Based in Japan, Bridgestone Corporation is the world’s largest tyre and rubber company.
Point S has appointed Jonathan Smith as a Pricing Analyst. As Pricing Analyst, Smith will be responsible for regularly reviewing the data provided to Point S by suppliers including Bridgestone, Michelin and Yokohama. Any insights gained from this information will then be fed back to member via the pricing area of the new Point S website. In addition he will also be developing a range of automated processes that will enhance member’s experience of Point S.
Nissan will fit Bridgestone’s Potenza S001 tyres to its new European market Nismo. The tyre manufacturer will supply wider 245/40R19 sizes on the front and 285/35R19 on the rear with a “tailor-made” compound. The tyre will respond to the V6 344-horsepower coupe’s cornering, sporty handling and power, Bridgestone says.
Firestone has announced details of its first tyre for the agricultural sprayer market, the Performer Row Crop. Displayed for the first time at SIMA 2013 in size 270/95R48, Firestone will expand the Performer Row Crop tyre size line up to include 85, 90 and 95 series in the near future. “Firestone concentrates on solutions that give farmers a more efficient and sustainable way of working, through savings in fuel consumption and working time” says Harald Van Ooteghem, senior manager marketing planning, Bridgestone Europe.
Further details of the new factory Bridgestone will build in China to replace its Shenyang plant have been announced, including the tripling of investment plans.
It turns out that 2012 was a good year for Bridgestone Corporation. The Japanese tyre and rubber products manufacturer achieved a 66.8 per cent increase in net income during the period, taking in a healthy 171.6 billion yen (£1.18 billion). This jump in profit was achieved despite sales remaining relatively level; these increased 0.5 per cent to 3,039.7 billion yen (£20.94 billion). Operating income rose 49.5 per cent to 285.9 billion yen (£1.97 billion) and operating margin increased from 6.3 per cent to 9.4 per cent.
Speaking at the Tire Technology Expo in February, Adam Page, UK-based business manager of reports and consultancy at Smithers Rapra, shared on the global market for green tyres – the subject at the heart of the company’s latest tyre industry market report, the Future of Green Tires to 2017. One significant projection Page shared from the Smithers Rapra report is that although the value of green tyre market is expected to grow by more than 56 per cent between 2012 and 2017, green tyres based on sustainable and bio-materials will likely play a comparatively minor role in this growth.
According to a statement released by Bridgestone Corporation on 18 February, the Bridgestone Technical Center Europe is soon to receive a new managing director. The tyre maker reports that Yutaka Yamaguchi will take on this role, which is currently held by Bridgestone Europe CEO and president Franco Annunziato, on 26 March.
A return to Australia’s V8 Supercars Championship awaits Bridgestone in 2013, with the tyre maker teaming up with Nissan Motorsport in a sponsorship deal that will see Bridgestone branding on the Jack Daniel's Racing Nissan Altimas of Todd and Rick Kelly. The arrangement begins in round one of this year’s series, which gets underway in Adelaide on 28 February. The Clipsal 500 event in Adelaide marks the return of Nissan to Australia's premier motorsport category after a 20-year hiatus, with Mercedes-Benz also joining the expanded series.
A number of new Firestone branded tyres will be displayed at the upcoming SIMA International Agri-Business Show in Paris. Bridgestone Europe says show visitors will have the opportunity to see no less than three new products up close:
Bridgestone reports its first-ever original equipment run-flat tyre fitment on a General Motors vehicle with the selection of its Potenza RE050A RFT for the 2013 Cadillac ATS. The Potenza is being supplied to GM in size 225/40RF18 88W (front) and 255/35RF18 90W (rear) for fitment on the ATS Premium Collection, the highest level package available on the new Cadillac.
At the 13th annual Tire Technology Expo awards, held last night in Cologne, Apollo Tyres was honoured as Tire Manufacturer of the Year. Shortlisted alongside Bridgestone, Continental and Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Apollo was selected for the award in recognition of the brand’s continued expansion in the European market, growth underpinned by the launch of key products such as its first high performance summer tyre for Europe, the Aspire 4G, and the inauguration of a new technical centre in Enschede, The Netherlands, a site that has taken on global responsibility for passenger car tyre research and development. Announcing Apollo’s selection as Tire Manufacturer of the year, Tire Technology International noted the company’s “impressive” financial growth; in 2011-12, Apollo’s revenue exceeded US$2.5 billion for the first time.
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A report recently released by the United States International Trade Commission gives an overview of the country’s retreading industry, a sector within the tyre business that appears to be benefitting from an improving US economy and a supply-demand imbalance within the new tyre sector.
A formal opening ceremony has been held for Bridgestone’s new factory in India. The Pune plant, located 100 miles southwest of Mumbai and operated by subsidiary Bridgestone India Private Ltd., is the tyre maker’s second in India. Production of passenger car radials began in January and capacity is expected to reach 10,000 units per day by the end of 2014. Truck and bus radial production will begin in Pune in October and daily capacity will reach 3,000 units by the second half of 2017. Bridgestone says approximately 50 billion yen (£341 million) has been invested in the 760,000 square metre plant, which as of January employed 500 workers.
Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa has posted the quickest time on the opening day of the first group test of the 2013 MotoGP season at Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit. Pedrosa set his benchmark time of 2:01.157 on his penultimate lap today to finish just eight-thousandths of a second ahead of Yamaha Factory Racing’s Jorge Lorenzo, while on the other Repsol Honda RC213V, Marc Márquez was third on the timesheets with a best lap time of 2:01.201. Bridgestone said the CRT-specific softer rear slick had offered riders increased grip.
One of the most recent graduates of Bridgestone’s “Tyre Genius” training course has been promoted to manager of Eden Tyre Sales’ (ETS) Ripley depot. The tyre manufacturer said Simon Rai, 26, demonstrates a wide range of core skills, as well as the ability to think on his feet, vindicating the decision to invest in his development.
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