Brisa Archives - Page 5 of 5

Brisa Bridgestone Looks to Egypt to Reduce Labour Costs

Bridgestone affiliate company Brisa Bridgestone Sabanci Lastik Sanayi & Ticaret A.S., which manufactures tyres in Turkey, may construct a new plant in Egypt to avoid high Turkish labour costs. The average worker at a tyre facility in Turkey costs the company about US$50,000 to employ, therefore competing with rivals in regions such as Eastern Europe is difficult.

“Egypt is one of the alternatives we’ve been looking and working on it all the time,” commented Guler Sabanci, chairwoman of Haci Omer Sabanci Holding A.S., joint venture partner with Bridgestone in the Brisa operation. According to Ms Sabanci’s office, an Egyptian worker is at least $5,000 cheaper per annum to employ.

2nd September 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

14-Day Turkish Tyre Strike Ends

Product News

A two week tyre strike by 4,000 members of International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers’ Unions (ICEM) Turkish affiliate Lastik-İş ended on 13 June, and workers from three tyre manufacturers resumed work the following day. The strike ended when a two-year accord was reached between the union and three global companies, Goodyear, Bridgestone and Pirelli, who jointly represented the tyre industry in talks.

The negotiations on 13 June were the first since the strike began on 31 May. Talks first began on a 2008-2009 labour agreement, covering four tyre factories, in September 2007. The two parties agreed to a 14 per cent pay increase for 2008, and an increase equalling the Turkish rate of inflation for 2009. In 2007, the Turkish rate of inflation was 8.39 per cent and is expected to rise above that this year. Lastik-İş had sought a 12 per cent wage rise for the first six months of 2008, with increases matching the inflation rate in each six-month period through 2009.

17th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyre Strike Threat to Turkish Automotive Industry

Product News

The ongoing Tyre Workers Union strike is threatening Turkey’s automotive industry. Estimates are placing a figure in the region of YTL 10 million (over £4 million) on daily losses for tyre manufacturers since the strike began on 31 May, while the supply losses are starting to hinder Turkish automotive exports that account for 75 per cent of the industry’s total production.

Bridgestone’s Turkish-based arm, Brisa – one of the companies affected by the strike, alongside Pirelli and Goodyear – has released statements detailing the losses to the Turkish government in taxes, estimated at YTL 1 million a day.

10th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Vicki Tillson New Lassa UK Sales Manager

Product News

Lassa Tyres has appointed Vicki Tillson as its new UK Sales Manager. Based from her home in South Yorkshire, Vicki will cover the entire Lassa UK distributor network. One of the key objectives for Vicki and Lassa in 2008 will be to assess the current UK distributor channel and to ensure the most appropriate partners are appointed to represent the Lassa brand. Tillson previously worked with well-known wholesaler operations Stapleton’s and Micheldever.

Martin West, Lassa International Director of Marketing and Business Development, commented – “We are delighted to welcome Vicki to the team. She is well regarded within the tyre industry and we look forward to her leading the development of the Lassa brand within the UK distributor and wholesale market.”

25th February 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Brisa Appoints New International Sales Director

Product News

On 1 May 2007, Levent Akpulat was appointed as international sales director, responsible for the Lassa brands’ international sales. According to the company, executives at the London office and sales coordinators in Istanbul will report directly to the new international sales director.

Levent Akpulat joined Brisa in 1992 and up until the beginning of 2006 he held a range of marketing, marketing research, business development, marketing and communications positions. Shortly before being transferred to the international sales department he was also responsible for the communication of both the Bridgestone and Lassa brands in the domestic Turkish market. Speaking to Tyres & Accessories, Akpulat stated that his range of communications and marketing experience means he will be at an advantage when it comes to promoting the Lassa brand.

6th June 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Lassa, Brisa, Bridgestone and Sabanci – tyres from Turkey to the world

Company News, International News

With unit sales of 7.06 million expected for 2006, a domestic replacement market share of 26 per cent and thriving export sales, no wonder Lassa producer Brisa is expanding its manufacturing and warehousing headquarters. As Brisa (Bridgestone Sabanci Tyre Manufacturing and Trading Inc) continues the $176 million production expansion programme it started at its Izmit plant in Turkey in 2004, Tyres & Accessories went to see how the plans are developing and visit some of the company’s retail outlets in Istanbul.

28th September 2006/by Chris

Brisa Aims to Establish Lassa Brand in Russia

Product News

One European tyre manufacturer that clearly is expanding at the moment is Brisa-Bridgestone Sabanci Tyre Manufacturing and Trading Inc. Since 2003 the Turkish joint venture company has invested about $174 million into the expansion of its local production capacities which will eventually increase by 55 per cent to more than 10 million units.

In order to distribute this growing production capacity the Turkish tyre manufacturer is looking for new customers that should come from Russia, says Haldun Kuran. Right now there is no market for Brisa in Russia, the international sales director continues. But very soon the company will sell its first Lassa branded tyres on the Russian market through the “Pole Position” francise, which is linked with Bridgestone and operates about 100 point of sales.

3rd May 2006/by Tyrepress Editors

Obituary – Sakip Sabanci

Product News

Sakip Sabanci passed away at 6:00 am on Saturday 10th April, following a long battle against cancer. He was 71. As head of the Sabanci group, he presided over the establishment of Lassa in 1974 and the later joint venture with Bridgestone in 1988, as a result of which the company name changed to Brisa. A new factory was built at Izmit and production began in November 1990. Married with three children, he was the author of 13 books and, during his lifetime, was awarded no fewer than 11 honorary doctorates by Turkish and US universities. Other awards include the Crystal Globe by the European Economic Institute and the Turkish State Distinguished Service Medal. In 1999 Sakip Sabanci was elected “Businessman of the Year” by the FABSIT foundation in New York and was given the “Award for promoting Turkey” by the Turkish-American Businessman Association. With an estimated fortune of 2.65 billion Euro, he was reckoned to be Turkey’s richest man.

13th April 2004/by Tyrepress Editors

Lassa European Sales & Marketing Director

Product News

Lassa has announced the appointment of John Westwood as the new senior director responsible for the running of its London-based European export sales operation. He joins the company after a long and distinguished career with Goodyear in a variety of senior sales and marketing positions. Mr. Westwood will replace Gunduz Akin as European Sales and Marketing Director, responsible for all Lassa brand sales in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Sweden and the UK. Mr Akin has returned to Turkey to work for Lassa’s parent company, Brisa.

18th August 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Financial Times Report – Bridgestone Falls From Global List

Product News

The UK newspaper Financial Times has published its annual list of the world’s 500 largest companies, ranked by market capitalisation. The only tyre company to appear last year was Bridgestone, at number 300. The company does not make this year’s global top 500. Among Europe’s top 500 are the following tyre companies, with their positions. Michelin (301) Pirelli (242) and Continental (479). Mention should be made too of Sabanci Holdings, the ultimate parent of Lassa/Brisa, which appears at number 331 in Europe.

30th November 2001/by Tyrepress Editors

Turkish Tyre Strike Ends

Product News

3,000 Turkish tyre workers returned to work yesterday after the Government had ordered a two-month postponement because of “national security issues”. The Government wants to reduce inflation from the current 60% to 20%. Unions wanted a 35% rise and were offered 26.5%, which was rejected. Last week the three main manufacturers – Brisa, Goodyear and Pirelli – took out a joint press advertisement attacking the action.

7th December 2000/by Tyrepress Editors

Turkish Group Sabanci Sells Stake To Toyota

Product News

The Turkish conglomerate Sabanci Holding – the group which includes the Brisa joint venture with Bridgestone – has sold a 25% stake in another of its joint venture companies. Sabanci has sold 25% of Toyotasa to its partner Toyota Motor Corporation for US$ 109 m, leaving Sabanci with a stake in the company of almost 25%.

7th December 2000/by Tyrepress Editors

Earthquake in Turkey Affects Tyre Industry

Product News

The tyre factories of Brisa (Bridgestone/Sabanci), Pirelli and Goodyear are all situated within a few hundred metres from one another along a road leading out of Izmit, the town so severely hit by the earthquake. Bekaert also has a production facility nearby, Continental manufactures technical rubber products not far away, and a second Pirelli plant makes cables. It will only be a matter of days until production, only partially interrupted by the earthquake, returns to full strength while the aid campaign has gone into full swing at the same time.

7th December 1999/by Tyrepress Editors

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