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Champion Names New VP

Champion Laboratories has added Mary Blair to its team as vice president of global procurement. Brought in to execute Champ Labs’ corporate initiatives and goals, Blair, in her new position, will be responsible for leading all procurement activities into one centrally-led body while reducing spending, generating greater speed and improving processes and relationships with key supplier partners in the Company’s worldwide supply chain. Blair will lead worldwide procurement with a more strategic focus.

14th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

XSensor Releases New Tyre Tread Analysis Tools

XSensor Technology has released a new tyre tread analysis range as part of its 2008 product line extension. According to the company, the new tread analysis range has been produced based on input from companies including: Nokian, Bridgestone, Kumho, and Goodyear.

“We’re concentrating our efforts in the automotive test market in early 2008. There is a lot of potential in our current framework to support the work of test engineers and the products they hope to build. We are confident XSensor can meet their needs with this next generation of tools”, says Karl Schilling, XSensor’s Director of International Sales.

13th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Top Tyre Maker in Fortune’s Most Admired List

Goodyear has secured a slot in Fortune magazine’s Most Admired Companies 2008 list. The publication surveyed executives, directors, and securities analysts to compile its list of the companies they esteem the most highly, and Goodyear received the highest ranking of any tyre manufacturer, edging Bridgestone into second place.

The manufacturer has expressed pride in the high score it received in four key attributes: innovation, people management, use of assets and global orientation. Among motor vehicle parts companies appearing on the list, Goodyear was also judged the best in regard to innovation and the quality of its products and services. “This recognition by our industry peers is something for which we are extremely proud,” said Robert J. Keegan, Goodyear chairman and CEO. “Not only did Goodyear lead our industry category, but we were ranked well ahead of our global tyre competitors,” he added.

11th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Watts Raises Forklift Tyre Prices 6-10%

With raw material prices hitting an all time high, Watts Tyre Group chief executive, Jean-Paul Mindermann has announced a price increase of up to 10 per cent, warning the Forklift truck industry that “tyre prices will continue to rise” and OEM dealers “must adapt to the new paradigm. “At the end of the third quarter of 2007 we announced that we would be reviewing prices on a quarterly basis due to the soaring price of natural rubber. As a result of that continued rise in raw materials costs we are today announcing a price increase of between 6 and 10 per cent depending on country and currency,” Mindermann said in a statement.

Mindermann blamed the increase on soaring rubber prices, driven by the Indian and Chinese automotive sectors and “limited worldwide rubber production.”

11th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

ATS Euromaster Opens Treforest Tyre Depot

ATS Euromaster has opened a brand new centre in Treforest, following more than £210,000 of investment. The three-bay depot employs eight technicians and is designed to offer a full range of services for tyres, exhausts, brakes, shock absorbers, batteries and oil.

Speaking at the official opening on 6 March, Vince McGurk, Group Operations Director of ATS Euromaster said: “This new centre marks a significant investment and will ensure we can offer motorists competitively priced fast-fit service work carried out in a modern and well-equipped vehicle workshop.”

11th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Pirelli Focusing Strongly on Tyres, May Sell Loan Business

Pirelli has already indicated a willingness to place a greater focus upon its thriving tyre business, and this emphasis is apparently being paired by a withdrawal from less profitable undertakings. Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore reported on March 8 that the company was considering divesting itself of Pirelli Real Estate’s poorly performing loan business, and while no source was given for this information the paper added that the group’s intentions may be outlined in a business plan Pirelli & C SpA is scheduled to present in May.

The company’s intended buyback of the 38.9 per cent share in Pirelli Tyre has been long anticipated, and the newspaper added that the company has detailed substantial investment in its tyre business, and is ready to acquire German and Italian companies that supply state of the art technology to the automotive industry.

10th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Vredestein Joins TyreSafe

Dutch tyre manufacturer Vredestein has become the latest company to join TyreSafe. The inclusion of Vredestein brings the total number of UK companies supporting TyreSafe to 19 The newly appointed managing director at Vredestein, Stuart Jackson, was reportedly instrumental in the decision to become a full member of TyreSafe. “Despite being in the automotive industry constantly for 17 years, I am new to the tyre industry,” said he commented,” however, I quickly realised the important part that the organisation has played, and will continue to play, in raising the awareness of tyre safety – an objective that we at Vredestein consider to be vital to our own marketing objectives.”

7th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Presents Next Generation RunOnFlat Technology in Geneva

Goodyear has presented its latest generation of RunOnFlat tyre technology, which the company says will offer numerous benefits to both the consumer and the environment, including improved comfort, reduced mass and rolling resistance, increased fuel economy as well as reduced CO2 emission levels. Goodyear’s next generation RunOnFlat technology is currently in the Original Equipment approval process with leading car makers. Goodyear sold over 2.5 million RunOnFlat tyres in 2007.

7th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

SmarTire & Siemens Reach Infringement Agreement

On March 4 SmarTire Systems Inc. announced it had settled the patent lawsuit it filed against Siemens VDO Automotive Corp., now known as Continental Automotive Systems US, Inc. Prior to the February 20 settlement the lawsuit had been pending in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The terms of the settlement and license agreement between SmarTire and Siemens have not been disclosed, with SmarTire claiming the information to be confidential. In addition, Siemens has also acknowledged the validity and enforceability of SmarTire’s United States Patent No. 5,231,872 in a judgment that was entered by the district court on February 21, 2008.

6th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Hudrlik Leaves Kumho, to Head Canopy Company

Dave Hudrlik has left Kumho Tire USA to become president of Caravan Canopy International Inc., based in La Mirada, California. Hudrlik, who was with Kumho for 14 years, most recently as senior vice president of sales, will lead Caravan Canopy with focus on its efforts to expand in the automotive aftermarket. Caravan Canopy produces quick assembly portable canopies.

Kumho has not named a replacement for Hudrlik. (Tire Review/Akron)

5th March 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Czech Firm Seeks Partners to Develop New Inflation System

Czech Republic based company Coda Development s.r.o. reports it has developed and patented a self-inflating tyre (SIT) system, which it will preview at the 2008 SAE World Congress in Detroit between April 14 and 17. According to the company, the SIT system delivers the key benefits of eliminating tyre pressure checks and the manual inflation of tyres, along with removing the safety and fuel consumption issues linked to driving on incorrectly inflated tyres. Coda Development adds that production costs for incorporating the SIT system will “increase only marginally” in comparison with the fitment of standard tyres.

28th February 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Moody’s Downgrades Conti’s Long-Term Rating

Moody’s Investors Service has downgraded the long-term rating of Continental AG and its units to ‘Baa2’ following the company’s marked increase in debt and leverage resulting from the 11.4 billion euro acquisition of the Siemens VDO unit. The ratings agency said the downgrade concludes its July 26, 2007 review regarding a possible downgrade following the company’s announcement of the intended acquisition. Moody’s added that the one notch downgrade is in line with its previous announcement of a limited downward revision and takes into account the company’s recent track record of successfully integrating larger acquisitions.

27th February 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Thatcham BSI Kitemark Celebrates First Year Milestone

The Kitemark scheme – which sets out standards for the crash repair process, including the methods and materials used by competent technicians – is one year old, and the Thatcham BSI Kitemark Vehicle Body Repair team has marked the scheme’s first birthday by hosting a small party at the Thatcham head office in Berkshire. Support for the Kitemark scheme since its introduction in February 2007, the team reports, has been impressive across the entire UK crash repair industry.

26th February 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Bekaert to Acquire 100% Ownership of Turkey’s Beksa

Multinational manufacturer of tyre reinforcement and other materials, NV Bekaert SA, has announced its upcoming acquisition of the 50 per cent share in Turkish steel cord and metal fibre manufacturer Beksa Celik Kord Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S that it currently holds jointly with Turkish conglomerate Haci Ömer Sabanci Holding A.S. The two companies have signed a letter of intent for the transfer of shares, a transaction estimated to be worth 40.3 million euros, and when the deal is complete Bekaert will assume full ownership of Beksa. The transfer of shares will be executed after receiving approvals from the respective authorities, Bekaert reports.

Located in the city of Izmit, Beksa manufactures steel cord products and Dramix metal fibres for a variety of industrial applications, including the tyre and automotive industry. The company employs about 330 people and recorded sales of 80 million euros in 2006.

20th February 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Lanxess Opens New Central & East Europe Headquarters

Chemical manufacturer Lanxess AG has responded to the growing popularity of Central and Eastern Europe as hubs for tyre manufacturing by establishing a new headquarters for its distribution company Lanxess Central Eastern Europe s.r.o. Located in the Slovakian capital Bratislava, the headquarters officially opened on February 15, and all business activities in Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Hungary are now controlled from this location. The company also intends to operate branch offices in Warsaw and Budapest. Previously, Lanxess organised its operations in Central and Eastern Europe through external distribution agencies.

19th February 2008/by Tyrepress Editors