Kwik-Fit Buys Majority Of Montinex
It has been confirmed that Kwik-Fit has purchased the vast majority of depots which made up the Montinex group retail chain. Montinex was put up for sale by the Administrative Receiver in early August and the deadline for receipt of bids was 18th August. The Kwik-Fit deal was finalised less than two weeks later. Kwik-Fit would not reveal the exact number of centres involved, but said that the company would study them in detail in order to determine the best way forward for each - at this early stage no decisions have been made.
Continue ReadingSales Target Of 10 bn Euro In 2000 For Continental Achievable
The German group aims to achieve 10 bn Euro in sales this year. After having presented the half year figures for 2000 this is still likely, but they cannot improve the Earnings previously predicted. While Teves and ContiTech are in EBIT better than last year, the truck tyre division could improve the EBIT by five million to 33 million Euro. The p.c-tyre division is 24 million Euro in EBIT below the first half of 1999 despite an increase in sales of 4%. The situation with General Tire is poor. The companys sales climbed by 23% (in dollars only by 8%) but the EBIT is 20 million Euro below the comparable time last year. General Tire will have difficulties avoiding red figures this year.
Continue ReadingGold-Mine For Pirelli
Pirelli sold a 90% share (Cisco holds 10%) in the very young company Optical Technologies. OT has around 100 employees and a first half-year turnover of US$ 12 m. Turnover for the whole year is expected to be US$ 30 m. Optimistic observers speculated that the price would be around US$ 1 bn, while Pirelli in fact received slightly over US$ 3 bn (after tax) in cash. According to the management, acquisitions in the tyre field are unlikely, but it may be that Pirelli can bring forward the introduction of its MIRS system faster than expected. Pirelli is, and will remain, in partnership with Michelin and Goodyear to promote the PAX system.
Continue ReadingETRA Scrap Tyre Recycling Conference II In Leipzig
Following the 1999 event in Schwerin, this year’s ETRA Scrap Tyre Recycling Conference will take place in Leipzig/Germany. It is scheduled for 5th December.
Continue Reading“Smart Tyre System”: TRW Joins Michelin
Michelin and TRW Automotive Electronics have agreed to develop advanced tyre pressure monitoring technology, hand in hand with Michelins PA System Technology. The companies displayed their linked technology . The technology is being displayed at the Convergence 2000 International Congress on Transportation Electronics, being held in Detroit. The TRW system will give drivers advance knowledge of underinflation and allow them to remedy the fault before pressure falls to a dangerous level. In the event of a fast puncture the PAX system ensures the tyre stays on the wheel. The TRW system uses a sensor mounted in a high tec valve that sends details by radio signal to the on board control unit. The agreement will see both companies working towards the most effective method of alerting the driver to possible problems.
Continue ReadingJoint Venture Between Autobytel And Continental
Tyre manufacturer Continental intends to engage itself more in the e-business arena – especially on the B2C (Business to Consumer) level. The company has therefore decided to begin cooperation concerning tyre distribution with autobytel.com, an independent US-American internet-platform which offers a complete car service to its customers covering the complete life cycle of the car. Working together with tyre retailers, a complete service package will be offered to customers. All retailers interested in this project will be given the opportunity to participate, even if they do not possess the necessary infrastructure at the moment. The two companies explained during a press conference in Frankfurt what they are going to do. Continental is initially investing about 15 million Euro, most of it for the creation of a tyre portal. At present the whole project exists only on paper but Continental wants to arrange the basics of this project by the end of February 2001, and the operative start is planned for autumn 2001. During the press conference, Conti CEO Kessel underlined his interests in working closely together with the professional tyre trade.
Continue ReadingYokohama Restructures To Face The Future
A year ago, there were rumours that Yokohama was seeking an alliance with Michelin. TYRES & ACCESSORIES recently visited the company and, in addition to factory and R&D facility visits, interviewed the President of Yokohama Rubber Company, Mr. Yasuo Tominaga. Mr. Tominaga spoke of the companys wide-ranging restructuring plan and whether a company the size of Yokohama can survive alone in a global market dominated by the big three manufacturers.
Continue ReadingGoodyear Invests 50 Million Marks in Production Base Philippsburg
This year Deutsche Goodyear will invest a total of 50 million marks in new production facilities at its Philippsburg factory while simultaneously introducing more flexible working hours. Having obtained the agreement of the works council to a seven-day week (now 21 shifts per week instead of the former 17 shifts), productivity at the German Goodyear factory is now set to increase once more. The additional capacity thus created will be utilised chiefly to produce high-speed tyres, whose market importance in Germany has been rising steadily for several years. Central to the investment is super-modern machinery for the further improvement of product quality in the manufacturing process for high-speed tyres -–a market segment of central importance to Goodyear’s strategic development. The production volume of five million tyres at Philippsburg will remain unchanged for the time being, declared Leo Ruf, a member of the management, but the share of high-speed tyres in our annual production will go up by 700,000 to approximately four million units. The background: Since 1995 demand for technologically sophisticated tyres in high-speed categories of more than 240 km/h (speed indices W, Y and ZR) alone has grown by over 200,000 units per year in the German market. This interesting niche is estimated to double from 1.5 to at least three million units by the year 2001.
Continue ReadingAnd Now for Further Growth at Bridgestone/Firestone Germany!
High growth rates in the winter tyre business brought Bridgestone/Firestone a strong 1999 result. Turnover figures were further improved over the previous year, according to the management, with prestige products WT 12 and FW 930. To ensure this is not just a one-off success, a new high-performance low-profile tyre, the Bridgestone RE 040, already fitted as original equipment on the new BMW Z8, is to be introduced this spring. In the standard tyre segment the Firestone FH 590 is also expected to convert the company’s 2000 performance into figures. A new departmental structure has been introduced at Bad Homburg to increase work efficiency and customer friendliness. Some divisions, like distribution, logistics and data processing, have been more closely interlinked. In the last few years the OE share has grown considerably so that it now amounts to one third of sales. The independent tyre trade continues to be the basis of the company’s business activities but is supplemented by other distribution channels like cooperatives, regional chains and car franchise firms, whose special requirements are, above all, seen as an opportunity to gain more know-how and to sense the needs of the market even earlier. This year again the whole public relations effort of Bridgestone/Firestone Germany will very consciously be centred round motorsport and Formula One in particular. Previous experience has shown that the manufacturer and its trade partners have benefited from the resulting image transfer to the standard tyre range.
Continue ReadingWill Rubber Prices Climb?
After rubber prices fell to a 30-year low last year, analysts are expecting a significant turnaround. The reasons are increased demand, especially from the Japanese rubber industry, and reduced output from the main natural rubber producing countries.
Continue ReadingPreserving Precious Resources: Goodyear Presents Eagle NCT 5
The new Eagle NCT 5, introduced to the trade press at Goodyear’s own South of France test track in Mireval in mid-February, is a high-performance tyre in speed categories from H (up to 210 km/h) to Y (up to 300 km/h) with the emphasis on comfort. The manufacturer claims that the new type of tyre, immediately available in more than 20 sizes, is an improvement on its predecessor, the NCT 3 – sometimes to a very considerable extent – in braking on dry and wet roads or aquaplaning both in straight-line driving or cornering. The new product is aimed at an interesting growth market. 52 million tyres of speed index H and faster are currently sold in Europe per year, and this segment already covers 28 p.c. of the market (186 million tyres). The market share of high-performance tyres in Germany is about 35 p.c. at the moment, but still rising strongly. In the new NCT 5 Goodyear’s tyre developers had ecological qualities especially in mind. Compared with its predecessor the newly developed tyre can boast rolling resistance reduced by 20 p.c. and optimised tyre noise. In addition to the reduced rolling resistance which, according to the manufacturer, saves up to 5 p.c. in fuel, the NCT 5’s mileage is said to be improved by up to 25 p.c. In naming this new tyre Goodyear quite deliberately skipped the number 4, since the Far East, one of the target markets for the NCT 5, regards the number 4 as a symbol of impending disaster.
Continue ReadingNokian Tyres Record Figures
Nokian Tyres turnover last year reached 322.6 m Euro (28% higher than 1998) and an operating profit of 42.1 Euro (1998 32.2 m Euro). Profit before tax was 35.5 m Euro (1998 29.9 m Euro) and net profit 25.7 m Euro (1998 21.6 m Euro). The company invested 85.7 m Euro (1998 72.7 m Euro), this was mainly in production (30 m Euro). There was also expansion in retail equity with the purchase of the Finnish company ISKO.
Continue ReadingSava Tires Presents New “Effecta” Summer Tyre
Sava, the Slovenian tyre manufacturer – 60 p.c. owned by the Goodyear group since 1998 – presented the Effecta to the public for the first time in mid-March. This S/T summer tyre, developed in cooperation with its European group headquarters in Luxembourg, a non-directional successor to the Exact line, is to be introduced in the market in 28 sizes, from 135/80 R 12 68 T to 185/65 R 15 88 T, by June this year. More than 300 tyre traders in total from 35 countries, among them far-flung places like Iceland or Lebanon, had assembled in the idyllic holiday resort of Bled to see the new Sava product launched. The German contingent consisted of about 50 members of Team, which markets all segments (car, light truck, truck) of the Sava brand exclusively in Germany. The new tyre is the first new product development since Goodyear took over almost two years ago. It derives directly from the Luxembourg research and development centre and is thus destined to represent Goodyear state of the art technology. What this means and how the Effecta could support Sava raising brand awareness in Western Europe which is one of the tyre manufacturer’s most important aims can be read in the April issue of NEUE REIFENZEITUNG.
Continue ReadingSandra Farmand Wins World Cup
Sandra Farmand has won the Snowboard World Cup. Farmand is the promotional star for the Pirelli Winter Snowsport winter tyre.
Continue ReadingCornelius Blanke Moves From Bridgestone To Wella
The PR Manager of Bridgestone/Firestone Germany, Cornelius Blanke, is leaving the company to join Wella AG (Darmstadt/Germany).
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