Fleet Managing Director For National Tyres
In the UK, National Tyres and Autocare has appointed Kevin Parker as Managing Director of its Fleet Division. His previous position was as Sales Director for FTM Tyrefit and he has 13 years experience in the automotive trade.
Continue Reading“BioTred” To Replace Soot And Silica
According to the US tyre manufacturer Goodyear, they have developed a filling material for car tyres on the basis of renewable raw materials. Thanks to this new rubber mixture, as reported by the press officer Mr Fischer, tyre production will be less harmful to the environment and, compared to the normal silica tyre tread mixture, it offers a lower rolling resistance. Above all, it should be fuel saving. This new technology, which will be used for the first time in the summer tyre GT 3, will offer additional advantages for safety and handling. Presenting the BioTred for the first time to the German press at the end of January in Frankfurt, the company attracted a lot of interest. BioTred is an artificial name, with a deliberate spelling difference to tread, in order to highlight its ecological advantage immediately to the consumer. BioTred is a patented tread mixture containing an element from corn starch. However, in parts this element will replace the substances soot and silica which have been used for processing up to now. According to Dr. Annette Lechtenböhmer, who is a chemical engineer at the Goodyear Technical Centre in Luxembourg and also a university teacher at the Hanover University Institute for Process Engineering, this new filling material will reduce CO2 emissions in different ways. On questioning it was confirmed that the starch suitable for producing the filling material could also be generated from potatoes. Since Goodyear has spent five years developing this material and holds a couple of patents, a lead over the competition should be possible.
Continue ReadingUniversal Tyre Pressure Monitoring
Siemens Automotive has developed a universal tyre pressure monitoring system suitable for use with all OEM tyre makes and models. The system tracks pressure, temperature and acceleration and can identify tyre location on the vehicle on a near real time basis.
Continue ReadingLe Mans: Bentley Starts With Dunlop
As announced at the Detroit Motorshow, the new Bentley EXP Speed 8 will be exclusively equipped with Dunlop tyres for the 2001 Le Mans 24 hour race. This renews a 70 year old motorsport partnership. For many years the tyre brand has had a strong connection with Le Mans: exactly half the total number of winners have driven on Dunlop tyres.
Continue ReadingPAX To Be Offered As Option On Renault Scénic
It is expected to be confirmed at the Geneva Motor Show that Renault is to be the first manufacturer to offer Michelins PAX system as an option on a high-volume production vehicle – from the middle of this year, PAX will be available as an option on the Renault Scénic. The tyre on the PAX system will be called SPACITY, and a version of the Alpin winter tyre will be available later on in the year.
Continue ReadingOne Year On – Viking International
It was early in the year 2000 when Continental merged its two UK wholesalers, Viking Express and Birkenshaw International, to form Viking International. The move made a lot of sense, as the two companies had separate territories and there was little duplication of services – this was underlined by the fact that Viking International was formed with no redundancies being made in either company. In our article, Viking Internationals MD Alan Revie talks about the events of the past year, how the merger had affected customers and company alike and the prospects for the future. Times are difficult today for wholesalers, with costs increasing and price pressure on tyres and Viking International places great emphasis on IT and its role in modern business practice. One year on from the merger and Alan Revie is upbeat and confident about the future for Viking International, believing that the company is ideally placed to develop and grow.
Continue ReadingThyssen Krupp Acquires Magneti Marelli’s Shock Absorber Division
Thyssen Krupp, the car makers supplier, has taken over the majority of Magneti Marellis shock absorber and suspension department. Magneti Marelli is a subsidiary company of Fiat.
Continue ReadingNew President For Snap-on Inc.
The American company Snap-on Inc., one of the biggest suppliers of workshop equipment and, among others, parent company of Hofmann Werkstatt-Technik, has appointed Dale F. Elliott as President. He succeeds Robert A. Cornog, who will stay as Chairman of the Board until the next shareholders meeting.
Continue ReadingMexican Plant To Be Closed By Goodyear
Goodyear has announced that it is to close its tyre manufacturing factory at Tultitlan, Mexico. 1,559 employees will be paid off. The plant was opened in 1941 and Goodyear said that the reason for closure was that the plants high costs are incompatible with current economic conditions.
Continue ReadingFallout From Firestone Ford Impacts Industry
Fords Just In Time supply chain is expected to feel the effects of Fords cutback in production as the company replaces potentially dangerous Firestone tyres. The idling of three production lines will cut production by 24,000 vehicles, with a further cut to follow. Suppliers such as Lear Corp, Dana and Borg Warner are amongst those announcing reductions in forecasts due the knock-on effect of the Ford stoppages. Earnings forecasts are being affected by as much as 15 per cent according to some analysts.
Continue ReadingWheel Specialist Brock Has Its Own Production In Bosnia
The Brock-Group is known across Germany as an alloy wheel marketing company. Successfully marketing an assortment covering everything from commonplace to extravagant wheels, the group has gained the reputation of a quality supplier. Although it wasn’t carefully planned for future business, it cannot be purely accident that the group has owned a wheel factory in Bosnia for two years now. Meanwhile, nearly 100 machines are working in the factory 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 50 weeks a year, with an annual production capacity of some 500,000 wheels. However, this figure alone does not say very much; equipment and machinery, as far as it has been replaced, is state-of-the-art, and it is obvious that within only a few months this factory will be run exclusively by new and modern machinery. E.T.R.T.O, KBA, TÜV, SF 1 JWL and Jaso standards are fulfilled in order to guarantee quality. The qualification procedure of the factory will take place this August. In the interview with NEUE REIFENZEITUNG, Claudia and Elisabeth Brock point out that in the future the Brock-Group will go on putting emphasis on the upper level, i.e. the high-tech level. The assortment consists of very nice and very costly wheels, which are in demand all over Europe and the marketing of which is very interesting for manufacturers and for both wholesalers and retailers. High class segments consisting of aesthetically designed wheels and many special sizes form the mainstay of the Brock-Group, well-known by the names Brock Car Fashion and Rad Center Derkum.
Continue Reading“Agreement Close” For Carlyle To Buy ContiTech
Carlyle, the US private equity group, is said to be on the verge of paying Continental one billion Euro for its ContiTech division. Analysts say that the money will be used to finance purchases aimed at achieving Contis ambition to become a chassis management company rather than just a tyre manufacturer.
Continue ReadingLondon Listing For Ford?
Ford is said to be preparing to list the company on the London Stock Market in order to attract investors. The cost of the tyre recall has decimated profits in the USA, plus the market there is slowing down with the Big Three losing share. Ford is currently quoted on the New York Stock Exchange and a London listing would also emphasise the global status of the group.
Continue ReadingCradle To Grave Tracking Standards Announced
The Automotive Industry Action Group – Radio Frequency Identification – Tire and Wheel Work Group, has developed a two stage standard for labelling of OE tyres, allowing tracking from cradle to grave. The first stage is a simple label and RFID tag. The second stage will be the approval of an RFID read write chip inserted in the tyre at the point of manufacture. The AIAG will be carrying out evaluation and testing of suitable systems later in the year. (For further information on smart tyre technology see the July 2001 issue of TYRES & ACCESSORIES.
Continue ReadingNew Customer For Tirex Recycled Rubber
Canadian company Tirex has announced that Animat Inc. of Quebec has placed an order for recycled rubber to produce rubber mats. The order runs initially for a year and is for a monthly minimum of 100,000 lbs of Rutextm, the recycled rubber product produced by Tirexs cryogenic tyre recycling technology.
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