears up for a scorching bank holiday weekend. The giant vRS ice cream van was launched at Great Yarmouth, where local children tucked in to huge ice creams. Members of the public will have a chance to sample free ice creams as the giant ice cream van embarks on a national tour in the coming month.
Eldan Recycling A/S has supplied its Steel Cleaning System to French company RBSI. RBSI has been using the system to clean steel from its existing tyre granulation line since January. According to the company, the Eldan Steel Cleaning System is designed to process up to 2.4 tonnes steel wire per hour with a minimum required purity of 96 per cent (free of rubber and textile).
Motorists in Brazil, host country for next year’s World Cup, now have the chance to buy an officially-endorsed commemorative tyre. Continental has launched a World Cup edition of its ContiPowerContact, complete with footballs and FIFI World Cup logo on the sidewall. The tyre’s release is being supplemented by an extensive advertising campaign in print and electronic media, radio and television.
It appears the strike at the Cooper Chengshan factory in China is over, and the 5,000 workers are back at their jobs and producing tyres. Details of how the strike was resolved are not yet known.
On 21 August, Apollo Tyres signed a three-year partnership with Manchester United, which sees the company named as the official tyre of the world-famous football team across both the UK and India. Details of the investment associated with the deal have not been released. What we do know is that as well as access to player appearances in both countries the company will be making the most of its association with Man U in online advertising as well as its marketing and point of sale material. In addition, in a development of its ‘go the distance’ philosophy, Apollo Tyres will create football-based play zones in local communities in the UK and India; these will feature recycled rubber and encourage healthy lifestyles among youngsters.
Continental has appointed Matthias Matic as its new Hydraulic Brake Systems Business Unit head, part of the Continental Chassis & Safety Division, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main. Matic moves from his current position as Chassis Components Business Unit head on 1 September, succeeding Peter Laier who has assumed a position on the executive board of a German light manufacturer. “I’m looking forward to the new challenge. Hydraulic brake systems have proven their worth a million times over; they’re a key component of automotive safety. Friction brakes will continue to be an important topic for the foreseeable future”, said Matic.
Continental has been working on automated driving systems for some time now, and began open road trials of this technology early last year. It also entered into a research partnership with BMW to develop an ‘electronic co-pilot’ in January 2013. The German firm is now extending its collaborative activities; the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung newspaper shared on 21 August that Continental intends to develop self-driving cars together with IBM and Google.
Bridgestone’s subsidiary on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, PT Bridgestone Sumatra Rubber Estate, will enter into trading contracts with local rubber farmers; it is said these contracts will promote cooperation between the farmers and Bridgestone Sumatra Rubber Estate.
Continental Tire the Americas’ head of Commercial Vehicle Tire sales, Javier Mendoza, has taken on a new role within the company. On 1 August, he began as head of the CAMEXCA (Mexico, Caribbean and Central America) market for Continental Tire de Mexico. In addition to this role, he also will be responsible for heading up the company’s Passenger and Light Truck tyre replacement sales business.
Bridgestone has donated a number of ‘tyre toolbags’ to help a number of talented automotive apprentices progress as part of National Tyres and Autocare’s ‘Foundation Modern Apprentice’ scheme, which includes NVQ level two training courses. Bridgestone’s support comes in the form of a branded hold-all for each learner containing a wide range of equipment to assist in both the classroom and in branch.
Michelin has launched a new ‘B’ version of its Pilot Road 3 sport touring tyre. Specifically, the tyre is designed for large touring bikes including the BMW K1600GT. Using the same siped tread pattern as the original tyre, the new version also features a redesigned casing to aid stability when these bikes are fully-laden with luggage and a pillion.
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.
