Africa
Shandong Province based Qingdao Odyking Tyre Co. Ltd. produces and markets a full range of radial and bias tyres, including passenger car, light commercial vehicle, truck, OTR, industrial, agricultural and lawn tyres. The company reports on its website that it produces six million tyres per annum and offers quality assurances in the form of ISO9001, DOT, ECE, GCC, CCC and other certifications.
Stamford Tyres is an established exhibitor at Tyrexpo Africa and has supported the show since being launched in 2004. In March the Singapore based company will once again be using the show to further endorse the group’s growing presence in the South African tyre and wheel market.
Apollo Tyres’ Onkar S Kanwar has called the company’s performance in the third quarter of the 2009-10 financial year a “remarkable performance”. The company chairman had ample ground for such praise – year-on-year net profit ballooned from Rs 89 million (₤1.2 million) to Rs 1.8 billion (₤24.4 million) on the back of a Rs 22.96 billion (₤311.0 million) net profit, an increase of 108 per cent from the third quarter of the 2008-09 financial year.
Nitralife states with pride it was the first company in the world to actively promote the use of nitrogen inflation gas in car and truck tyres. It held the first field tests with the substance in early 1995 and the success of these led to the formation of Nitralife "Nitrogen in Tyres" in mid 1996.
Al Saeedi Automotive TRD Co (LLC), the exclusive distributor of Gallant brand truck tyres in the Middle East and Africa, has added 1200R24 20PR GL 885 to the range of sizes it offers. The new tyre is described as an all-position radial optimised for highway and on/off road applications. According to the distributor, the special features of this tyre include ultra-high tyre bead structure and a lateral block shoulder. “These features help enable lower heating, wear resistance, extended mileage and high speed durability,” company representatives explained. Further new sizes are expected to be added to the range with Al Saeedi reporting that Gallant is “currently in the process of manufacturing a complete range of truck and bus radials.”
Continental is setting up a management structure in its home market with a stronger gearing towards customer and regional demands. The company says its Continental Reifen Deutschland GmbH operation will “step up its exploitation of the experience gained in the passenger tyre industry and trade business, with the aim of more fully satisfying the needs of business partners.” Several new key appointments will facilitate the company’s plans in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the three lands serviced by Continental Reifen Deutschland.
Lawlyn Vulcanising Systems manufactures a complete range of Lawlyn brand truck, tractor, grader and OTR repair systems. These items, manufactured at the South African company’s site in Alberton, south of Johannesburg, are used daily in the repair of tyres at the company’s Hlanganani Tyres subsidiary, an operation that has a number work stations working to the newly gazetted South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) approved OTR Repair and Retreading Standard.
Botswana based publication The Business Diary reports that a shortage of raw materials has prompted Dunlop Zimbabwe to extend its annual shutdown period, and this decision has led to unrest amongst the company’s workforce. The Apollo Tyres South Africa owned company was scheduled to re-open its factory on January 11, however company officials say production will now commence on February 11 – provided it has obtained the necessary raw materials by that time.
When Italian company MAI International arrives at Tyrexpo Africa, pride of place on the company’s stand will be its new “Minextra” range of mining tyres. This range includes the L5 and L5S. The L5 features a traction profile for increased grip and a deep tread for protection against cuts and impact damage. The compound used in the L5, MAI International adds, is a cut resistant compound particularly suited to use in underground mines. The sidewall, shoulders and beads have also been reinforced for increased protection and stability. Furthermore, says MAI, built in heavy-duty sidewall fenders offer increased protection against cuts and abrasions. The L5S features a smooth profile, yet also features the deep tread, reinforced sidewall, shoulders and beads, and sidewall fenders found on the L5 for protection against cuts and impact damage.
Continental wants to spread word of its attractiveness to potential employees, and in its German home market the tyre and automotive technology supplier is using the beautiful game to meet this end. It has brought a programme called “Kick it with Continental” into play, and as part of this invited some 400 German students to a day focusing on the upcoming Conti-sponsored World Cup in South Africa. On the agenda, among other things, are presentations, contests and panel discussions with German football personalities Karl-Heinz Körbel, Mirko Slomka and Thomas Schneider.
The Toyota Cooper Tire team claimed second place in the T2 production car class at this year’s Dakar Rally. Dakar veteran driver Xavier Foj and co-driver Pablo Jaton overcame a faulty ECU unit; a day spent digging themselves out of the sand dunes; and an encounter with a massive rock in a river, which almost destroyed their car’s rear differential, to finish on the podium at the rally’s conclusion.
Alliance Tire Group has appointed Manuel Pintado as president of Alliance Tire Europe BV. Pintado, who joins Alliance after previously heading industrial, farm and OTR tyre initiatives for Goodyear’s Europe Middle East and Africa region. Prior to this, Pintado held management positions in the Earthmover tyre segment across Europe and Latin America.
"With the commissioning of our India facility and the acquisition of the Galaxy and Primex brands during 2009, the Alliance Tire Group is well positioned to emerge as a leader in the Global Off-Highway tyre industry; Manuel's appointment is another important step in this direction and we are sure the Group will benefit immensely from his leadership in Europe, which has been historically the most important market for the Group " said Yogesh Mahansaria, CEO of the Alliance Tire Group, welcoming him to the company.
Visitors to Tyrexpo Africa in Johannesburg in early March will have more than 140 exhibitors to talk business with as they look to take advantage of exclusive brand opportunities with tyre suppliers and improve the efficiency of their businesses with the latest workshop equipment, consumables and services. According to the show’s organisers, the third staging of Tyrexpo Africa (4, 5 and 6 March 2010 at the Sandton Convention Centre (SCC), Johannesburg) has experienced a late surge of exhibitor bookings taking the show to near stand space capacity.
It is now three years since Warburg Pincus and its partner, former Balkrishna Industries executive director Yogesh Mahansaria, announced an intention to acquire Alliance Tire. In the time since the Mahansaria family and their global private equity backer took possession of Alliance for approximately US$150 million, plans to develop the business have progressed steadily. Not only has the goal of taking advantage of India’s cheaper production costs been realised – the company’s $100 million cross-ply agricultural tyre factory in Tirunelveli has been readied for the start of commercial production – during 2009 acquisitions and further inroads into new markets boosted the Alliance brand’s profile considerably.
Changes are afoot within Goodyear Tire & Rubber’s European agricultural tyre business. Last September, the company signed a non-binding letter of intent with Titan International to sell its European agricultural tyre assets, including the Goodyear Dunlop Tires France Amiens North factory. In December Tyres & Accessories discussed this deal with Alessandro Coggi, managing director Farm and Industrial Tires, Goodyear Dunlop Europe.
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