Goodyear has appointed Denise M Morrison, president, global sales and chief customer officer for Campbell Soup Company, to the company’s board of directors. “Denise Morrison is a customer-focused leader with extensive experience in sales and marketing and in building top brands,” said Goodyear chairman and CEO Robert J Keegan. “We are confident that she will make significant contributions to our board.”
The Canadian Tire Corporation board of directors has approved quarterly dividend payments of $0.125 to $0.145 per share, an annualised increase of 16 per cent. The company says its policy is to dividend payments equal to approximately 15 to 20 per cent of the prior year’s normalised basic net earnings per share, after giving consideration to the period end cash position, future cash flow requirements and investment opportunities.
Continental has commissioned a survey investigating student opinions of universities. It is hoped that the research will give a clearer picture of the opinions of German secondary and university students on social and political questions. The results will be presented by Thomas Sattelberger Continental board member responsible for personnel on 24 February. The research, conducted by TNS/Infratest, was wittily entitled “Reforms and Wissenschaf(f)t” – a pun referring to the word “Wissen schafft“ (meaning knowledge) and “Wissenschaft“ (meaning science).
Four new members, including BorgWarner’s CFO and vice president, have been appointed to the supervisory board of Beru AG. At the request of Beru’s executive board, economist Dr Ulrich Wöhr, (Diploma Business Management), chartered accountant Robin J Adams, CFO and chief administrative officer of BorgWarner Inc, Anthony D Hensel, as well as BorgWarner’s vice president, Alfred Weber were asked to join the board. The appointments follow the execution of the share purchase agreement of roughly 62 per cent of Beru AG’s shares through BorgWarner.
According to sources the North American arm of Continental has suffered further financial losses, with negative figures resting around the hundred million mark (euros).
A North American source claims that the losses would be greater still, if it were not for the support given by the European division of the group.
Bridgestone Australia has announced that Mr Junichi Otsuka has resigned as a director of the company. The decision will take effect as of 18 February when Mr Otsuka will begin a new overseas assignment. In response Mr Shin Yamasaki, currently based in Spain, has been appointed as a director of the company from the same date.
The Associated Press has reported that James M Zimmerman, a member of the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. board of directors, has resigned. The company said that Mr Zimmerman had requested that his resignation be effective immediately. Goodyear has not specified what was behind the decision and stated that no further information will be released.
The Continental Automotive Systems division (CAS) of Continental AG has announced that Dagmar Weiner will assume responsibility for the division’s communications starting 17 January 2005.
She will oversee the internal and external communications of CAS, which specialises in vehicle safety, comfort and power transmission. The division also includes the electronics specialist Continental Temic and Continental Teves. Ms Weiner will report to the Continental executive board member Dr Karl-Thomas Neumann and to the director of corporate communications of Continental, Dr Heimo Prokop.
“I am very much looking forward to the task of communicating the Continental Automotive Systems division as a part of Continental AG, which leads in state-of-the-art technology for automotive safety worldwide,” commented Ms Weiner on her new position with the company.
The USWA has halted plans to unionise Goodyear’s Asheboro, North Carolina plant. So far there is no information about when the activity at the plant stopped or when the union will be allowed to mount a new campaign. According to information provided by the National Right to Work Foundation (NRWF), “Under the terms of the settlement, USWA union officials may not use the ‘card check’ unionisation schemes in any future organisation attempts at the Asheboro Goodyear facility.”
In a statement Goodyear North America communications manager, Amy Brei stated that the company has cooperated fully with the National Labour Relations Board (NLRB) and will continue to do so. She said charges in the complaint centred around whether a neutral arbitrator properly accounted for employees who revoked written union authorisation cards they had previously signed. “Goodyear did not ‘ignore’ the revocations; they were presented to the neutral arbitrator for his consideration. Goodyear associates have been – and always will be – free to choose whether or not they want union representation.”
Speaking to local newspaper the Asheboro Courier, USWA area representative Brad Smoyer stated a desire to continue the organising drive, adding that the USWA will assist workers in that effort. He said officials found no evidence of coercion by the USWA or Goodyear during the 2004 union drive.
The NRWF was clearly pleased with the result: “This victory is a step towards holding union officials across the country to account for trampling workers’ rights under abusive ‘card check’ schemes,” said Foundation vice president Stefan Gleason in a press release. “While encouraging, it’s an outrage that Goodyear struck a backroom deal with USWA officials in the first place to deny these workers the freedom to decide their own representation through the less abusive secret ballot election process.” cja
Dr Reinhard Meschkat has been appointed to BERU AG’s Executive Board. In his new position he will assume responsibility for production, logistics and quality control of the Ludwigsburg-based automotive supplier. Dr Meschkat, holds a doctorate in manufacturing systems engineering, and has substantial experience in several executive positions as plant manager and managing director at Faurecia Autositze GmbH, a subsidiary of the French group Faurecia S.A.
Prior to his employment at Faurecia, he had worked for Brose Fahrzeugteile as a production manager at a manufacturing plant, responsible for production planning, logistics and quality. He had also successfully implemented Kaizen principles into the production system.
Both Beru AG’s supervisory board and its executive board have approved a takeover bid by BorgWarner Inc, describing it as “fair and appropriate.” Following a meeting to discuss the subject, both boards issued statements recommended BorgWarner’s proposed price of 67.50 euros (£46.32) per share. The regular period for acceptance expires at midnight on January 24, 2005. According to a company statement, the offered price is 252.1 per cent above the 19.17 euro price the shares were originally issued at in October 1997.
The statement added: “In view of the complementary character of the planned takeover…the BERU Executive Board assumes that the employment situation at the BERU Group will not change as a result of this transaction. From the contents of the offer it is apparent that no measures are currently planned which would have a significant impact on the workforce of BERU AG or its subsidiaries.”
Titan International Inc’s board of directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of half a cent per common share for the fourth quarter of 2004. The cash dividend is payable 14 January 2005 to those recorded as stockholders on 31 December 2004.
Thomas Weidemeyer, formerly senior vice president and COO of United Parcel Service and president of UPS Airlines, has been elected to Goodyear Tire and Rubber’s board of directors. “In his 32 years with UPS, Tom distinguished himself in the transportation service and package delivery industries,” said Goodyear chairman and CEO Robert J Keegan. “We are confident that he will make significant contributions to our board.” The election of Mr Weidemeyer brings the size of Goodyear’s board to 11 members, 10 of whom are independent.
The German tyre manufacturer Continental plans to use its current financial capabilities and liquidity for the repayment of a 500 million euro bond loan. Continental Rubber of America, (Wilmington, Delaware), which is an indirect subsidiary of Continental AG, invited all holders to submit a sales offer. “By these means Continental practices active balance management using additional liquidity in order to redeem our debts. This repayment shows the improved financial situation of Continental,” explains Dr Alan Hippe, CFO and member of the board.
At the end of September, Dresdner Bank, a subsidiary of the German Allianz group, sold 3.5 million Continental shares at a unit price of 43.10 euros. This created a book profit totalling a “high two digit million-euro-amount,“ according to Allianz AG board member Helmut Perlet.
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