Bandvulc Wins Supplier Award from Key Partner
Bandvulc Tyres is celebrating after being awarded “Supplier of the Year” by one of its key partners, Tructyre Fleet Management, for the second consecutive year. The criteria for the award is how well a company, whether they be a tyre, vehicle or ancillary supplier, measures up in terms of supplier performance, and commenting on the win, Bandvulc sales channel manager Tony Doyle said “It’s very nice for a supplier to recognise the hard work that all of the team at Bandvulc put into customer services and especially satisfying that we were able to maintain the hard work and commitment and for it to be recognised.”
Continue ReadingMarangoni to Restructure “Tyre Retreading” Business Area
“Our company, like other companies that operate in the tyre sector, is not, and has not been, an island in itself.“ With these words, Brenno Benaglia explains the reach of the current economic recession and its consequences, which are shaping up to be structural rather than cyclical. Despite a clear cut in truck and passenger car retread production and sales figures, the sales & marketing director for Marangoni’s Tyre Retreading business area points out that the Italian company is sticking to the growth and expansion strategy it presented two years ago.
Continue ReadingBridgestone E-reporter Contest Now Open to Part-Time Students
With just four weeks before the closing date for entries, Bridgestone has announced that eligibility for its e-reporter contest has been extended to part-time students. Any student from within Europe studying any part-time course can now submit an entry, the company says. Students can submit their e-reporter entry online at www.bridgestone.eu/e-reporter anytime before Tuesday 31 March 2009. As part of their entry, candidates will need to demonstrate that they have the journalistic flair required to write a newsworthy story and develop creative interview questions. This year, entries can be submitted in English, Dutch, French, German, Polish, Spanish or Portuguese.
Continue ReadingMatrac X3 Tops Marshal 4×4 Range
The ever-increasing range of Marshal 4x4 tyres is available through nationwide, distributor Bond International. Street Tyres – KL17, KL12 and KL51 The Matrac X3 KL17 range recently introduced for top line SUVs includes most popular sizes for 17 to 22-inch rims, including Y speed rated and XL fitments. The tyre’s key features include stability at high speed, excellent traction, durability and powerful braking performance. The high performance Matrac STX KL12 SUV tyre is engineered to combine extreme wet weather performance with stylish appearance. It is available in sizes from 15-inch through to 28-inch and H, V and W speed ratings. Another relatively recent introduction is the Road Venture PT KL51. Available in sizes from 15 to 18-inches, this all-purpose street touring tyre provides excellent all-season traction, extended mileage performance and a quiet ride.
Continue ReadingCooper Reports 2008 Losses of $219 million
Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. has published losses of $219 million for the 2008 financial year. The company made profits of $120 million in 2007. 2008 group sales totalled $2.88 billion, down slightly from 2007 sales of $2.93 billion. According to a company statement detailing the financials, some of the 2008 losses can be attributed to restructuring charges from the company’s planned closure of its Albany, Georgia, tyre facility. Cooper’s International Tire Operations division, which includes Cooper Tire & Rubber Europe, reported sales of $176 million in the fourth quarter of 2008 compared with sales of $228 million in the same quarter of 2007. According to the company, this decrease was the result of decreased volume, offset by improved price and mix. Expansion of the facilities in China was partially affected by the decrease in demand globally for tyres. The segment was also negatively impacted by a $31 million charge for impairment of goodwill. For the full year, the segment reported net sales of $975 million, an increase of 11 per cent compared with the year before.
Continue ReadingThe Wheels USA Show: Over Sized, Over Powered – and Over Here!
If your idea of ‘proper’ transport involves acres of chrome, a displacement measured in cubic inches and plenty of cylinders, then Santa Pod Raceway UK reckons you’ll love the Wheels USA show, held at the circuit between May 1 and 4. For an entire weekend, the Northamptonshire countryside will echo to the blissful sound of big block Hemis and flathead Fords as the cream of the UK’s American car (or should we say automobile?) fleet and their enthusiastic owners descend on the venue for a weekend of racing, dancing, and enjoyment. And although its a Yank-tank lovers paradise, the event is open to all genres of custom, classic and retro cars – and even motorcycles. So if you can’t afford a couple of tonnes of Detroit Iron, there’s no need to borrow or peculate the cash: Santa Pod says you’ll be made very welcome, regardless of whether you show up in a Chevy – or a Chevette.
Continue ReadingFrom Shearography to Pressure Testing
During the last decade Germany’s SDS has contribute to tyre quality via its Interferometric Tire Tester (ITT) range. The product line extends from applications for motorcycle, race, car, truck, bus and aircraft tyres through to special applications for OTR tyres with an outer diameter of up to 4.2 metres. But what exactly takes place during the SDS sheography process? The ITT series’ state of the art technology employs “Speckle Shearing” through the use of a single or multiple closed measuring set-up that contains an interferometer with CCD camera and multiple laser diodes with integrated optics.
Continue ReadingMaxxis Reports an Increasing 4×4 Marketplace Share
Ongoing advertising within leading consumer off-road magazines, a strong presence at major off-road events and encouraging results in tyre comparison tests are all factors Maxxis says is helping the brand increase its share of the 4x4 marketplace. The Maxxis range, which Maxxis International UK boasts is one of the largest line-ups of off-road, on/off-road and road going 4x4 tyres available in the UK, includes products for numerous specific applications. Amongst this line-up is the largest complete range to fit 16-inch Land Rover Rims, plus a series of extreme tyres and patterns purpose-designed to tackle muddy conditions. Speaking of tough conditions, Maxxis reports that its 4x4 tyres are under evaluation by volunteer organisation 4x4 Response Wales, which is part of a nationwide network providing logistical support to the emergency services, local authorities and GPs in the event of severe weather conditions and emergency situations.
Continue ReadingMerkel: Loan Guarantees are ‘Right Tool’ for Schaeffler
Various online news sources are quoting German Chancellor Angela Merkel as saying that liquidity guarantees would be the right tool to help companies asking for public aid, such as Schaeffler Group. Chancellor Merkel said she has not seen a restructuring plan from either Schaeffler or car maker Opel, which is also requesting government support, yet. I regard [liquidity] guarantees as the tool we are eyeing, Merkel told journalists, according to Dow Jones. “Germany has an interest in strengthening companies which have a strong foundation,” Reuters quoted Merkel as saying. Meanwhile, Schaeffler continues to investigate the possibility of debt-for-equity swaps as a means of paying off some of the multi-billion euro loan it borrowed to buy Continental AG. According to Bloomberg, financial institutions such as government-controlled Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc - which backed Schaeffler’s takeover of Conti - may “saddle taxpayers with distressed assets as they negotiate debt-for-equity swaps with failing corporate borrowers.”
Continue ReadingKwik-Fit Warns ‘Eco-Coasters’ Not to Lose Control
What risks would you take to save money? Kwik-Fit has expressed its concern about a growing group of motorists who chance damage to their vehicles (and themselves) do to just that. The fast fit chains calls such drivers eco-coasters, and its caution comes in response to research that shows some 5.4 million “financially prudent motorists’, 15 per cent of all UK drivers, have taken to selecting a neutral gear when going downhill – just to cut their fuel bills.
Continue ReadingAutopromotec 2009 Goes Green With ‘Futurmotive’ Feature
The Bologna Trade Fair Centre is set to host the 23rd, biennial Autopromotec show between 20 – 24 May 2009. According to the company behind the show, the 2009 event is set to be the biggest and most future-orientated yet. Show organisers Promotec SpA recently visited London and gave Tyres & Accessories details of what we can expect in May A key new feature confirmed at Autopromotec 2009 is “Futurmotive,” which the organisers call “an attention-grabbing new feature showcasing environmentally sustainable technological innovations for car servicing companies. One of the show’s highlights, Futurmotive is being coordinated by Autopromotec in collaboration with Polo per la Mobilità Sostenibile (POMOS) (Centre for Sustainable Mobility) at the University of Rome La Sapienza; and the Centro Salesiano di Formazione Professionale (CNOS FAP). The new Futurmotive feature is designed to respond to increasingly widespread interest among consumers towards alternative car fuelling and maintenance, with special attention being given to fuel economy and CO2 emissions.
Continue ReadingPirelli to End Tyre Production at Manresa, Spain Plant
Pirelli Tyre is reportedly ending tyre manufacturing at the company’s Manresa, Spain factory on 31 December 2009. According to a Reuter’s report, the company told union officials it hoped to branch into “other activities,” however further details are not expected until April. According to the report 550 workers employees in Manresa may lose their jobs. Headcount at the plant is said to have fallen from 750 after car demand fell in Spain. The concept of establishing a logistics centre for tyre distribution is reportedly being floated as a factory alternative. According to the Pirelli website, the Manresa factory (located in the Catalonia region of Spain) opened in 1924 and covers 211,000 square metres. Production at the plant totals 41,900 tonnes of UHP passenger and SUV tyres a year. Total employees were numbered at 1009.
Continue ReadingMRF Launches Wanderer SUV Tyre
Indian manufacturer MRF has announced the launch of its new tyre series for SUVs, the MRF Wanderer. The range is all-terrain with a cut-resistant compound in addition to a reinforced steel-belt package under the tread and a multi-layered carcass and the sidewall, adding up to a tyre designed for longer life. It also boasts heavy, very visible branding on the sidewall, giving it a striking appearance. The tyre is to be released onto the domestic Indian market, with a specific focus, according to the company’s press release, on such models as the Mahindra Scorpio, the Bolero, the Xylo, the Tata Safari and the Sumo.
Continue ReadingGoodyear Supports African Charity Success
An expedition of Land Rover enthusiasts, supported by Goodyear, has completed its mission to travel 6,500 miles for a range of charitable causes across Africa. The team set out from Goodyear’s Birmingham head office, as reported on Tyrepress.com in early January, and finished in Timbuktu having donated their vehicles, along with educational and medical supplies, to good causes along the way. The charities included Sightsavers International in the Gambia and Mali, Operafrica in the Gambia and Village by village and Sabre Charitable trust in Ghana. In total eight vehicles were donated to help the charities conduct their work. Goodyear supplied the vehicles with the brand’s market leading 4x4 tyres, the Wrangler MT/R. For such a dynamic range of terrain from roads and gravel to deserts and flood plains, the vehicles really needed high performing tyres for their journey. Having been used previously on the Land Rover G4 Challenge, the Wrangler’s ability to traverse the toughest of terrains with its reinforced side walls and aggressive shoulder blocks gave the required performance in the vast range of conditions the team encountered.
Continue ReadingLockout Continues at Apollo Outsourced Factory Despite Talks
A fresh round of talks over the ongoing lockout at the Apollo Tyres outsourced PTL Enterprise factory in Kalamassery India was held on February 24, yet the deadlock between company management and union representatives continues. Apollo reports that a resolution has been reached for ten out of the twelve issues at hand, however the two opposing parties cannot – or will not – see eye to eye on the remaining two.
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