Awards
Lanxess has announced that it is partnering with the National Tyre Distributor’s Association (NTDA) to ensure tyre dealers and wholesalers across the UK have everything they need to prepare for mandatory tyre labelling when it is introduced on 1 November.
It’s sometimes said that good employees are worth their weight in gold, and at Continental this may well be literally the case. The German tyre maker and automotive component supplier encourages those working at its 126 global locations to submit ideas on how efficiency and cost effectiveness can be boosted, and last year some 310,000 of these employee-driven suggestions were implemented. These ideas, says Continental, saved the company almost 120 million euros.
Trelleborg has become first ever official sponsor of Italian magazine Trattori’s Tractor of the Year awards after signing a long-term agreement with the publication. Upon announcing the deal, Trattori editor Stefano Agnellini said “the choice of Trelleborg as our official sponsor of the awards was naturally driven by the key role which the company plays in the agricultural industry and its strong partnership with the leading tractor manufacturers. The partnership is also the result of the special attention Trelleborg has always given towards the real needs of farming professionals.”
Trelleborg is to be the first ever official sponsor of the Tractor of The Year awards, after signing a long-term agreement. Launched by Italian magazine Trattori in 1998, the awards scheme – now in its 16th year – celebrates innovation in tractor design and technology from the world’s leading manufacturers and agricultural machineries.
Hankook has confirmed its return as associate sponsor for the 2013 What Car? Car of the Year Awards and continued sponsorship of the ‘Ultra Low Carbon’ award, which was won by the Kia Rio in 2012 – a car that boasts Hankook’s Kinergy Eco in size 185/65 R15 88H as an original equipment fitment.
On its Hall Three stand and during an evening event at Essen’s central Mövenpick Hotel, Nankang unveiled its new logo at Reifen 2012 alongside two new products. The Taiwanese company’s staff also presented the array of new lines it has recently introduced, in addition to previewing its latest asymmetric tyre, the AS-2, which is in the “final evaluation” stage of its development. Manufactured in Taiwan (“14,000 pieces per day”) and China (“25,000 pieces per day”), Nankang turned over 461 million euros in 2011, and with 40 per cent of its sales, Nankang said that Europe is by far its biggest market (comparing favourably with 18 per cent in North America and 15 per cent in Asia). The company also presented its comparative sales figures in Europe over the past five years, which showed a dip from 120 million euros in 2007 to a nadir of 97 million in 2009 – having ascended significantly in 2010, the figure now stands at 184 million euros in 2011. The company also noted the growing demand for its winter tyres in Europe, which has climbed from 0.336 million in 2008 to 1.215 million in 2011. It is, according to the company, “the main line we are focusing on.”
In line with its plan to continue the strategic growth of its business Manbat, the UK's largest battery distributor, has set its sights on Europe as its makes its debut appearance at Automechanika, Frankfurt this September, promoting its three key battery brands of Numax, Lucas and VARTA to the European aftermarket.
The Al Dobowi Group has announced that it is to sponsor Virginia Espejo; a 23-year old rising star in the sport of golf. The company says that it was impressed by the potential of Virginia, who immediately became hooked on golf after starting to play alongside her father at the age of twelve.
Something virtually all the tyre manufacturers currently using RFID (Michelin, Goodyear, Bridgestone, Mesnac) have in common is a connection with UK-based sensor firm Transense Technologies plc. Following the announcement that this provider of sensor systems is supplying the tyre probes being used in Michelin's recently launched “communicating tyres” fitted to buses running during the London 2012 Olympics, it is worth taking a closer look at is both companies’ desire to see the wider market adopt this technology.
To coincide with the London Olympics, Hankook Tyre UK is launching a new outdoor advertising campaign. The ads will be positioned in key locations in central London, including Cromwell Road, North Circular Road, Whitechapel Road, York Road and the Chiswick Roundabout, and will run until mid-September – a timeframe covering the entire Olympic Games. Hankook anticipates the location of the ads will expose thousands of games visitors to its ‘Be One with It’ campaign, an advertising series the tyre maker describes as “an important pillar” of its marketing strategy.
Nominations for the 2012 TAFF awards subject to public vote are now closed, but according to the NTDA all trade supplier are being invited to nominate a product or service for inclusion in the 2012 TAFF Innovation Awards. The current holder is Rema Tip Top for their Ram Rod tyre cage.
Now the nomination process is over, the NTDA has published details of who is in the running for the 2012 Tyre and Fast Fit Awards’ tyre environment, manufacturer, wholesaler, aftermarket supplier and industry advertiser of the year awards.
Bridgestone recently celebrated the 50th anniversary of its Bari plant in Italy. The tyre maker held an open day for employees and more than 700 attendees, and festivities were attended by local management and Ryutaro Ishii, senior vice-president Manufacturing Bridgestone Europe. During the event, Bridgestone presented awards to long-serving employees and also celebrated 2.5 million work hours with “zero accidents” at the plant.
The FTA backed campaign FairFuelUK has been recognised for its tireless work in lobbying the Government in order to stop planned fuel duty increases and fight for lower fuel prices. In the same week that the campaign sees MPs from various political parties uniting at Westminster in an urgent call to scrap the August 3p fuel duty rise, the organisation created by Peter Carroll Associates won the prestigious CIPR 2012 Excellence Award for Public Affairs which applauded the organisation's work and credited its achievements in the category which acknowledged 'a campaign designed to inform the public policy agenda or influence the legislative process.'
Thousands of motorists have voted in a nationwide contest to seek out the UK's best car service centres and Motor Codes, the operator of OFT-backed codes of practice for the motor industry, has revealed which were voted the most trusted large and small garages in the UK. Garage of the Year, backed by Havoline, is an annual initiative, highlighting to motorists those garages that are committed to providing consistently high customer service standards. In being awarded the title, the winning garages have beaten off competition from a huge field, open to entry for all garages.
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