Agricultural
Heuver Tyrewholesale says it is able to look back on Reifen 2012 with a great deal of satisfaction. The Dutch company says the introduction of new products at the show ensured an exceptionally high volume of visitors and interest from customers, with a record number of orders being placed during the show. “This is something we haven't experienced before at Reifen,” said company director Bertus Heuver.
Leading tyre and wheel supplier to the global agricultural industry, Trelleborg Wheel Systems showcased its extensive range of high performance tyres at Cereals 2012, held in Lincolnshire, England, on 13-14 June. Located on stand 602, sector E, the company exhibited its latest innovations for the agricultural industry as part of a new stand design and concept, the ‘Blue Box’.
Michelin has launched a specialist agricultural tyre website, on which farmers and contractors can access detailed tyre information. The website includes detailed technical information – recommended pressure settings and load ratings – for every size of tyre in Michelin’s extensive agricultural range.
Mitas Tyres Limited claims to offer the UK’s largest range of high-spec row-crop tyres, and the company showed the latest products from its range at Cereals 2012 together with Case IH. The company also provided visitors with advice on correct row-crop tyre selection.
At this year’s Reifen show in Germany, Heuver Tyrewholesale revealed it will soon begin selling Aeolus passenger car tyres in the European markets where it currently supplies the Chinese manufacturer’s OTR and truck tyres. According to Heuver marketing manager Maureen Voortman, the Aeolus passenger range consists of three different product lines and will be launched in Europe in late 2012. “They’re good tyres,” she commented to Tyres & Accessories during Reifen 2012. “You have ‘A’ brands, and now you have Aeolus.”
Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations has earmarked a further US$74 million for capacity expansion at its Des Moines, Iowa agricultural tyre plant. This latest investment at the tyre maker’s main North American agricultural tyre facility follows a $77 million investment announced in March 2010; Bridgestone says the two projects confirm its “commitment to maintaining its leadership position in the agricultural tyre industry” and will help the plant meet growing demand for tyres that provide better traction and an increased footprint.
Michelin will use the occasion of Cereals 2012 to exhibit its largest ever farm tyre; a new dimension in the AxioBib range designed for high horsepower tractors. The Michelin AxioBib IF 900/60 R 42 has a diameter of 2.15 metres and will be launched onto the UK replacement tyre market in July 2012. The flotation tyre, using the French manufacturer’s Improved Flexion technology, is suited to demanding crop farming operations such as ploughing, where farmers and contractors are increasingly utilising larger machines to plough fields faster.
Goodyear has appointed JB Tyres of Tobermore to the position of exclusive farm and industrial tyre dealer for Ireland. The agreement means that JB Tyres has become one of the largest Goodyear farm tyre dealers in Europe. The manufacturer said the distributor is topping European league tables for sales in 2012.
Trelleborg Wheel Systems has announced that it plans to implement price increases on agricultural and forestry tyres and wheels.
The price hike of up to 5.5 per cent in North America takes effect in July 2012, on all tyres and wheels designed for use in agricultural, forestry and light industrial applications.
Mitas Tyres Ltd will exhibit two new tyres, the HC70 and AC70T, and the Continental SVT CHO (Cyclic Harvesting Operation) harvester tyre on its stand at Cereals 2012. The HC70 is an adaptable 70 series tyre designed for use on 90hp to 180hp tractors. The AC70T has deeper lugs, making it suitable for heavy field work. The show will take place at Boothby Graffoe, Lincolnshire on 13 and 14 June.
Trelleborg Wheel Systems has added two new sizes to its TM100 tyre range designed for row-crop applications – the 380/90R50 151A8 (151B) and 380/90R54 158A8 (158B). As a result the Trelleborg TM100 range is now available in 11 sizes from 32 to 54 inches.
Nordisk Dæk Import A/S (NDI) has appointed New Zealand’s TRS Tyre and Wheel Ltd as its AP+ Dual Wheels distributor in the region. The decision took effect in May 2012. According to NDI, the company’s AP+ Dual Wheels are a “resounding success” in many other countries worldwide as well as well as the home Danish market.
Two new sizes have joined Michelin’s CerexBib agricultural tyre range, and the French manufacturer says these additions will address the “emerging needs of entrepreneurs, farmers and grain producers.” The latest CerexBib fitments are IF 800/70 R 38 CFO and IF 900/60 R 38 CFO, and Michelin says these new large-diameter tyres give farmers the option to operate without investing in costly four-wheel-drive or caterpillar tread equipment. The two new sizes have already been approved by John Deere, Case, New Holland, Claas and Laverda and fitted on their harvesters for the new season.
Under advisement from local Michelin Exelagri dealer North Devon Tyres, a Somerset-based farming contractor has become one of the first UK customers to fit Michelin’s new BibSteel All-Terrain tyres on one of its skid steer loaders. Tone Valley Services, based in Taunton, owns five skid steer loaders which it uses on local farms. The machines, which are used predominantly to scrape and clean out chicken sheds, have been fitted with Michelin Stabil’X tyres for the last three years.
A little-known claim to fame for Charles City, Iowa is that the word “tractor” was first coined there, in 1901. It is therefore fitting that Mitas chose to establish its radial agricultural tyre factory in that particular US town. On 26 April the plant officially opened, with Iowa governor Terry Branstad, Charles City mayor James Erb and Mitas representatives Tomas Nemec and Oldrich Slemr cutting the ribbon to start serial production of agricultural tyres. Upon celebrating the factory’s inauguration, Mitas also announced it would accelerate its US$52 million investment to achieve full plant production capacity of 13,500 tonnes of tyres a year by 2013, three years earlier than originally anticipated.
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