Bridgestone to Raise Truck and Bus Tyre Prices in Japan
As of March 1, 2011 prices of Bridgestone’s Japanese market truck and bus tyres will increase by an average of seven per cent. This increase applies to both summer and winter tyre lines.
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RockTron Seals Energy Deal in Malaysia
NewsFly-ash recycling technology innovator, RockTron International has announced that it has signed an MOU with Malaysia energy provider TNB, following the launch of RockTron Asia in Kuala Lumpur this October. The company is also in discussions with major companies from across Asia regarding the company’s new licensing proposition. Tyre industry interest in RockTron stems from its technology’s ability to manufacture “eco-minerals” from stockpiled coal-fired power station waste (otherwise known as fly ash), which can be used to manufacture tyre rubber filler, or indeed as fillers and extenders in any polymer, rubber and coatings manufacturing and as cementitious substitutes, dramatically cutting costs and CO2 emissions.
Nankang Announces 7% Price Hike
NewsNankang Rubber Tire Corp., Ltd will increase prices on all its Nankang branded product lines by up to 7 per cent, the company told Tyres & Accessories in a statement dated 20 October 2010. The price hike is scheduled to take effect 1 November 2010.
Evonik to Divest Carbon Blacks Business
NewsGermany’s Evonik Industries has decided to divest its carbon blacks business. This divestment, claims Evonik Executive Board chairman Klaus Engel, provides “the best basis for sustained investment in carbon blacks, new growth prospects and for securing future-oriented jobs in the long-term.” Engel also states that the company’s declared aim in divesting the business is to find a solution “that is equally convincing for customers, employees and business partners.”
$4 million TGL Compounding Plant Starts Production in Israel
NewsTGL S.P. Industries Ltd. (TGL), a subsidiary of equipment firm Pelmar Group, has announced the start of product at its new custom compounding plant in Yokneam, Israel. The official opening ceremony has been schedule to be held on site, on 27 July in the presence of Israel’s Minister of Industry & Commerce, Israel’s former Defence Minister and General (Res) in the Israel Defense Forces. The new plant was built at a cost of around $4 million and is designed to allow TGL to be “completely independent to supply rubber compounds for its own production lines and also to distribute the extra capacity to rubber manufacturers in Israel and abroad.”
According to the company, the compounding line features a high capacity Farrel 200 litre mixer and automatic discharging, cooling and stacking line. This combined with fully automatic weighing and charging systems for carbon black, silica, oil and small chemical ingredients is designed to enable TGL to meet the continuing and “extremely high technological requirements” of its customers.
Research Shows Nanosilicate Prolongs Truck Tyre Life, Reduces Weight
NewsIranian researchers at Amirkabir University of Technology in Tehran have reportedly prolonged the lifetime and reduced the weight of rubbers used in truck tyres by incorporating silicate nanocomposites in their blends. The Iran Nano Initiative Council says that faculty member of the university’s Polymer Engineering Department, Azam Jalali Arani, first formulated the nanosilicate incorporated rubber blend. She then analysed and determined the optimised conditions for preparation of this blend. Following this, blending and production of the nanocomposite sample and analysing and testing the properties of sample vulcanization were performed by rheometric test.
Evonik Establishes Independent Carbon Black Company
Company NewsA reorganisation of Evonik’s carbon black activities has led to the founding of Evonik Carbon Black GmbH as a legally independent management company under the umbrella of Evonik Industries. The new company came into being on July 1 with Jack Clem in the position of CEO and Rainer Wobbe serving as CFO. The company’s operational headquarters is currently located in Frankfurt, Germany, however it will move to the city of Hanau on October 1. Evonik says the existing carbon black product portfolio and customer relationships will not be affected by the spin-off.
Sri Lanka Encourages Tyre Rubber Production
International NewsAt the end of June Sri Lanka’s government announced plans to encourage small farmers to produce more tyre grade rubber. Local news sources reported that plantations industries minister Mahinda Samarasinghe said a policy decision was taken aimed at increasing production of the RSS 3 type rubber grade: “Although most people think RSS 1 is the best and it is, the biggest demand is for RSS 3…That’s what big industrialists want. They are the main buyers of rubber.”
£2m Investment For Tyre Recycler
NewsThe Tees Valley Industrial Programme (TVIP) is a £60 million investment fund that was established to accelerate job opportunities and business development in the Tees Valley region of the UK. A grant of £2 million from TVIP has been earmarked for PYReco; a new company based in Wilton. The grant will help fund the development of a new processing plant to recover carbon black, oil and steel from waste tyres and rubber. It is expected that the finished project will employ 52 staff, plus 240 new construction jobs will be created over the next five years.
Cabot to Meet Tyre Makers' Needs with 20% Expansion in Indonesia
NewsPT Cabot Indonesia is investing US$10 million to increase the capacity of its plant in Merak, Banten, by 20 per cent. According to Dave Miller, executive vice president and general manager of Core Segment at Cabot, the expansion should be completed by the middle of next year and give the plant an annual capacity of 160,000 tons – a quantity needed should the plant continue to meet growing demand from the Indonesian tyre industry. Miller believes carbon black demand in Indonesia will reach 200,000 tons next year.
OCI to Build Third Carbon Black Plant
NewsKorea’s OCI Company Ltd. has announced plans invest 75 billion won in expanding its carbon black manufacturing facilities. A third plant will be built in Gunsan, where the company’s polysilicon manufacturing facilities are located. Construction will begin in the second half of this year and when the plant enters operation late in 2011 it is projected to have a 70,000 tonne capacity. This will be increased to 100,000 tonnes by the end of 2014. When full capacity is reached the combined capacity of the Gunsan site and OCI’s existing carbon black production facilities in Pohang and Gwangyang will be 310,000 tonnes per annum – a quantity sufficient to make OCI Korea’s leading carbon black manufacturer.
RockTron Releases Recycled Filler Research Results
NewsEco-mineral recycling technology firm RockTron revealed new research results at the recent Tire Technology EXPO in Cologne highlighting the possibility of reducing costs through the use of an eco-friendly, recycled filler. The company believes the results of this research, carried out by ARTIS on RockTron’s Advanced Products, will assist the tyre industry through showing that its 100 per cent recycled fillers can reduce CO2 emissions, cut costs and improve tyre performance – factors that will manufacturers’ margins and protect their bottom line.
India Slaps Duty Upon Imported Carbon Black
NewsThe Press Trust of India reports the country’s government has imposed anti-dumping duties upon imported carbon black used by the rubber industry in an attempt to protect the domestic industry against from cheap shipments from China, Australia, Thailand and Russia. The import duties range from US$0.084 to $0.423 per kilogram, India’s Central Board of Customs and Excise (CBEC) said in a statement.
Toyo Tires Launch New Motorsport Tyre: Proxes R1R
NewsToyo’s new Proxes R1R has been released into the UK market. Designed for trackday enthusiasts, the tyre met its market on the Time Attack stand at the Autosport Show. Japanese car giant Mitsubishi chose to have the Toyo Proxes R1R as original equipment for its latest Evo, the Evo 10 FQ-400 which has over 400bhp (hence the name). It is available in sizes from 15” to 18” and in profiles from 55 series to 35 series.
Quadra in Negotiations to Establish Waste Tyre Conversion Plant
NewsNevada, USA based company Quadra Projects Inc. has announced that it is in “ongoing negotiations” to enter into a joint venture with two companies – Renewable Energy Capital LLC and an “undisclosed” tyre supplier – to establish a waste tyre conversion plant capable of processing waste tyres into marketable by-products.
