Essen Show Without Michelin Group
Michelin will not participate in the Reifen 2002 tyre show in Essen with an own booth. It was reported that the managers of the tyre divisions (car, truck, agricultural ...) have had their own ideas and differing opinions as to the value of the fair and could not come to a conclusion. An official statement from the tyre manufacturer is expected shortly.
Continue ReadingBeru Success in North America
Beru together with its partner Lear, announced that the company has won a contract to supply one of the big 3 in North America with the TPMS tyre monitoring system. Beru expects sales of 20 million Euro from that contract alone in 2004 and 60 million annually in the following years.
Continue ReadingFord Will Sell Kwik-Fit
Goldman Sachs has been appointed to handle the sale of Fords Kwik-Fit Group as part of a move to concentrate efforts on core vehicle manufacturing businesses. The sale is expected to raise over one billion pounds (1.63 billion Euro). Ford bought the company from Chairman Sir Tom Farmer for 1.6 billion pounds (2.61 billion Euro) in 1999. Last week Sir Tom was emphatic that whatever the future of Kwik-Fit, he intended being involved.
Continue ReadingFarmer To Buy Back Kwik-Fit? (updated)
There is speculation in the UK press that Sir Tom Farmer may be poised to buy back Kwik-Fit from Ford. Ford would sell Kwik-Fit for $1 bn, it is suggested, which is just over half of what the car manufacturer paid for the company in 1999.
Continue ReadingFirst Colway Retread Truck Tyre
C-Tyres, the company formed after the management buy-out at retreaders Colway and Motorway, has started production. The first heavy truck tyre - a 385/65 22-5 - has just rolled off the production line. Branded Formula Colway, the new range consists of premium truck tyre retreads, says C-Tyres MD Gary Oliver.
Continue ReadingIndian Investment For Goodyear
Goodyear is set to invest the equivalent of US$ 36.4 million in Goodyear South Asia Tyres Pvt Ltd., the company which runs a tyre factory at Aurangabad, India. This follows a previous investment by Goodyear in 1999 of US$ 62.2 million. The factory produces tyres for both the OE and replacement markets.
Continue ReadingHayes Lemmerz Completes Sale of its System Service Division
Hayes Lemmerz International announced the sale of its non-core System Service business to Schedl Automotive System Service Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. Verwaltungs-KG, in Germany. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Hayes Lemmerz acquired the System Service business in 1997 in connection with the acquisition of Lemmerz Holding GmbH. The business has approximately 250 employees and operates five tire and wheel assembly operations, one of which is a 49% joint venture (51% Continental in Portugal). These facilities are located in Belgium, Germany, the Czech Republic and Portugal.
Continue ReadingFord On The Floor: 35,000 Have to Go
William Clay Ford has presented his restructuring programme which he hopes will lead the car giant out of crisis. The company wants to reduce the workforce by 35,000; 22,000 of which will be in the USA. None of the redundancies will affect German (or UK) Ford operations. Ford told journalists in Detroit that he wants to reach profits of $7bn by the year 2005. But first Ford has to make provision for $5bn in restructuring costs.
Continue ReadingOpel: The General Motors Problem Child
General Motors will also reduce its workforce around the world by around ten per cent, even though it was in profit in 2001. The problems at Opel are much bigger than expected because German-based Adam Opel made a loss of about 675 million Euro last year. Management and Union relations deteriorated through lack of communication from both sides.
Continue ReadingMarket Domination By FTM
Fleet tyre management phoenix, FTM, has claimed domination of the UK fleet tyre management market, with coverage, largely exclusive, of 80 per cent of the fleet market. Some 1641 depots and 400 mobile units give FTM the claim to being the largest network of independent tyre retailers serving this market in the UK. Managing Director, Mike Wise, said at the annual dealer conference, that this had been achieved in the face if doubts and criticism from both the industry and press, and against a range of unprofessional business tactics from competing fleet tyre operators. Sir Tom Farmer, speaking as CEO of the Kwik-Fit Group which owns FTM, complimented the team on their success with a business which he couldnt have given away 18 months previously.
Continue Reading“Dakar” Success for BF Goodrich And Mitsubishi
Whilst the fight for victory between the car drivers was exciting right into the final stage of the Paris Dakar rally (the winner was Hiroshi Masuoka, second place went to Jutta Kleinschmidt). The tyre supplier to Mitsubishi was not to be beaten – the first eight vehicles were fitted with BF Goodrich tyres.
Continue ReadingFirestone Recall – Now Bridgestone Sued For First Time
For the first time in the Firestone recall saga, Bridgestone is being sued alongside its US subsidiary. A 46-year old nurse, injured in an Explorer rollover accident, is suing Bridgestone Tokyo, the US-based subsidiary Bridgestone/Firestone Americas Holding Inc. and Ford. In the past, Bridgestone has claimed that it is not liable because its US company is independently operated, although in November a US District Judge ruled that Bridgestone can be held liable, as it transacts business in the United States and is therefore subject to US laws.
Continue ReadingIntegrated Vehicle Tyre Monitoring Launched
A co-operation between Michelin and Wabco sees the launch of a tyre pressure monitoring system specifically designed for commercial vehicles. The system consists of wheel modules which measure tyre inflation pressure and transmit the data to a vehicle mounted receiver. In the event of pressure loss the data is sent several times every minute. The module is attached to the outside of the wheel, alleviating many of the problems associated with internal sensors. An Electronic Control Unit (ECU) capable of handling up to 12 wheels is mounted on the vehicle chassis. In the case of trailer units, each trailer has its own ECU. The ECU transmits the signals to a cab mounted display unit which alerts the driver visually and acoustically whenever a problem arises. The position of the faulty tyre can be ascertained by pressing a button on the display. The system has the advantage of an evaluation algorithm developed by Michelin which detects pressure deviations and leakages immediately. It even functions whilst the vehicle is stationary. The system can be retrofitted and will be commercially available in Europe by the middle of 2002.
Continue ReadingNew Distributor For Westlake
Eskay Tyres, based in Sittingbourne (Kent) have been appointed sole European distributors for the Westlake brand of radial and bias-ply tyres. The range includes passenger, light truck, truck, agricultural, ATV, OTR and industrial tyres.
Continue Reading100 New Jobs At C-Tyres
Colway Tyres has been re-incarnated as C-Tyres in a management buy out backed by the Royal Bank of Scotland. The deal was created through Tait Walker Chartered Accountants and Hay and Kilner solicitors. Colway Tyres was the market leader for passenger tyre retreads, boasting sales of around 600,000 and Motorway Retreads were the third largest premium truck retread producer. The two firms together under the C-Tyres banner should have excellent prospects, said Allan Kelly of Tait Walker Corporate Finance. Managing Director Garry Oliver, Finance Director Peter Morris and Operations Director John Harrison announced that future business has already been secured with Kwik-Fit, ATS, National Tyres and Motorway/Hi-Q. The firm expects to take on in excess of 100 new employees in 2002 - including many of the skilled staff laid of when Colway closed its doors.
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