Goodyear Announced New Senior Marketing Position
Goodyear Tire & Rubber has appointed R. Scott Rogers to the position of chief marketing officer for the companys North American Tire (NAT) consumer business. In this newly created role, Rogers will oversee all aspects of advertising and marketing for the companys consumer tyre business, including the Goodyear, Dunlop and Kelly brands. Before joining Goodyear, Rogers, 39, served as senior vice president of marketing and sales for Norwegian Cruise Line since 2005. Prior to that, he held a number of positions for The Procter & Gamble Company between 1992 and 2005.
Continue ReadingAlliance Opens New TN Warehouse
Alliance Tire USA has opened a new warehouse in Portland, Tennessee, near Nashville. The new facility, said Alliance, is along the I-40 and I-65 corridor, and “allows us to easily send tyres to customers in any direction.” “We are loading the warehouse right now with container loads of farm, forestry and industrial tyres,” says Manny Cicero, president of Alliance Tire USA. “We are now able to stockpile many of our most popular designs and sizes. Keeping key tyres in inventory helps us maintain ‘safety stock’ for our OE customers, and it helps us support our distributors around the country. Especially in these days where credit is tight and distributors are pulling back on investing in inventory, Alliance is committing money and product to the market to shorten the supply chain and to ensure product is available where and when needed.” (Tire Review/Akron)
Continue ReadingPolk: U.S. Vehicle Median Age Increased in 2008
The median age of passenger cars in operation increased to 9.4 years in 2008, breaking the previous two-year record high of 9.2 years, according to a new report by R. L. Polk & Co. In its annual report, Polk said that the median age for all trucks in 2008 increased to 7.6 years from 7.3 years in 2007. Light truck age increased from 7.1 years in 2007 to 7.5 years in 2008. As the fleet of pick-up trucks, SUVs and minivans purchased in the late 1980s and through the 1990s ages, their scrappage rates accelerate, said Polk’s Dave Goebel. The percentage of total passenger cars and trucks scrapped in 2008 increased to 5.6 per cent compared to 5.2 per cent in 2007. The passenger car scrappage rate was 5.1 per cent. For all trucks, the scrappage rate was 6.3 per cent and light truck scrappage was 6.4 per cent, both up notably from 2007. The current economic environment, coupled with high gas prices last spring and summer, have resulted in consumers delaying purchases of vehicles because their discretionary income has fallen, said Goebel. Based on the uncertainty of what the future holds, consumers are trying to keep their current vehicles running longer, until their confidence improves. (Tire Review/Akron)
Continue ReadingHanover Court Blocks Schaeffler’s Koerfer Appointment
A ruling by the German courts in Hanover has prevented Schaeffler from appointing its chosen chairman for Continental. The manufacturer wanted to install attorney Rolf Koerfer, a Schaeffler family adviser, as the head of the German manufacturer, a court spokesman said on 3 March. The decision was made following a complaint from a member of Germanys corporate governance commission that Koerfler may have a conflict of interest. The ball bearing manufacturer, which holds a direct 49.9 per cent voting stake in Continental, put forward Koerfer for the position at an extraordinary supervisory board meeting in January. In addition to Schaeffler’s holding, the group has transferred another 40 per cent block of its stake in Conti to the banks in order to remain below 50 per cent, as agreed to end a takeover conflict. The court has given board members until 10 March to comment on the case.
Continue ReadingRanger Provides Tuition with New Changers, Balancers
Ranger Products has announced that the launch of its new range of “robust and reliable” tyre changers and wheel balancers will be accompanied by a special team of installation and after sales demonstration engineers. The company believes that “a lot of the problems workshops have when they buy wheel service equipment for the first time is that personnel do not know how to use the equipment correctly.” It hopes that by offering additional technical advance, workshops will experience fewer problems with fitting and balancing modern tyres and wheels. Based in the Hampshire town of Alton, Ranger Products provides nationwide service from its depots in the north and south of England.
Continue ReadingIndian Tyre Exports Decrease 12% Between April & December
A marked decline in vehicle sales worldwide together with tighter import restrictions in some countries is being blamed for a 12 per cent decrease in tyre exports from India in the last three quarters. According to India’s Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association (ATMA), Indian tyre companies exported 2.346 million tyres between April and December 2008, compared with 2.668 million during the same period of 2007. This drop in exports occurred despite a devaluation of the rupee against the US dollar and numerous other major currencies.
Continue ReadingVMI Awarded Innovation Gong for Tyre Builder
Dutch tyre building machinery manufacturer, VMI has been presented with the award for Innovation and Excellence in tyre manufacturing for its new MAXX Tyre Building Machine at the Tire Technology Expo in Hamburg, Germany. An international jury said the major reason for its decision was the breakthrough in fully automatic tyre building. The MAXX is newly developed machine able to produce high quality passenger car green tyres with a bead size of 14”- 24” with increased productivity: the building process is fully hands-off, with the loading of the beads and the unloading of the green tyre done automatically. The design includes moving drums and a fixed transfer position to allow for a more precise process, flexibility and speed. Laser measuring devices and digital cameras automatically control and record the positioning of components and quality of splices. VMI reports that the first VMI MAXX is already in production in Finland.
Continue ReadingBBS Parent Company Reports “Extremely Difficult” Market Conditions
Belgium based Punch International nv, parent company of wheel manufacturer BBS International GmbH, has posted an net profit of 43.3 million euros for the 2008 year, an increase of 51.9 per cent – however the company has made the less than sanguine statement that the performance of its automotive operations were “weak” and the market “extremely difficult. Altogether, the company generated sales of 341.5 million euros, an increase of 3.0 per cent on 2007.
Continue ReadingTRIB’s Brodsky to Give Retreading Presentation at Autopromotec
Not only will the Tire Retread & Repair Information Bureau (TRIB) be exhibiting at the Autopromotec show between may 20 and 24, 2009, the organisation’s managing director has been invited by the sponsors of the exhibition to make a presentation titled, “How the Tire Retread & Repair Information Bureau Helps to Promote and Defend the Retread and Tire Repair Industries Worldwide”. Brodsky’s presentation will take place on Thursday, May 21 at 4:00pm.
Continue ReadingBridgestone Introduces Third Generation of Run-flat Tyre
One of the greatest criticisms of existing run-flat tyre technology, inferior ride comfort compared with standard tyres, is said to have been addressed in the development of Bridgestone’s “third generation” of run-flat tyres. On March 3, 2009 the Japanese tyre major announced it has successfully developed new technologies that make such an improvement feasible, and the marketing of third-generation run-flats will begin this year. Bridgestone reports it will focus its attention upon sales to OEMs for fitment to new cars.
Continue ReadingFirst European Sale of Marangoni Ringbuilder 3000
Marangoni Retreading Systems, the Marangoni Group business unit operating in the retreading materials and technology sector, has announced the installation of the first “Ringbuilder 3000“ in Europe. This building machine was introduced by Marangoni Retreading Systems two years ago and is designed for large retreaders; the unit is able to produce at least 200 Ringtread retreads per eight hour shift while at the same time occupying a small floorspace. The RB 3000 allows a single fully automated machine to extrude the cushion gum directly onto the casing, fill the craters, apply and suitably roll the ring, thus creating a tyre ready to be vulcanised. Its high level of automation guarantees outstanding productivity, savings in labour and faster processing times. Initially developed solely for the American market, it has now made its European debut in response to the recent trend towards the significant growth of continental Europe’s larger retreaders.
Continue ReadingKumho Gets Top Reviews From German Mags
Kumho Tire received some favorable press in Europe recently, earning honors in tyre tests conducted by German automotive magazines. The company received an overall assessment of “very recommendable” by Autozeitung, and its Road Venture MT KL71 was selected as “Off Road Tyre 2009” by German 4x4 magazine “Off Road.” “European automotive magazines from Germany, Great Britain and Sweden hold tests several times a year to compare and rank performance of recommendable tyres,” said N.W. Cho, senior researcher for Kumho. “The tyre test results influence the purchasing decisions of European consumers, as they are an official recognition of performance and quality.” (Tire Review/Akron)
Continue ReadingYokohama Displays Wide 4×4 Range
While the Japanese tyre marque Yokohama is mainly known for its high performance road, race and rally tyres, the manufacturer also produces a large range of tyres for the off-road and SUV market. The latest crop of SUVs as well as genuine off-roaders includes the ADVAN ST and Sport – part of the manufacturer’s flagship range – the Parada Spec X for the tuner market, and the Geolander range, designed for everything from on-road and light off-road to “hardcore” OTR usage. The UK distributor, Yokohama HPT has recently introduced several new sizes across all ranges and now lists a further eight sizes for the Geolander A/T-S from 15” to 20”, four for the Prada SpecX from 20” to 24” and four for the ADVAN Sport XL from 17” to 21”. The M/T+ is available from 15” to 17”, allowing the off-road market to fit larger tyres than traditionally possible while the H/T-S ranges from 15” to 18” and the ADVAN ST, from 17” to 24”.
Continue ReadingBMW Chooses Dunlop for ALMS
When the flag drops to open the 2009 American Le Mans Series (ALMS) racing season on 21 March, the M3 racing cars of the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team will be sporting new shoes from Dunlop tyres. BMW Motorsport has chosen Dunlop as its official race tyre supplier for the coming ALMS season after extensive winter testing. One of the strongest teams in the ALMS GT2 series, the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team will compete with two BMW Motorsport factory-supported cars in 2009. Dunlop tyres will provide the transfer of power to the track. Martin Birkman, motorsports manager for BMW of North America, said, “The CSL coupes of BMW of North America’s very first racing program in 1975 raced on Dunlop tyres, and we welcome Dunlop back as a technical partner on the BMW Rahal Letterman Racing Team M3s.
Continue ReadingPlenty of Room for Large Retreads
Just months ago, the earthmover tyre market faced production shortages so severe that manufacturers and vehicle operators alike were glad to fit any tyre they could find. Things are different now. At the end of February Tyres & Accessories met with OTR Tyres (OTR) production manager, Wayne Cornell, and asked how retreads are competing now the earthmover tyre market has switched from shortage to surplus. The earthmover tyre shortage was great news for low cost tyre importers and retread manufacturers alike and those quick enough to react experienced significant sales increases. Now however, as the world’s media has reminded us all ad nauseam, the global financial crises has brought a recession in its wake that is affecting all areas of business. Construction was the first to feel the effect of the downturn in demand that has ensued, and at the time of going to a certain multinational mining company is negotiating with the Chinese government for investment. This in turn shows just how much the recession has slowed the growth – and therefore tyre needs – of key consumers. With OEMs and major end users requiring fewer tyres than before, tyre supply is much less of a problem. There are still some shortages giant tyres and some loader tyres, according to industry sources, but it’s a world apart from the situation 12 months ago.
Continue Reading