New Starco Sri Lanka solid tyre factory opens
Starco has opened a new solid tyre manufacturing facility in Sri Lanka. The new facility, which has a capacity of 100,000 tyres per annum, replaces the original Starco facility in the country three years after starting production, and Starco states that the success of the venture has led to the need for a larger, more modern and better equipped factory. Starco continues that much attention has been paid to employee health and safety and welfare A Sri Lankan ceremony, in which the new workplace and its employees and management were blessed according to the local Buddhist tradition, was held in September to mark the opening.
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Dunlop Aircraft Tyres announces North Carolina as preferred site for US plant
British aviation tyre manufacturer, Dunlop Aircraft Tyres has identified a site in Mocksville, North Carolina as the preferred base for its first retreading facility in the United States. The world’s only specialist aircraft tyre manufacturer and retreader announced its decision to establish the facility in order to boost its competitiveness across the Americas.
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Sailun, DistriCash demonstrate UHP tyre performance gains in France
Tyre manufacturer Sailun showed its commitment to the US market by bringing online its tariff-beating Vietnam plant earlier in the year. Now, at an event co-hosted by distributor DistriCash in the picturesque Brittany village, Lohéac, France, the manufacturer has demonstrated its growing response to European markets’ performance demands with its latest ultra-high performance tyre, the Atrezzo ZSR.
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Cooper tops global social media ranking
Cooper Tire is the world’s leading tyre company in terms of global social media influence, according to research conducted by Tyres & Accessories. Meanwhile the 2014 rankings also show that Michelin went up one place and held off Continental to top our UK chart. There has been significant change in both cases as well as a strengthening in the online presence of mid-range brands, something we also found in our online brand equity research (see separate article).
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Wide variation in prices achieved by different brands and platforms online
Online tyre retailing continues to grow in volume and influence – something that has been expected for a long time. However, the proliferation of differing online strategies is something that is proving to be less predictable. Gone are the days when online tyre retailing was simply a price competition, or in other words a race to the bottom. That strategy has resulted in the demise of many here-today-gone-tomorrow startups and has instead led to the development of a considerably more nuanced market place. Still, the online tyre space remains fiercely competitive with the likes of Blackcircles and Tyregiant each signing deals with supermarkets Tesco and Asda respectively; and with National Tyres backing the AA’s tyre offer, as another example, In other words, this market is now about far more than who can offer budget tyres for the lowest price.
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Mid-range online brand value growing
French manufacturer Michelin has won our global online tyre brand value rankings for the seventh consecutive year. However, while Michelin deserves credit for the unparalleled achievement. This year’s research also shows significant growth from Korean manufacturers/mid-range brands. Tyres & Accessories once again partnered with NetNames, a partnership that this year celebrates its 10th set of annual results and 10 years of assessing tyre brands’ online prominence and sentiment.
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Bentley’s Dr Ariane Reinhart joins Continental’s executive board
Dr Ariane Reinhart (44) assumed her post as Executive Board Member for Human Resources at Continental AG today (1 October), raising the company’s executive board to nine members. The supervisory board of automotive supplier/tyre manufacturer appointed Dr. Reinhart during a meeting on 25 April 2014. Her contract runs for three years.
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Pirelli leading the market in premium winter tyre OE
The development of the winter tyre market has been a topic of discussion for years now. During the last decade this niche segment has experienced significant growth (see chart 1). And while winter tyres still only account for between one and two per cent UK replacement market share, that isn’t the case across Europe where winter tyre share exceeds 50 per cent. Besides, that doesn’t negate the safety benefits these products offer. Neither does it undermine the retail opportunities available to the trade. And of course the development of winter tyres – as with summer tyres and other products – is best done in partnership with original equipment manufacturers. With all this in mind, it is no surprise that premium-focused manufacturer Pirelli invests what it does in the development, distribution and crucially the communication of the benefits of winter tyres. For example Pirelli held a series of experience events earlier this summer in order to not only explain but also demonstrate the benefits of winter tyres to market customers and partners. Tyres & Accessories attended one such event at Tamworth Snowdome and learnt how strong Pirelli is in this segment and experience the difference winter tyres make – especially on luxury 4x4 vehicles.
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Bridgestone shares safety message through ‘universal language’ of sport
Safety is the key focus of a new advertising campaign Bridgestone launched in six key European markets this month. The claim “There is only one part of your car’s safety systems that actually touches the road” takes centre stage in this multi-channel campaign for the UK, German, French, Italian, Spanish and Polish markets.
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Marangoni workshop backs launch of Ringtread Blackline
Marangoni Retreading Systems has hosted an event dedicated to its premium retread line: Ringtread Blackline. 25 customers from throughout Europe were selected as the most important representatives of the Ringtread System Network, meeting in Germany, nearby Henstedt Ulzburg.
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