Brazil
Nordisk Dæk Import A/S (NDI) reports that as of August 2012 RDP Industria de Peças Agrícolas Ltda. will serve as exclusive distributor in Brazil for the Danish company’s range of AP+ Dual wheels. RDP has been involved in Brazil’s agricultural sector since 1974 and primarily distributes to tractor and machinery producers in Brazil; the company also supplies the aftermarkets in Paraguay, Argentina, Chile and Bolivia.
Brazil’s government has carried out a public consultation to determine regulations for tyres sold in the country in preparation for legislations towards greener tyres. Chemicals manufacturer Lanxess reports that the consultation was performed last month and the government is now analysing the suggestions it received; these will be published before the end of the year.
Pirelli reports that the company closed the first half of 2012 with revenues of 3,021.8 million euros, an increase of 8.3 per cent compared with the 2,789.3 million euros published for the same period in 2011.
In its recent second quarter results announcement, Titan International reported the termination of the truck tyre off-take agreement held with Goodyear since its purchase of Goodyear’s Latin America agricultural tyre business last year. Under the terms of the original deal, which was to run for three years, Titan would produce cross-ply light and medium truck tyres for Goodyear at its plant in São Paulo, Brazil and supply these at below market prices.
Tire Group International and Alliance Tire Group have announced a distribution agreement that gives TGI exclusive distribution rights for Galaxy-brand tyres in Latin America and the Caribbean, with exception of Colombia and Ecuador. The distributor will offer Galaxy’s industrial, agricultural and off-the-road tyre lines as both direct factory shipments and fill-in from its distribution centre in Miami, Florida.
German firm Steinbichler Optotechnik GmbH of Neubeuern has been engaged in the supply of high-precision optical measuring and sensor technology for quarter of a century and the tyre industry, along with the automotive and aviation industries, is a main beneficiary of its solutions. The company reports a successful week at June’s Reifen 2012 trade show and says this year’s show delivered even better results than previous events. The show also offered Steinbichler an excellent opportunity to present its new ‘Steinbichler Intact’ tyre testing systems to existing and prospective customers.
Trelleborg president and CEO Peter Nilsson has reported a “strong quarter” for the Swedish company. During the second quarter of 2012 the firm’s sales rose slightly to SEK 5.66 billion (£520 million) while operating profit increased 34 per cent to SEK 875 million (£80 million). Net profit amounted to SEK 712 million (£65 million).
In ČGS Holding’s freshly-published 2011 annual report, the Czech Republic-based parent company of tyre maker Mitas a.s. reported its tyre division “successfully continued in its strategy to become a leading global producer of off-road tyres, significantly increased sales and launched major investment projects.”
Japan’s Jiji Press writes that the country’s tyre makers are increasingly moving production offshore to escape diminishing sales at home. According to the news service, a shrinking domestic market and an aging population are teaming up with the high yen to decrease demand for Japanese-produced tyres. As a result of this, a number of Japanese tyre manufacturers have shifted production overseas to locations where demand is higher.
Shen Jin-Rong, chairman of Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber, has spoken out in opposition to anti-dumping measures against Chinese tyres undertaken by countries such as India, Brazil and Colombia. Chen declared that such measures “do not work” and announced Hangzhou Zhongce will establish a manufacturing facility outside of China “mainly in order to circumvent anti-dumping.” Thailand has been named as the location for this new plant; Hangzhou Zhongce says it will erect a factory on a 67 acre site there at an investment cost of RMB 1 billion (£102 million).
Nexen Tire has opened a sales branch in Bogota, Colombia. It is the second branch in South & Central America after the first one in Brazil. According to Nexen, Columbia is the third biggest market in South America after Brazil and Argentina. It has a reported demand of around 4 million units a year. With its booming economy, the tyre market in the country is also expected to grow.
Bridgestone has renewed its sponsorship of Copa Sudamericana, the South American football cup. On 2 July the tyre maker confirmed it has signed on for a second year with the championship that is contested by 47 clubs from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Columbia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. Bridgestone’s title sponsorship is again reflected in the event’s name – Copa Bridgestone Sudamericana.
Transense Technologies plc reports that its Translogik Ltd trading division has received a further order for 60 of its truck tyre inspection kits from its French partner, EDP. The tools will be supplied as part of EDP's commercial fleet management systems. Jean-Luc Giusti, CEO of EDP commented: "We are continuing to develop our range of electronic tyre inspection solutions that integrate the Translogik tools with our commercial fleet management software. Our customers demand systems that can operate reliably and accurately, 24/7, and the best-in-class Translogik solution is the only tool we recommend."
At an event held on 18 June as part of the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, Pirelli presented a number of projects the company plans to implement in Brazil to analyse and reduce the environmental impact resulting from tyre production at its Campinas plant. The projects, which will be conducted in cooperation with Italy’s Ministry for the Environment Land and Sea and the Brazilian state of São Paulo, were presented by Pirelli’s director of sustainability and risk governance, Filippo Bettini, at the conference’s Italian pavilion. Also attending the presentation was Italian environment minister, Corrado Clini, and the chairman of Pirelli Brasile, Paolo Dal Pino.
Shares in Transense Technologies rose on Friday 15 June after the sensor systems maker announced its trading division secured a strategic distribution deal with a Saudi group. The group told investors that its IntelliSAW business, a provider of wireless sensor systems for smart grid applications, has entered into a strategic distribution agreement with the energy projects and services division of Saudi Arabia’s Al Mashariq Trading and Contracting Co. The company also makes systems and tools for use in tyre TPMS and RFID applications.
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