“Michelin – The BMW In The Tyre Industry”
Business newspapers in France and England are commenting on a paper from the french analysts Gaetan Toulemonde and Alexis Boyer both from DB Global Equities are recommending Michelin shares as a clear buy. The share price - at about 31 Euros at present - has, according to the analysts, the potential to rise to 50 Euros within 12 months. Michelin is seen by them as the BMW in the tyre industry with strong brands and an excellent brand strategy. It is expected that Michelin will announce in a press conference at the end of February a turnover for 2002 of about 15.7 bn Euro and an operating profit of 1.1 bn Euro. For this year the company is aiming for a turnover of more than 17 bn Euro and an operating profit of more than 1.2 bn Euro. The stock capitalisation at present is 4.6 bn Euro.
Continue ReadingFiat Auto Predicts Larger-Than-Expected Loss For 4Q
Fiat has warned that its auto division will report a loss of around 187 million Euros for the fourth quarter. Previously the company had predicted a break-even for 4Q, while analysts were forecasting a loss of 35 million Euros. If the estimate is correct, Fiat Autos loss for the year 2002 will be 1.4 billion Euros. The company has sold assets in an attempt to improve its financial position, including its 5 per cent stake in General Motors, bought by Merrill Lynch for US$ 1.16 billion.
Continue ReadingGoodyear Fires 700 In Akron (Update)
Although reductions in staff had been expected, the news item still fell like a bombshell: Goodyear, the tyre manufacturer, is sending more than 700 salaried staff home, 350 of these from the company headquarters in Akron, Ohio, alone. The press releases on the subject refer to a "restructuring", holding that the move was necessary to strengthen attempts to accelerate Goodyear's turnaround. With this measure, it is said, Goodyear can remain competitive, and CEO Keegan even demands something like a "winners' attitude" from the remaining associates. This may go down well in America, yet to the ears of staff hit by the cuts, who have not been charged with having done anything wrong, it must sound almost cynical. Meanwhile, Thursday January 16th , Akron witnessed moving scenes among staff. For one thing, no one expected such serious staff cuts; and for another, it looked as if someone had simply gone through the ranks with a rake, plucking out staff members who never even dreamed of being dismissed. The entire proceeding bears a certain handwriting and leads one to suspect that top and higher-echelon management made the decisions more or less on their own, and that middle management, presumably was not involved in the matter and now lives in fear of a loss of functionality. In the end, the work to be done has neither gone away nor even lessened. Instead, it must be carried out by the employees still holding their positions.
Continue ReadingChanges At Goodyear India
Antonio M. Capellini has been named as the new Chairman and Managing Director of Goodyear India. Capellini previously headed Goodyear commercial OE operations in Brazil. He replaces Luis Ceneviz who is moving to Goodyear in Australia.
Continue ReadingBill Hall To Leave Goodyear GB
Bill Hall, MD of Goodyear Great Britain, is to leave the company later this year to work in a family-run business consultancy. He will spend the next six months working on a number of strategic initiatives to accelerate the integration of Goodyear Dunlop UK. He joined Goodyear 24 years ago and has held a number of senior positions in the UK and Europe, launching the pan-European Truck Force service network. The role of MD, Goodyear will disappear as the company develops a structure based around strategic business units, reporting to Andreas Niegsch, General Manager, UK.
Continue ReadingBridgestone And Jordan Sign Up For Fifth Year Running
Bridgestone Motorsport has extended its involvement with the Jordan Grand Prix team for a fifth consecutive year. Bridgestone began supplying tyres to Jordan in 1999 and since then Jordan has won two Grands Prix and achieved six additional podium positions.
Continue ReadingConfirmation Of Job Losses At Goodyear
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has announced restructuring actions in its corporate headquarters and North American Tire operations that will eliminate more than 700 salaried staff positions. The action is being taken to improve the companys fixed cost structure.
Continue ReadingPersonnel Shuffle At Alcoa
In a series of staff changes at Alcoa, William F. Christopher, 48, has been named executive vice president, Alcoa and Group President for Alcoa Aerospace, Automotive and Commercial Transportation. He has been responsible for aerospace and commercial transportation since September and now adds Alcoas global automotive market to his remit. This group includes Howmet Castings, Alcoa Fastening Systems, Alcoa Wheel and Forged Products, AFL Automotive, Alcoa Cast Wheels and Alcoa Automotive businesses.
Continue ReadingU.K. Firm Buys Canadian Microwave Plant
Environmental Waste International Inc. has made its first sale of its reverse polymerisation tyre processing plant. It has sold its first plant to an un-named firm in the United Kingdom for an operation to be located there. The company has received a deposit of more than 1 million dollars against the purchase price of 10 million dollars. The plant should be commissioned within 18 months. Environmental Waste International’s system uses microwave energy to separate scrap tyres into carbon black, oil, steel and hydrocarbon gases. The plant can process 3,000 tyres per day. It reduces each 9kg tyre to about 3.5kg of carbon black and 1kg of steel. The plant can use the oil and hydrocarbon gases released to produce enough electricity to run the system. Excess electricity can be sold to the power grid.
Continue ReadingNokian and Matador To Commence Contract Manufacturing
Nokian Tyres plc and Matador AS are signing a contract manufacturing agreement. This transaction will mean that Matador will produce Nokian branded speed categories S, T, and H car summer tyres at its factory in Slovakia. The tyres will be sold in Eastern European markets. The production target for 2003 is 100 thousand Nokian tyres with initial sales taking place during the first quarter of the year. Volume manufacture will increase to 300 thousand tyres by the end of 2005. Through contract manufacturing Nokian will continue to ensure its growth potential in Eastern Europe. Production capacity at the companys factory in Finland will be freed to produce ultra high performance tyres. The agreement will be valid until the end of 2005 and after that on a one-year basis.
Continue ReadingRMA Quits TIC
In the UK, the Retread Manufacturers Association (RMA) has announced that it is to leave the Tyre Industry Council (TIC). RMA Director Sheila Ikin said that, while the association still supported the principles of the TIC, it felt that it was more appropriate to concentrate its resources more directly on retreading and the RMAs growing involvement in Europe with the Bipaver retreading division. Brian Smith, TIC Chairman, said that he regretted the withdrawal of the retreaders, but he understood that changing circumstances have presented them with different challenges and opportunities.
Continue ReadingMore To Go At Goodyear?
Reports from Akron point to a further 1,000 positions being slashed at Goodyear Tire and Rubber. The news was disseminated to all staff by an internal company memo from new CEO Robert Keegan. Of the 1000 job cuts some 400 are expected top take place across salaried posts at Akron. There is also speculation that there may be shift layoffs and plant closures.
Continue ReadingRFID First For Michelin
As reported in T&A RFID tyre identification systems are about to become an element of tyre production and management. After testing on truck and earthmover tyres, Michelin has begun fleet testing of Radio Frequency Identification tagging on passenger car and light truck tyres. The technology allows the tyre identification number to be associated with the vehicle identification number (VIN) making the tyres uniquely identifiable with an individual vehicle, telling when and where the tyre was made, maximum inflation pressure, tyre size, etc.. The ability to identify and track individual tyres through their life cycle has attractions for tyre management services, but ultimately may have applications in the control of the tyre life cycle, including retreading and recovery.
Continue ReadingGeneration Power At Titan Technologies
Titan Technologies (Albuquerque/USA) has announced that its ability to generate electricity by using the gas and carbon black byproducts generated by its tyre recycling process has sparked considerable interest from tyre shredding operations across North America. Titan had been researching the use of its plants to generate electrical power. Titan addressing costs and developing scrubbers to eliminate emissions from combustion of the oil, gas and carbon black produced by the process. Once these costs have been determined, Titan will develop an electrical generation business pro forma for different locations. At this time, Titan believes that a TRTM plant is an economically viable electrical generation system. Ronald L. Wilder, Titans president, added, All cities and countries have major waste tyre problems and most, if not all, will need additional electrical generation. There can be special benefits if additional power comes from recyclable waste tyres. Titans current claim is that the BTU output of a Titan Technologies tyre recycling plant processing 100 tons of scrap tyres per day is almost 3 billion BTU/day in excess of the energy required to operate the recycling plant. This excess will generate approximately 20 mega watts of continuous electrical power.
Continue Reading8,000 Jobs Go At Alcoa
Alcoa is to cut 8,000 jobs after posting a fourth quarterly loss of 223 million dollars. The loss included charges of 95 million dollars for restructuring of operations serving the aerospace, automotive and industrial gas turbine sectors. The restructuring mainly affects Europe and South America. Alcoa has also announced that it is to sell its non-core speciality chemicals and packaging equipment businesses.
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