Two-thirds of UK consumers against winter tyres
67 per cent of drivers don’t think winter tyres are worth the investment, according to an online poll conducted by Co-op Insurance on 25 January 2019. The Twitter-based poll received votes from 4,084 individuals and a stream of interesting comments on the subject followed.
Continue Reading
Vellco Tyre Control sets sights on European retreading markets to establish growth
Vellco Tyre Control will seek to capitalise on increased optimism in the European tyre retreading market by expanding its casing supply business into new territories. Retreaders of commercial vehicle tyres were given a boost last year when the European Union introduced tariffs on certain new Chinese products in the segment, which have long caused headaches among retreaders due to their low price. The independently owned casing dealer and used tyre specialist from Weaverthorpe, North Yorkshire is engaged in the procurement, grading and sale of tyre casings of all types, including car, van, truck, agricultural, industrial, and earthmover. In addition to targeting selected European clients, Vellco said it would simultaneously consolidate and strengthen its position in key global markets such as South America and Africa.
Continue Reading
January 2019
Click on the CONTINUE READING button to view the January 2019 issue of Tyres & Accessories
Continue Reading
Michelin, Bridgestone in top 300 world’s most valuable brands, but fall in rankings
The Brand Finance Global 500 2019 report has listed two tyre brands, Michelin and Bridgestone, in its ranking of the world’s 500 most valuable brands. The top two biggest tyre manufacturers in the world both saw their brand value fall in value this year according to the brand analyst, but hung on to placings in the top 300. Michelin took over from Bridgestone as the worlds most valuable tyre brand in 2018, according to the organisations sector-based rankings.
Continue Reading
F1 ‘possibly the most demanding customer that we have’ – Isola
Pirelli’s agreement to supply tyres to Formula 1 for another four years follows a year in which the manufacturer confirmed it was working on a Cyber Tyre solution – Pirelli’s smart tyre development programme – for motorsport. After securing another term supplying the pinnacle of motorsport Pirelli’s car racing manager Mario Isola tells Tyres & Accessories why the tyre manufacturer was so keen to continue with its Formula 1 supply deal.
Continue Reading
BKT: Trends in agriculture from an insider’s perspective
Gruppo Nodari is a sizeable agricultural contractor in Brescia, Northern Italy. The company services farms and companies within the region of Lombardy, in particular offering its contracting services to biogas plants. A large proportion of Nodari’s tyre needs are meet by BKT.
Continue Reading
Vredestein making headway in competitive agri segment
The launch of a flagship product is a tough act to follow, but Apollo Vredestein has managed to keep things interesting this past year. The ranks of its top-flight Traxion Optimall line have swelled since the tyre’s launch at Agritechnica 2017, and the Vredestein brand is also experiencing growth further down the size scale. By doing so, doors are opening to markets where Vredestein isn’t yet well known in agricultural circles.
Continue Reading
Do markets dream of electric cars?
Phillip K Dick may well have been thinking far further into the future than the current popularisation of electric cars when he wrote his famous novella “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?”, however the rise of big data alongside electric and autonomous vehicles means the most advanced cars of today have an increasing amount in common with the artificial intelligence in the source material for the film Blade Runner.
Continue Reading
Practical emergence of RFID unlocks data opportunities
The industrialisation of big data has been progressing quickly in recent years within the automotive segment. TPMS sensor technology and the networks they feed data into have enabled increasingly sophisticated software systems to be created to use the massive amount of data we are now able to collect more effectively. Such systems are also able to increase the business applications of another technology, radio-frequency identification, or RFID, helping commercial tyre distribution chains to increase cost, time, and safety efficiency as well as accuracy in their collection of data. Steve Daly, commercial director of CAM, the provider of e-jobsheet, TiDaeX, and the Online Tyre Catalogue, told Tyres & Accessories about the opportunities RFID is now unlocking, and how future, more affordable reading technology could increase the reach of these gains.
Continue Reading
Sensorisation: About more than just tyre pressure
This section is entitled “TPMS and sensor technology” for a reason. No longer are in-tyre sensors about measuring temperature alone. Now TPMS basically means pressure and temperature, often with the addition of algorithmically generated road feedback, load information and even wear calculations. These “big data” contributions are routinely relayed to the cloud for analysis. At the same time external tread readers are measuring similarly important data and sending that to the cloud. Put all this together and we have what Pirelli calls the “sensorisation” of the tyre business. Whatever we call it, this part of the business is now about far more than just sensing tyre pressures. And, as far as uptake is concerned, legislation and technical innovation are the key driving forces.
Continue Reading
December 2018
Click on the CONTINUE READING button to view the December 2018 issue of Tyres & Accessories
Continue Reading
Motokiki tyre price comparison site launches
A new online tyre price comparison service has launched, aiming to provide UK motorists with an online tool to choose their tyres quickly and easily, and bringing together products from a wide variety of retail businesses. Motokiki’s comparison engine is designed to offer an impartial whole of market price comparison of tyres from a broad range of suppliers, as well as tyre label result comparison, and the location in which they can be fitted. The company initially comprises 20 staff in offices a short walk from Port Talbot railway station, working on the technical development and marketing of the website, with other aspects of the business outsourced to teams around the country, such as its London-based communications agency, FWD Consulting. Tyres & Accessories travelled to south Wales in late November to attend the launch, with Maven Capital Partners (“Maven”) and the Development Bank of Wales, which have collectively made an equity investment of £3 million in the company, also represented.
Continue Reading
5 years on, Evergreen-Zelos partnership ‘thriving’
Renault Clio Cup racer Dan Zelos has been supported by Evergreen Tyres for half a decade. The partnership started in karting, and has continued to Zelos’ current drive in the Renault Clio Cup. The tyre brand states that its support for Zelos is motivated both by the marketing opportunity it offers and by helping a young driver achieve his ambitions.
Continue Reading
Falken celebrates ‘most successful’ VLN season
Falken Tyres experienced its most successful VLN Endurance Championship season in 2018, securing seven podium finishes including two race victories, as its Porsche 911 GT3 R beat its competitors around the Nordschleife. The Type 991 has been the most successful Falken race car in the VLN to date, claiming two wins and nine podium finishes since its racing debut in April 2016. A reliable competitor, it has completed more than 30,000 racing kilometres overseen by Falken’s engineers.
Continue Reading