Bridgestone confirms Béthune plant closure
Bridgestone has confirmed its intention to close the Béthune tyre plant in France. The country’s Secretary of State for Economy and Finance, Agnès Pannier-Runacher, shared news about the decision yesterday. She tweeted that Bridgestone has “closed the door to continuing its activity in Béthune” and confirmed the plant’s closure. She added that the French government would work with employees to find a solution for everyone.
Continue ReadingTitan International reduces debt, loss from operations
Titan International is currently in the midst of its planning process for 2021, and Paul Reitz says the company has “plenty of reasons to be optimistic.” He opines that Titan has navigated the challenges brought by the corona pandemic well and is thus positioning itself for a “stronger 2021”. The president and chief executive officer’s comments came as Titan International reported its financial results for the third quarter of 2020, a period in which it managed to reduce its net loss by more than a third compared with Q3 2019.
Continue ReadingNokian appoints new global marketing head
Reija Laaksonen has been appointed Nokian Tyres’ new Head of Global Marketing starting 9 November 2020. She reports to Andrei Pantioukhov, executive vice president and member of Nokian Tyres’ management team.
Continue ReadingBiden bounce helps Japanese tyremaker share prices
Shares in Japanese firms hit a 30-year high after Joe Biden was named as the president-elect of the US in a phenomenon being called the “Biden bounce”. Tokyo’s Nikkei index rose 2.6 per cent when the market opened on 9 November. It closed up 2.1 per cent at a level not seen since 1991.
Continue ReadingGoodyear to double rice husk ash silica use by 2021
Most commonly found in nature as quartz, silica is one of the world’s most abundant, durable and useful minerals. While predominantly used in glass production, industrial-grade silica in its finest form is also mixed with rubber to strengthen tyre treads and reduce rolling resistance. But although silica is by no stretch of the imagination in short supply, Goodyear is doubling its commitment to obtain this material from an alternative source.
Continue ReadingEMEA tyre business supports Goodyear Q3 results
Goodyear Tire and Rubber reported Q3 2020 net losses of US$2 million compared to net income of $88 million in the same quarter a year ago. The company reported segment operating income of $162 million in Q3 2020, down $132 million from a year ago. According to the company, the decline primarily reflects lower volume, reduced factory utilization and lower earnings from other tyre-related businesses.
Continue ReadingContinental distributes first Clinton, Mississippi-made truck tyres
The first truck tyres made at Continental’s greenfield factory in Clinton, Mississippi, US are being delivered four years after the company broke ground on the project. The Clinton plant is Continental’s first new plant for the truck tyre business globally in more than 10 years. It produces large truck and bus tyres for the North American market and will employ 500 people by the end of 2020. Clinton is Continental’s second location producing truck tyres in the US. The other can be found in Mount Vernon, Illinois. According to the Continental, more than 280 employees collaborated safely to deliver the first shipment of tyres.
Continue ReadingBrembo reports sales drop, but Q3 margins in line with the previous year
Brake manufacturer Brembo has reported third quarter revenues of 1,559.9 million euros (-20.9 per cent compared to the previous year). Pre-tax profits (EBITDA) amounted to 267.1 million euros. Meanwhile EBITDA and EBIT margins of 17.1 per cent and 7.1 per cent respectively were described as “in line with the previous year.”
Continue ReadingConserving costs, maximising business: Apollo Tyres’ response to the coronavirus pandemic
One way or another 2020 has been an eventful year for all of us. The same is true at Apollo Tyres where, at a global level, the company has had to navigate pandemic-related production pauses and restarts along with new factory openings and the decision to enter the two-wheel segment. At the same time as continuing to develop the Apollo brand, the company has also given the Vredestein brand a big push during the last month or so. First, with the launch of a new all-season range, then with the introduction of a new North American tyre line-up and – in order to support both – a pitch-side advertising partnership with Manchester United football club. Tyres & Accessories recently interviewed Neeraj Kanwar, vice chairman and MD, Apollo Tyres Ltd in order to find out more.
Continue ReadingTyre business keeping Continental Group profitable
Continental’s nine-month 2020 figures show the tyre and automotive supplier did remarkably well operationally in the third quarter despite the “still very volatile market environment”, according to outgoing CEO Dr Elmar Degenhart.
Continue ReadingNokian Tyres’ former board face insider trading charges
Nokian Tyres 2015-2016 board members are facing insider trading charges and the company faces a fine of up to 850,000 euros. At least thats what the public prosecutor in Finland is demanding.
Continue ReadingSumitomo Rubber Industries sales and profits down, but supported by tyre business
Sumitomo Rubber Industries, which is active in Europe with its Falken brand, has published third-quarter results which show that group-wide sales fell by 16.1 per cent in the first nine months of the current year, while at the same time earnings evaporated to only a third of the previous years figure.
Continue ReadingAndritz opens recycling test and research centre in Austria
Engineering group Andritz has opened a new 3,600m2 test and research centre for the recycling industry in St. Michael, Upper Styria, Austria. The group, which supplies plant machinery for recovering energy and materials from tyres and auto parts among other waste streams, is to expand its research and development activities with the new facility. It will collaborate closely with the University of Leoben at the Andritz Recycling Technology Center (ART-Center), though the ART-Center is available to customers and researchers from around the world. The facility is equipped with innovative shredder technology from the company’s ADuro product line, used for primary and secondary shredding as well as fine granulation and dismantling of composite materials. This enables customers to conduct recycling tests under real plant conditions with industrial-scale equipment.
Continue ReadingGRI expands capacity, continues building distribution networks
During the last 18 years GRI has expanded significantly. Across the material handling, agricultural and construction segments, GRI now produces a total of 100 tonnes of tyres a day. Most recently the company added new mixing capacity in a bid to expand the company’s overall production output. So how does this particular action fit into the wider strategy? Tyres & Accessories interviewed GRI managing director Prabhash Subasinghe in order to find out.
Continue ReadingUK grants state funding for Swedish tyre recovery technology feasibility study
2G BioPOWER, the UK market representative of Scandinavian Enviro Systems (Enviro), has been granted UK state funding to investigate the possibilities for the “large-scale introduction” of its end-of-life tyre recovery technology into the country. The study’s objectives include investigating the recovery of oil and carbon black from domestic end-of-life tyres. The news follows growing interest in the UK’s ELT processing operations in 2020, particularly driven by advanced pyrolysis processes. Tyrepress discusses more on the UK tyre recovery in Session 4 of the virtual Tyre Industry Conference here. The equivalent of 2.5 million Swedish krona (approximately £220,000) has been granted for the study.
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