Mayfield Back at Del-Nat…as President
Well-traveled tyre executive Jim Mayfield has been named president of Del-Nat Tire Corp., returning to the company he once served as marketing vice president. Mayfield took over for Ed Fabrizio, who left the private brander last December without explanation. Mayfield was marketing vice president for Del-Nat from 2004 to 2006, and subsequently held posts with Stamford Tyres and most recently with Yokohama Tire Corp. Prior to joining Del-Nat in 2004, Mayfield held marketing and sales management posts with Continental Tire North America and Michelin North America. Dick Erickson, Del-Nat chairman, said, Jim’s level of knowledge in our industry combined with an intimate understanding of our company makes him the right choice to lead Del-Nat to future growth and success. (Tire Review/Akron)
Continue ReadingState Officials Clash on Goodyear Topeka Request
Kansas officials have reportedly disagreed over a decision whether to respond affirmatively to a request from Goodyear to provide nearly $38 million in state aid, in order to continue operating from the company’s plant in Topeka. The tyre manufacturer says that it will commit to $250 million-worth of spending on equipment upgrades at the plant if Kansas is willing to offer its suggested incentives. Goodyear says that without the upgrades, up to 700 jobs may have to be cut.
Continue ReadingGoodyear to Test Twice More before NASCAR Indianapolis
Following the tyre problems witnessed at last year’s Indianapolis NASCAR round, at which teams were forced to pit after every ten laps for fresh rubber, Goodyear will test its tyres at the Motor Speedway twice more this year. The additional tests join the two already performed, and are scheduled for April and June. The Allstate 400 will be run on 26 July.
Continue ReadingLanxess to Continue “Green Tyre” Development
Plastics & Rubber Weekly has reported that Lanxess is to press on with its development of reduced rolling resistance tyres including the rubber additive nanoprene, which is said to reduce wear without a similar reduction in grip. The plastics news source reports from Dusseldorf that Lanxess chairman Axel Heitmann told journalists at the company’s annual press conference on Tuesday 18 March that the company was well placed to deal with financial problems such as the 32 per cent decline in volume experienced by Lanxess’ performance polymers business.
Continue ReadingFerrari Challenge: Trofeo Pirelli Nominated for Award
The only video game to bear the name of a tyre manufacturer in its title racing simulation Ferrari Challenge: Trofeo Pirelli has been shortlisted in the 2008 North East Digital Awards in the Best Example of Game Development category. The game was developed by Gateshead-based driving game specialist Eutechnyx. “Ferrari Challenge was a labour of love for Eutechnyx and so you can imagine how pleased we were when it was so well-received by the audience and critics,” said Brian Jobling, Managing Director of Eutechnyx, “To now be recognised in the North East Digital Awards is a great honour.” Published by System 3 in the UK and by Activision-Blizzard in the US, Ferrari Challenge: Trofeo Pirelli was released in the Summer of 2008 on PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2 and Nintendo Wii. Offering players the chance to race some of the world’s most prestigious and desirable cars, the game uses Eutechnyx’ IAM– Intelligent Assist Mode– Technology to tailor the game to suit the player’s skill level and allows gamers to choose how real they want their racing experience to be. This gives players a unique gaming experience suited to their skill level to ensure a fun, exciting challenge.
Continue ReadingJK Announces New Indian Tubeless Range
JK Tyre today announced the launch of its new Ultima NXT tubeless tyre range. With sizes suitable for the Maruti 800, Maruti Wagon R, Maruti Zen, Zen Estio, Alto and Hyundai Santro, the new range represents an attempt by the Indian manufacturer to grab a larger slice of the domestic small car pie. “With the launch of Ultima NXT, we demonstrate our leadership in advance technology in tyres. The unique features of the Ultima NXT range of tyres include high control, smooth and silent drive. This captures all the benefits of the product and the experience we would like to give to the customer,” states company marketing director A S Mehta. The tyres boast hydroplaning channels for increased wet handling and anti-aquaplaning. They are also equipped with the company’s new “Unique Split Wing” design which aims to provide better dry and wet traction.
Continue ReadingMichelin Presents Millionth Energy Saver to PSA Peugeot Citroën
The Auto Channel reports that on Monday 9 March, 2009, Michelin presented PSA Peugeot Citroën with the millionth Michelin Energy Saver tyre, reaffirming the strategic partnership between the two groups. The Energy Saver made its debut exclusively on the Peugeot 308 in 2007. Michelin states that its ‘green’ technological solution generates fuel savings of nearly 0.2 litres per 100 kilometres in combined cycle driving, resulting in a reduction in CO2 emissions of nearly 4 grams per kilometre. In recognition, it states of its performance and the exceptional teamwork demonstrated by the partners, PSA Peugeot Citroën presented Michelin with an Innovation award in May 2006. Today, this tyre technology is widely deployed on a large number of Peugeot and Citroën vehicles.
Continue ReadingHiQ Tyre Retail Chain to Create Up To 500 Jobs
HiQ has announced plans to create up to 500 new jobs as part of its ambitious national franchise programme. The fast fit franchise chain, which currently has 137 HiQ centres across England and Wales, is creating the positions over the next three years as the number of outlets on UK high streets rises to a targetted 275 by 2012. The company has already accelerated the growth of the nationwide tyre and vehicle servicing network by signing long-term franchise agreements in 2008 when 106 Goodyear Dunlop owned HiQ centres were franchised. HiQ is now extending the model to many more towns and cities. Currently 41 HiQ franchisees operate 137 HiQ centres, compared to just 15 franchisees operating 33 centres in 2007. New jobs are now being created weekly, with for example, 10 new positions announced for HiQ’s Kettering store this month. HiQ Retail Director Juergen Titz said: “The objective is to grow the business with new open points in towns and cities. The plan is to get 170 centres by the end of 2009 and 275 by 2012. The franchisee network is investing more than £2 million into improved customer environments in 2009, and this award winning franchise concept will increase transparency and certainty for our customers.”
Continue ReadingMicheldever Buys Tyreweb’s 3 Branches
Micheldever Group has announced that it purchased Tyreweb on 2 March 2009. According to a statement detailing the acquisition, Tyreweb founder Karl Webber, decided “the time is right for somebody else to invest in taking the business forward” and has chosen to put his trust in Micheldever Tyres. Micheldever has supplied Tyreweb for many years and the two companies have reportedly built up a “very strong relationship.” Webber will now stay on with Micheldever and assist in taking the busines he built up forward. The three branches (two in Ashford and one in Folkestone) will continue trading under the Tyreweb name for the time being. Jon Cowles, group acquisitions director at Micheldever commented: “This is another example of providing an exit opportunity to a valued customer. There have been a number of opportunities for us to look at in the market over the past 12 months, many of which have proved not to be appropriate as they conflicted with our wholesale customer base, however, we have a strong pipeline of acquisitions coming through over the next year and it is great to kick 2009 off with an acquisition of this quality.”
Continue ReadingToyo Sponsors World Cup Ski Jump Final
Toyo tyres is sponsor of the World Final of the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup, which will take place in Planica, Slovenia between 19 and 22 March through Slovenian distributor, Span. According to the tyre company, the final is the biggest sports event in Slovenia attracting an audience of over 57,000 in 2008. In addition, two million viewers watch the final on TV around the World. Competitors come not just from the traditional Scandinavian countries but from all over Europe and beyond including Russia and Japan. Sponsorship brings with it coverage from the giant signs (positioned to give the brand maximum publicity) and TV time on most of the major TV channels broadcasting in Europe including the BBC, CNN and Eurosport.
Continue ReadingKumho Wins Russian Magazine Tyre Test
Kumho tyres have won a respected magazine tyre test for the second year in a row. Russian publication Za Rulem declared the Kumho Solus KH17 as outright winner of Za Rulems test of 15 major tyre brands. The extensive trial encompassed all key disciplines including: braking, steering response, safety, noise level, fuel consumption and wear resistance on both wet and dry roads. Kumhos Solus KH17 is strongly recommended and boasts excellent performance in all weather conditions as well as remarkable fuel efficiency. Kumhos second consecutive victory in our annual test proves last years result was well deserved,” Za Rulem commented. The Korean manufacturer also won considerable acclaim in a similarly comprehensive comparison of major tyre brands run by Germanys ADAC motorwelt.
Continue ReadingBT-016 Selected as Sole OE for Triumph’s Best Selling Bike
Bridgestone’s Battlax BT-016 tyre has been chosen as original equipment (OE) for Triumph’s best seller -the Street Triple. As of this month Bridgestone reports that it has 100 per cent share of OE on the model which, like the BT-016 tyre itself, has been recognised for revolutionising its class. This latest announcement tops what has been a successful year for the BT-016. The tyre, which successfully transferred Bridgestone’s five-layer compound technology, usually used to produce hand-made MotoGP tyres, onto the production line for the first time, has received plaudits from riders and racers alike.
Continue ReadingManfred Wennemer Nominated to Bekaert Board
Following Julien De Wilde’s decision not to seek re-election to the board of Bekaert, the steel wire manufacturer has nominated ex-Continental AG CEO, Manfred Wennemer as director. The appointment is subject to approval by the general meeting of shareholders, which will take place on 13 May 2009. Manfred Wennemer was chief executive officer of Continental AG from 2001 until August 2008, when he stepped down at the point that Schaeffler Group’s hostile takeover offer appeared to have reached the point of no return. Wennemer, had previously fought hard for Continental to retain its independence. He holds a Masters degree in Mathematics from the University of Münster, Germany and an MBA from INSEAD Fontainebleau, France.
Continue ReadingKlaus Rosenfeld New Schaeffler CFO
The Schaeffler Group has appointed Klaus Rosenfeld (42) to the company’s executive management board (effective 18 March 2009) where he will assume the post of chief financial officer (CFO). Prior to joining Schaeffler, Klaus Rosenfeld was a member of the management board of Dresdner Bank AG from 2002 and was responsible for the areas Finance/Controlling, Compliance und Corporate Investments. According to Reuters Rosenfeld is had been expected to step down from Dresdner Bank following its takeover by Commerzbank earlier this year. Rosenfeld replaces Thomas Hetmann (46) who the company announced was stepping down on 18 February. Schaeffler Group thanked Mr. Hetmann for his “hard work and dedication to the company.”
Continue ReadingSumitomo Certified as an ‘Eco-First Company’
Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd. has pledged its Eco-First Commitment to the Japanese minister of the environment. In response the company has received Eco-First Company certification in recognition of its groups efforts on environmental conservation based on the country’s Eco-First Program. However, from the tyre industry’s point of view, the most striking news is that the company is aiming to develop “the ultimate eco-tyre…100 per cent free of fossil resources and fuel-efficient tyre whose rolling resistance is reduced by 50 per cent for launch in 2013 and in 2015, respectively.” The company’s Enasave product is already 97 per cent petrochemical free, however, Sumitomo’s goal of achieving a fossil-free tyre in the next 4-6 years is certainly ambitious.
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