More than half of consumers aware of tyre labelling
A year on from the introduction of European tyre labelling legislation, the longest term data available assessing its impact suggests it is increasingly influence consumer purchasing choices. According to research carried out by Ipsos MarketQuest across six European markets on behalf of Goodyear Dunlop, 54 per cent of consumers are aware of tyre labelling. However, what is perhaps more significant is that about three quarters (71 per cent) say that it has influenced their purchasing decision saying they “utilised its gradings on three performance criteria before making their purchase”. The research was conducted by MarketQuest in June and July 2013 among 4,200 consumers from UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Poland, who had bought tyres over the past six months.
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Dunlop Aircraft Tyres invests £4m into UK manufacturing
Dunlop Aircraft Tyres has announced the completion of an expansion plan for its Fort Dunlop, Birmingham manufacturing base. The aviation tyre-maker will switch on its latest additional production machine, completing a £4 million factory investment programme.
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Goodyear parachutes Wells into European leadership role
Goodyear has reshuffled its global leadership resulting in a new head of the company’s Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) business unit. Darren R. Wells, who up till now has acted as the company’s global CFO has been named president of Goodyear EMEA. Arthur de Bok, currently president of this business, will move into the new role of senior vice president, responsible for driving standardized and integrated sales and marketing processes across Goodyear.
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Conti reports dandelion rubber ‘breakthrough’, work on pilot facility underway
According to a statement released by German tyre maker Continental on 14 October, the joint venture project it operates with and the Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology (IME) is “on the verge of a breakthrough.” Recently, work began on the construction of a pilot facility at IME’s Münster site in Germany, and when finished this will be able to produce larger volumes of dandelion-derived natural rubber.
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Continental Sumter plant ready for 2014 switch-on
Continental Tire the Americas’ new PCR to light truck tyre manufacturing plant in Sumter, South Carolina is nearing completion, having broken ground on the site in mid-2012.
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Grouptyre’s Kenway celebrates 30 years
Grouptyre member Kenway Tyres, which services the northeast of Scotland, is celebrating 30 years in the tyre business in 2013. In addition to congratulating its member on reaching the milestone, Grouptyre discusses its long term evolution, and explains why it is introducing the Online Tyre Catalogue (OTC) from Cam Systems.
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Treadsetters discusses Falken distribution deal, Sunday Times accolade
UK and international tyre wholesaler, Treadsetters has recently been appointed as a UK distributor for the Falken tyre range – a move that it says enhances “significantly” its commercial tyre operation. The company says the Sumitomo-manufactured Falken brand joins Goodride and a number of specially selected mid-range and premium brands. The Shropshire-based wholesaler states that it has enjoyed a “very progressive trading period” in the last couple of years. As well as steadily increasing its product portfolio the company has also received a number of business accolades and were recently placed 59th in the Sunday Times International Track 200 list.
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Tyregiant helping support independent Bond International customers
Reg Bond is rounding the final corner on 50 years of tyre wholesaling since opening in Pocklington, near York, and the company is currently developing one of its bigger innovations – the move into online tyre retail with Tyregiant – signifying Reg and his family’s desire to drive the business forward. The upcoming milestone has also been marked by another achievement recently, as Bond was rewarded for the work in his sporting passion outside the tyre business. Bond was presented with a special Lifetime Achievement Award by Go Racing in recognition of his outstanding service to the sport. Bond International continues to support meetings at York Racecourse along with Infinity Tyres, for which the company is the UK distributor.
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@sign of the times
No one can deny that computers are now an integral part of the way we live and work. With the advent of mobile Internet connectivity – especially in the context of social media – they have become a central part of most of our lives. With this comes both an Orwellian suspicion of what people/corporations/governments might do with this data and the biggest opportunity yet to put your products and services in front of the right people. While the purpose of well-established media gatekeepers has been challenged by easier than ever information sharing, new quality and relevance measures have entered the market to help navigate the informational maelstrom.
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Shipping costs continue to fall
Sea freight rates are currently on a downward trend that looks likely to continue for the foreseeable future, says freight forwarding specialist Rob Shelley of Maritime Cargo Services. According to industry feedback, this year’s peak season from Asia to Northern Europe got off to a slow start in July, and remained unconvincing even up to the beginning of September. Exports from Asia to Northern Europe in the second quarter were only the same as during the same period last year, and year-on-year growth in the first seven months of 2013 reached just one per cent.
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