ATS Euromaster opens flagship centre
ATS Euromaster has opened what it calls a flagship centre in on the Gatwick International Industrial Estate in Crawley, West Sussex following more than £450,000 of investment. The new facility occupies a 7,574 square foot site and is set up to accommodate all vehicle types under one roof, including cars, vans, trucks, buses/coaches and industrial vehicles. Its opening follows the merger of two former centres in the local area; one of which serviced cars and vans, and the other commercial vehicles.
Continue ReadingTyres On The Drive secures £1.5 million investment
On 11 September Tyres On The Drive announced it had received £1.5 million of investment in a follow-on round of funding led by venture capital firm MMC Ventures. Launched in 2011 by former Michelin manager Dominic Clark, Tyres On The Drive offers its customers a mobile tyre-fitting service. Since the company’s launch it has grown to more than 40 staff with a fleet of 21 vans across the North West and West Midlands regions and is reportedly on course to double its workforce by the end of the year.
Continue ReadingAnglian Truck Tyre Management chooses UniSerV and e-Tablet
Essex-based Anglian Truck Tyre Management will be introducing CAM’s UniSerV application suite, featuring its e-Tablet and Document Manager modules, which will enable the commercial tyre specialist to create a seamless, streamlined, paperless process for its commercial tyre fitters, saving considerable administration time and money.
Continue Reading'Disappointing' August motorcycle sales
Speaking about the fall in sales of motorcycles in August, Sue Robinson, Director of the National Motorcycle Dealers Association (NMDA) which represents motorcycle retailers across the UK, said: "As the summer months are usually prime time for motorcycle sales it is extremely disappointing to see registrations decline in August".
Continue ReadingTyres, magazines and the quality dichotomy
What do tyres, websites and a new cover design have in common? It is all a question of quality. In the British tyre industry everyone talks about price versus quality. Almost as often the debate broadens out before settling in the amorphous arena of “value”. More often than not this means the narrowing of the gap between two perceived opposites. In practice it could mean a customer buying a high quality product for a lower than expected price.The classic example of this is the customer that buys a higher priced product that performs beyond either their expectations or what the competition has to offer. In either case both propositions are predicated on the basis of product quality. Without this there are only short term pricing and sales strategies. And this in turn leads to the key difference highlighted by the age-old business adage: “sales are vanity, profits are sanity”. Without a properly considered quality-focused market approach, businesses struggle to make sense in the long-term, whether the macro-economic environment provides wind in your sails or an adverse gale.
Continue ReadingTyrepress.com upgraded and relaunched
In just a few days’ time, a completely upgraded tyrepress.com will be unveiled. We’ve listened to feedback from within the industry and taken stock of the increasing demand for our online services, and the result is a totally redesigned site with improved mobile and tablet functionality along with more user friendly search and navigation.
Continue ReadingAA trials universal spare wheel too
The AA reports that it is the latest motoring organisation to be trialling the use of a 'universal spare wheel'. At the same time the company revealed data relating to spare tyre usage. A survey of 22,827 AA members revealed that close to a fifth (17 per cent) of members do not have a spare wheel in their car. The innovative wheel fits the majority of modern cars with a five-stud wheel. The 17” alloy uses a system of special adaptors of ten different sizes to find the best fit.
Continue ReadingRAC offering universal spare wheel with Dynomec and ATSE
Following a rise in the number of manufacturers that fit emergency tyre inflation kits instead of spare wheels, the RAC has introduced a universal spare wheel to handle call outs for unfixable punctures.
Continue ReadingManchester United names Apollo official tyre in UK and India
On 21 August, Apollo Tyres signed a three-year partnership with Manchester United, which sees the company named as the official tyre of the world-famous football team across both the UK and India. Details of the investment associated with the deal have not been released. What we do know is that as well as access to player appearances in both countries the company will be making the most of its association with Man U in online advertising as well as its marketing and point of sale material. In addition, in a development of its ‘go the distance’ philosophy, Apollo Tyres will create football-based play zones in local communities in the UK and India; these will feature recycled rubber and encourage healthy lifestyles among youngsters.
Continue ReadingPirelli commends long-serving staff
A total of 44 employees from Pirelli’s Burton upon Trent and Carlisle factories have been recognised for their ongoing commitment to premium tyre manufacturer Pirelli. Each year, Pirelli holds annual dinners to reward its employees who have worked with the company for a period of either 21, 30 or 40 years.
Continue ReadingAn age old message?
It hasn’t been a good month for global transport’s PR. A runaway train in Canada, followed by a train crash in Spain, a bus crash in Italy and the recent head-on railway collision in Switzerland tragically broke decades long fatality records in each area. Of course mass transport in the developed world has never been safer and incidents like this are thankfully rare. And despite the innate Gestaltist tendency to draw a correlation between the random international happenings, there isn’t one. But that doesn’t stop us being all the more aware of such incidents. Just like when you buy a new car and suddenly realize how many of that make, model and colour suddenly appear despite having been on the roads all along. With this in mind, one of the three incidents that has recently caught public attention stood out particularly clearly for this tyre journalist – the Italian bus crash. Before the investigation was even carried out, my mind was drawn back to another coach crash in the UK. While it is just speculation to suggest that aging was a factor in both cases and there is in fact no clear link between them, one couldn’t help but wonder if it was another case of apparent age-related tyre failure.
Continue ReadingShandong Yongtai, Treadsetters buy Covpress
China’s Shandong Yongtai Chemical Group, manufacturer of the Durun tyre brand and the DMack tyres used in the World Rally Championship, and UK tyre wholesaler Treadsetters have jointly acquired automotive supplier Covpress. The two companies are believed to have paid £30 million to buy the Coventry-based firm, which employs around 450 people and manufactures body panels for vehicle manufacturers such as Jaguar Land Rover, Nissan and Renault. Chinese and UK media sources report Shandong Yongtai will hold a 70 per cent stake in Covpress and TIA Group company Treadsetters the remaining 30 per cent.
Continue ReadingGrouptyre member Kenway Tyres celebrates 30 year anniversary
North-east Scotland Grouptyre member Kenway Tyres has celebrated 30 years in the tyre business, wholesaling tyres into the 8,000 square mile region and operating three retail sites in Aberdeen and Dundee. Kenway has expanded during its lifespan to capitalise on the success of its original site in Aberdeen. “We’re extremely proud of our achievements here at Kenway Tyres”, says managing director Alan Kennaway.
Continue ReadingBridgestone announces latest bike promotion winners
Two biking fanatics have received prizes from Bridgestone’s motorcycle team, responding to contests conducted at a recent motorcycle festival, and on the company’s social networking pages. Katrina Rex beat dozens of men to win a set of premium Bridgestone radial bike tyres at the recent Shropshire Bike Festival, holding out tyres on her outstretched arms for a longer period of time than anyone else. Meanwhile, Steve Trudgeon from St Austell triumphed in a Bridgestone Facebook competition, earning a place at the Honda Ron Haslam Race School at Donington.
Continue ReadingTransport MP visits Goodyear Wolverhampton
Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Secretary of State for Transport, Gavin Williamson visited the Goodyear factory in the West Midlands last week. The famous Wolverhampton factory has been developing tyres for 85 years in the region and is now a ‘Centre of Excellence’ for retreaded truck tyres. Gavin Williamson MP started: "Goodyear are an important employer for the local area. My constituency starts at the edge of Wolverhampton so many of my constituents will be working at the plant. It is an important local employer and important local investor in the West Midlands.”
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