First Prize For Conti Teves
A. T. Kearney and the weekly magazine Produktion held a competition for the best factory of the year. 80 plants were nominated and the winner of the first prize for outstanding manufacturing processes was the Conti Teves factory in Rheinböllen, which produces brake components.
Continue ReadingStudy Says UK Motor Dealers ‘Unable To Compete’
A report by the Consumers Association says that UK franchised motor dealers cannot compete effectively against rivals in every area of business, from new car sales to servicing. When it comes to repairs and sales of spare parts, the dealers cannot match prices and performance of competitors such as the large fast-fit chains, the study concludes.
Continue ReadingNokian To Produce Commercial Tyres In The USA
Finnish tyre manufacturer Nokian has confirmed that the company intends to produce commercial tyres in the USA as soon as possible. The first products will be forest tyres, followed by industrial tyres. A spokesman for Nokian said that it had not yet been decided whether the company would build its own factory in the USA, whether there would be some kind of joint venture co-operation, or whether tyres would be manufactured in an off-take agreement. The Finnish company has been active in the US and Canadian markets for some years.
Continue ReadingFirst Take-off For “Spirit of Goodyear”
Goodyears newest Blimp has finished its first flight successfully. The blimp Spirit of Goodyear follows the Spirit of Akron which crashed last year.
Continue Reading“Goodyear, All Systems Go!”
A lengthy report of a speech by Goodyear boss Sam Gibara, in which he tells of the group’s return to the position of number one tyre manufacturer. The speech encompasses a range of subjects affecting Goodyear – the importance of the Goodyear family and the Goodyear culture, above all the importance of people. The example of Nokian Tyres is held up as, size for size, it is probably the most profitable tyre manufacturer in the world. What Nokian can do, Goodyear subsidiaries can surely do? It is important to get the right mix of products and to shorten the time to market, it is important too to be able to supply customers with what they want, when they want it, and Mr. Gibara acknowledges that, in the past, fill rates have not been all they might be. A decisive factor in Goodyear’s success will be the effectiveness of its multi-brand strategy. Other tyre manufacturers have successfully developed such strategies and Goodyear, with its own name and that of Dunlop, has two very powerful brands in its armoury. Customers differ in their driving habits and incomes and thus they need different tyres to fulfil these various needs. Goodyear has the brands to satisfy all these customers. Finally, Mr. Gibara reiterated Goodyear’s goal to be not only be the number one tyre manufacturer in the world, but the most profitable one. And then he closed the meeting. Except that he didn’t; there was no meeting and there was no speech from Mr. Gibara. The article which can be downloaded in full length as PDF file (size: 2.84 Mbyte, Adobe Acrobat Reader required) is, in fact, an imaginative piece written by Klaus Haddenbrock, outlining what Mr. Gibara could have said on such an occasion. And Mr. Gibara’s reaction? See his letter in reply in TYRES & ACCESSORIES’s April issue.
Continue ReadingMetzeler Honoured For Environmental Efforts
Pirellis German motorcycle tyre plant Metzeler has been accredited with ISO certification 14001 for environmental efforts.
Continue ReadingW.d.K.Announces Price Increases
The Wirtschaftsverband der Kautschukindustrie (German association of tyre and rubber manufacturers) is pointing out the necessity of price increases as soon as possible to offset ongoing increases in raw materials costs (rubber, oil, carbon black).
Continue ReadingTyre Manufacturers In FT Top 500
The Financial Times has published its annual list of the top 500 global companies, ranked by market capitalisation. The only tyre company in the world list is Bridgestone, at position number 300. In the list of the top 500 European companies, there are three; Michelin (304), Pirelli (311) and Continental (482).
Continue ReadingTyre Manufacturers In Global E-Commerce Initiative
Six of the largest tyre manufacturers have announced their intention to develop a global e-business purchasing company. Rubbernetwork.com is an independent company which will host a global exchange, including Conti, Cooper, Goodyear, Michelin, Pirelli and Sumitomo Rubber. Confidentiality is assured and the exchange will be open to all manufacturers and suppliers. It will be operating by the year end. Significant savings and efficiencies in purchasing are predicted.
Continue ReadingGeneral Motors Award For ContiTech
After last years success, Continentals business unit ContiTech has again been awarded Supplier Of The Year by the American General Motors Corporation. ContiTech Vibration Control won the prize for supplying damping elements for the engines of Opels Astra, Omega and Vectra.
Continue ReadingContinental Truck Road Safety Round Table
Every so often, Continental Tyre UK assembles a panel of interested parties to talk through a subject of interest. The most recent ‘Round Table’ was on the subject of truck safety, particularly that of tyres. Roadside checks on trucks seem to reveal a story of tyre neglect, with many tyres showing damage which would be obvious to the most cursory examination, implying that nobody bothers to look. The legal minimum tread depth for trucks in the UK is 1mm, and has been so for the past three decades. Conti is not convinced that raising the limit to 1.6mm would have a significant effect on safety. Most good fleet operators change tyres at 2mm anyway, which is what Conti recommends. Roadside fitter safety was discussed – a dangerous job made even more so by the extensive use of the mobile phone, which removes the police from the equation. If the police do not know of a breakdown, they cannot provide safety backup for the fitter. Like many other companies, Continental provides a complete tyre management service for fleets, taking on all responsibility for tyre-related matters. This not only means peace of mind for the operator, but should ensure better maintained, safer tyres. Full details of the Round Table discussion can be found in TYRES & ACCESSORIES 6/2000.
Continue ReadingFewer Visitors For “Tyres 2000”
According to Peter Hülzer, CEO of the German national tyre dealers association BRV, the Exhibition Tyres 2000 in Essen attracted a total of 15.000 visitors. This is 1,100 visitors fewer than for the 98 exhibition. The main reasons for this development are reckoned to be the later-than-usual date of the exhibition, the start of the holiday season in some parts of Germany and in a period of very hot weather during the exhibition.
Continue ReadingOlaf Papke Succeeds Manfred Riemer
After working for Vredestein for 30 years, Manfred Riemer – responsible for agricultural tyre sales for the past 15 years – has retired. His successor is Olaf Papke, who was already engaged in the agricultural tyre business at Trelleborg before joining Vredestein.
Continue ReadingNew Strategy At Titan
With the sale of assets Titan International (Quincy/Illinois), a manufacturer of speciality tyres and wheels, has exited the oe business with lawn and garden equipment as well as all terrain vehicles (ATVs) and improved its second quarter results due to the price paid by Carlisle Tire and Wheel Co. The new strategy of Titan will be to concentrate on agricultural and construction wheel business and tyre assemblies and to focus more on aftermarket demands.
Continue ReadingAttorney General: Charges Justified In Recall Case?
US Attorney General, Janet Reno, is looking into whether or not Ford and Bridgestone/Firestone violated any civil or criminal laws in the way that complaints about allegedly faulty tyres were handled.
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