![Discount Tire-backed RoboTire automated tyre changing system raises $7.5 million](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/RoboTire_Image_1-scaled.jpg)
Discount Tire-backed RoboTire automated tyre changing system raises $7.5 million
RoboTire, a Detroit-based automotive robotics and automation startup closed a US$7.5 million investment round in October. RoboTires patented system uses robots to change tyres “in a fraction of the time human operators can” purportedly reducing “multiple-hour experiences to under 15 minutes”. The Series A investment round was led by The Reinalt-Thomas Corporation, which sells tyres through 1000+ branches trading under the Discount Tire and Americas Tire brands in the USA. Automotive Ventures, Detroit Venture Partners, 640 Oxford Ventures and several angel investors participated in the funding round.
Continue Reading![Vesevo tyre analysis system wins Automotive Testing Technology International award](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Immagine1.jpg)
Vesevo tyre analysis system wins Automotive Testing Technology International award
Vesevo has been awarded Hardware Innovation of the Year in the Automotive Testing Technology International Awards. According to the company, the VESevo system won thanks to its hardware which offers detailed analysis of the quality of tyres and predicts their interaction with the vehicle – offering advantages, above all, in safety, performance, and quality control.
Continue Reading![Facts needed: Giti Tire addresses US workforce claims](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Giti-USA-Plant-sml.jpg)
Facts needed: Giti Tire addresses US workforce claims
Giti Tire has responded to allegations of problematic employee relations at its Richburg plant in the USA. Following the publication of a joint letter penned by the United Steelworkers (USW) union and “more than 40 civic, faith and government leaders,” David Shelton, director of industry relations, Giti Tire Manufacturing (USA), states that the tyre maker “always welcomes sincere and legitimate input from our team members and other community members.” He adds that Giti Tire’s policy is to ensure it possesses “all the facts and accurate information” before taking action on such matters and calls upon others to do likewise.
Continue Reading![Butadiene JV: Tatneft & KazMunayGas sign agreement](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Butadien-JV-sml.jpg)
Butadiene JV: Tatneft & KazMunayGas sign agreement
Russian oil and gas company Tatneft and Kazakhstani state-owned oil and gas company KazMunayGas have officially commenced a joint venture to produce butadiene rubbers with the signing of a corporate agreement by Nail Maganov, general director of Tafnet, and Alik Aidarbayev, management board chairman of KazMunayGas. The agreement follows the signing of an agreement earlier this year that set out the basic terms of the project as well as a roadmap for its implementation, a framework agreement and an agreement on an action plan for cooperation.
Continue Reading![ANRPC: Natural rubber output will be up 1.8% in 2021](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Natural_rubber_tree-scaled.jpg)
ANRPC: Natural rubber output will be up 1.8% in 2021
Global natural rubber (NR) production output will rise 1.8 per cent to 13.836 million tonnes by the end of 2021, according to figures compiled by the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) and published on 22 November 2021. However, while global output appears to have grown this year, full-year 2021 global demand projections point to growth of 8.3 per cent to 14.028 million tonnes. Therefore, demand still outstrips supply and so the resultant prices look likely to remain high.
Continue Reading![Bryan Adams takes Pirelli Calendar ‘On the Road’](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/May_Cher_04-scaled.jpg)
Bryan Adams takes Pirelli Calendar ‘On the Road’
The Pirelli Calendar 2022, featuring photography by Canadian guitarist Bryan Adams and presented in a vinyl LP sleeve, has launched with an online event. Adams’s images celebrate stars of popular music, including historical icons Cher and Iggy Pop. As well as a self-portrait, the first time the photographer has been included as a calendar subject in its 48th edition, Adams has written a song using the calendar’s title, ‘On the Road’, which will feature on his next album. Pirelli says the calendar’s launch represents a landmark for the company, as it marks a return after the pandemic crisis interrupted its annual publication schedule and because it coincides with Pirelli’s 150th anniversary.
Continue Reading![Sri Lanka acknowledges GRI for export contribution](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Export-Award-1-sml.jpg)
Sri Lanka acknowledges GRI for export contribution
Bestowed by the country’s President, the Presidential Export Award is considered Sri Lanka’s highest honour in recognition of outstanding contribution to the export sector and to the country’s economic development. The most recent awards ceremony took place on 26 November, and tyre maker GRI was named Best Exporter of Dry Rubber Products for the second consecutive year.
Continue Reading![Chinese authorities stop Yokohama alloy rim counterfeiters](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Yoko-Advan-fake.jpg)
Chinese authorities stop Yokohama alloy rim counterfeiters
The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., announced today that it has succeeded in removing fake Yokohama aluminium wheels from the market in China. Authorities in Foshan, Guangdong Province aided this most recent victory against counterfeiters.
Continue Reading![Pirelli CEO wins Romanian Order of “Industrial and Commercial Merit”](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Pirelli-Romania.jpg)
Pirelli CEO wins Romanian Order of “Industrial and Commercial Merit”
The executive vice chairman and CEO of the Pirelli Group, Marco Tronchetti Provera, was recently named as a Commander of the Romanian order of “Industrial and Commercial Merit” in appreciation of his “important contribution to the strengthening of the bilateral relationship” between Romania and Italy.
Continue Reading![New majority shareholder: Maj Invest Equity takes 51% in Genan Holding](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/placeholder-sml.jpg)
New majority shareholder: Maj Invest Equity takes 51% in Genan Holding
End-of-life tyre recycling firm Genan has a new majority shareholder after PKA, sole owner of Genan since 2014, agreed to sell 51 per cent of its shares in the company to Maj Invest Equity 5 K/S, a fund overseen by one of Denmark’s leading asset management companies. PKA continues to co-own Genan as minority shareholder.
Continue Reading![Continental recalls 67,128 tyres across Europe, including 477 in the UK](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/CEC5_3D_cropped.jpg)
Continental recalls 67,128 tyres across Europe, including 477 in the UK
Continental today announced a voluntary tyre replacement program for 67,128 ContiEcoContact 5 tyres in size 235/55 R 17 103 H XL across Europe. However, the number of tyres being voluntarily recalled in the UK is far lower, with just 477 ContiEcoContact 5 tyres sold in the UK replacement market covered by the announcement. The reason for the recall? “In rare cases, if the affected tyres are used over a longer or repeated period of time, with heavy loading or possible overloading, a sudden loss of air may occur.”
Continue Reading![Bridgestone closing 3 Diversified Products plants](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/placeholder-sml.jpg)
Bridgestone closing 3 Diversified Products plants
Bridgestone Corporation has announced plans to close three of its non-tyre production facilities. The Shikoku, Gifu and Gotemba plants in Japan, operated by Bridgestone Diversified Chemical Products, will respectively close in Q3 2022, Q1 2023 and Q2 2023, with their output taken up by the business’s remaining six facilities. Bridgestone expects that the 83 employees at the three plants will continue working for Bridgestone Diversified Chemical Products.
Continue Reading![Virtual plant aiding Maxion Wheels’ production efficiency](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/placeholder-sml.jpg)
Virtual plant aiding Maxion Wheels’ production efficiency
In order to optimise the efficiency of its aluminium wheel production facility in Limeira, Brazil, Maxion Wheels has created a virtual replica of the plant’s production processes. By employing ‘Digital Twin’ technology, the world’s largest wheel manufacturer can anticipate how the actual plant performs under specific conditions, thereby ensuring it achieves the highest levels of efficiency and efficacy. Maxion now intends to roll out the technology at other facilities around the world.
Continue Reading![Cricket: TVS Eurogrip principal sponsor to Chennai Super Kings](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/TVS-Super-Kings-sml.jpg)
Cricket: TVS Eurogrip principal sponsor to Chennai Super Kings
TVS Eurogrip, the brand that claims market leadership within India’s two- and three-wheeler tyre segment, has become principal sponsor of the Chennai Super Kings cricket team for the 2022 to 2024 seasons.
Continue Reading![Test track to boost Bridgestone Americas’ tyre development](https://www.tyrepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/atpc-aerial-view.jpg)
Test track to boost Bridgestone Americas’ tyre development
Bridgestone is enhancing its tyre development capabilities in the USA with an expansion to its Americas Technology Center campus in Akron, Ohio. The project includes the construction of a new vehicle dynamics test track that will facilitate the development of future tyre technologies by allowing team members to drive prototypes first-hand and thus quickly ascertain which further enhancements are necessary. The track will also supplement tyre testing operations currently performed at Bridgestone’s Proving Grounds in Texas, Ohio, Mexico, and South America.
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