China Archives - Page 191 of 240 - Tyrepress

Now one of the largest tyre-producing countries in the world, China has an indisputable influence on the direction of global tyre trade. The home of both fast-growing up-and-coming brands as well as a burgeoning domestic market, this tag chronicles China’s involvement with the tyre business.

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Conti to Invest 150 million Euros in China Tyre Plant

Continental AG is to substantially expand its presence in China through the establishment of a new tyre manufacturing facility in the city of Hefei, Anhui province. Conti will invest a total of about 150 million euros into the project, and construction is scheduled to get underway in mid 2008. A date of early 2010 has been put forward for the start of tyre production. An appropriate investment plan for the project was agreed upon on October 28 and the company is currently in the process of obtaining the required permits from China’s central government.

“With this move, we are entering one of the world’s most dynamic tyre markets, following careful analysis and intensive preparation,” stressed Continental Executive Board chairman Manfred Wennemer in Hanover on October 28. “In addition to Automotive Systems and ContiTech the Passenger and Light Truck Tires division will thus have a production location in China and profit from the continuing positive development.”

29th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyrexpo Asia: Wholesalers Keep a Strong Presence

It appears that Tyrexpo Asia – like other leading international tyre shows – represents a must-do for wholesalers from Europe. At a minimum members of these companies’ top management come to Tyrexpo Asia as visitors, but many companies each year book floor space in the Singapore Expo Centre for Tyrexpo Asia. Counted amongst the latter is the commercial tyre specialist Heuver Banden from the Netherlands, which displayed its products together with the manufacturer of the new “Maitech“ OTR tyre brand. The distribution rights of this brand have been granted to Heuver Banden for major parts of Europe by Uzmai International from Verona, Italy – however, the tyres are produced in Turkey, as Oskar Snijders, director wholesale with the Dutch distributor, explained.

26th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Federal Tyres’ “Fruitful” 2007

For Federal Tyres this year, the second in which the company has placed an emphasis upon motorsports involvement, has been fruitful. At the very beginning of the year Federal was appointed naming right sponsor and official tyre supplier to the 2007 X Challenge series, an Australian based one-make championship for Lotus cars. This was followed up by a sponsorship deal in Federal Tyre’s native Taiwan with the AIC Drift Team. The manufacturer hand picked the team itself and hopes its decision to sponsor this growing sport will further encourage local companies to place their support behind motorsport in the island.

25th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

CMA to Open First North American Warehouse

(Akron/Tire Review) China Manufacturers Alliance has opened its first North American distribution centre. Located in Memphis, Tennessee, the 14,000-square metre facility is set to open later this year. “Acquiring this new Memphis distribution centre was necessary to support Double Coin’s rapid growth in North America, and will help us continue providing industry-leading service to our customers,” said company officials.

The centre is located on 4.25 hectares near Memphis International Airport. It will serve as CMA’s primary distribution point for OE and replacement Double Coin brand medium truck and bus radials and radial OTR tyres. CMA also leases warehouse space in Urbana, Ohio, for OE distribution.

The company also said that future distribution centres are being considered.

25th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Tire Technology Expo 2008 to be Largest Ever

The organisers of the Tire Technology Expo 2008 are confident that next year’s show will be the largest yet and boast its best ever conference programme and speaker line-up. Held between February 19 and 21, 2008 at the Köln Messe exhibition centre in Germany, the exhibition is, despite its location, organised by Surrey’s own UKIP Media & Events, organisers of the Testing Expo China event held alongside CITExpo in Shanghai.

Next year’s Tire Technology Expo will host more than 140 exhibitors and therefore floor space has been increased, and those attending the show will also be able to enjoy the free gala dinner and Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence presentation held on the evening of February 20.

The Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence are being judged by an international panel of renowned tyre industry experts and their criteria reflects the true scope of the products and equipment that will be on show at Tire Technology Expo 2008, with categories comprising:-

23rd October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Report: Chinese PC Market Accelerates With Government Backing

According to a new analysis from Frost & Sullivan the Chinese passenger car sales volumes have jumped from about 1.2 million in 2001 to over 5.17 million in 2006. Moreover, China has overtaken Japan to be the second largest automotive consumer in the world in 2006. Reduced tariffs are expected enable foreign companies to slash the prices of their cars and compete with the products of domestic OEMs. Meanwhile, new rules on the qualification evaluation of car dealership will ensure the elimination of car dealers without authentic authorisation, aiding fair competition in the market.

“Policies have also been drafted to improve the quality of car parts and components to guarantee the safety of passengers,” says Frost & Sullivan Industry Manager Cecilia Yuan. “The move to promote the consumption of low-cylinder volume cars will not only improve their effect on the environment, but also raise the prices of luxury cars.”

22nd October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyrexpo Asia Continues to Grow Despite Clash of Dates

The sixth Tyrexpo Asia, held in Singapore in September, left no hint of a doubt as to the importance of the regional tyre market and of the show itself in comparison with other regions and events. The organisers of the biannual Tyrexpo Asia, the UK’s ECI International, have again been proud to present the show’s final figures, which show an exhibitor increase of about 30 per cent compared to the 2005 show: this year 125 companies from 25 different countries booked floor space in the Singapore Expo Center. In terms of booked floor space this year’s show has developed equally well: about 6,500 m² was covered which, representing a growth of 25 per cent. However, this success is not completely untarnished as the number of visitors might be expected to have grown on par – something that would been justified by the quality of exhibitors – if there had not been a clash of dates with the CITExpo tyre show in Shanghai, China. At the end ECI International reported a growth of nine per cent up to 3,219 registered visitors from 88 different countries.

22nd October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Automechanika Canada Debuts

(Akron/Tire Review) The recently ended Automechanika Canada – the first for North America – draw nearly 3,000 attendees and 2020 exhibitors from 16 countries. Held in Toronto from September 26 to 28, this first Automechanika event also included participation by the Ontario Tire Dealers Association. Participants included automotive and tyre suppliers, manufacturers, retailers, shop owners and installers, and offered a number of education sessions with the trade show.

Exhibitors came from Brazil, China, Germany, India, Iran, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, Mexico, Portugal, South Korea, Taiwan, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the US, according to organisers Messe Frankfurt. “We were pleased to be able to deliver such a high quality event to the growing Canadian market this year,” said Messe Frankfurt president David Audrain. “Automechanika Canada enabled aftermarket professionals to source new products from around the world and enhance their business in Canada.”

The next Automechanika Canada has been scheduled for June 18-20, 2008.

18th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

AIM Share Placing Planned to Double Capacity

Rising Tyre Co Ltd has announced it intends to raise as much as £16.2 million, including expenses, through a share placing, ahead of its Alternative Investment Market debut on October 30. The company said proceeds from the placing will primarily be invested in its new production facilities

Rising Tyre is the British Virgin Islands incorporated holding company for its wholly owned subsidiary Linyi Unique, a China based firm principally engaged in the manufacture of tyres and inner tubes for bicycles, motorcycles and mopeds. Linyi Unique acquired the production assets and business of Shandong Zhengxing, on 7 February 2007.

18th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Cash Injection Helps Tyre Startup

A US startup tyre company that has developed a winter tyre with retractable studs has become the recipient of a US$200,000 investment from SC Launch, an organisation specialising in the provision of seed funding and mentoring for new, innovative businesses. South Carolina based Q Tires Inc. has yet to bring any products to market, but the company, headed by former Michelin executive Roy Bromfield, claims it is creating the world’s safest tyres.

Utilising a patented technology called “Celsius”, the tyres function by causing air pressure from the main chamber of the tyre to expand a secondary chamber, which lifts the studs above the surface of the tread. When road conditions no longer require studs, the air pressure is released into atmosphere and the studs retract below the tread face. The Celsius tyres have already been granted DOT approval, and plans are afoot to commence manufacture in China. Q tires has raised $8 million from investors and created a joint venture to produce the tyres in the Chinese city of Qingdao. Untreaded tyre cores will be purchased from Yellow Sea Tire and will be fitted with the new technology tread in a 6,700 square factory that will employ an estimated 140 staff.

15th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

ArcelorMittal to Expand in China through Acquisition

Steelmaking giant ArcelorMittal made public on October 15 news that it is to acquire a 90 per cent stake in the Chinese steelcord wire drawing company Rongcheng Chengshan Steelcord. ArcelorMittal will pay US$26.6 million for the Shangdong province based business.

Lakshmi Mittal, president and chief executive of ArcelorMittal said: “This acquisition is an important step for us in expanding in a major market. We have already shown through our joint ventures in China the value and skills we can bring the Chinese steel industry and we look forward to bringing our expertise to Rongcheng Chengshan Steelcord. As well as showing our commitment to the broader Chinese steel market, this acquisition also underlines our commitment to the wire business specifically and recognises China’s leading position in this sector.”

15th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Kumho Broadens its OE Horizons

Kumho has been a significant supplier to OEMs in its home market of Korea for many years. Recently, however, the company has taken a number of strides towards securing deals with major automotive manufacturers in Europe and the US. To that end, Kumho have set up offices in Birmingham, Hamburg and Detroit, as well as an office in Tianjin, China.

The tyremaker’s breakthrough in Europe came in 2001, when Kumho won the contract to supply 200,000 tyres a year to Volkswagen AG for the 2002 model year Polo. Though this was the company’s first ever European contract, it was not the first association with Volkswagen, to whom it already supplied tyres for the Mexican built Beetle. More recently, Kumho was selected by DaimlerChrysler AG to supply tyres for the second generation Mercedes Benz A-Class model. The development programme for this contract was led by Kumho’s Birmingham based European Technical Centre (KETC) and the main focus was ride refinement whilst maintaining suitable levels of wet and dry performance as well as a low rolling resistance. The result was a new tread compound and carcass material for the Kumho SOLUS KH15.

12th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

New Conti Distribution Centre Opens in China

The distribution facility in China jointly set up by Continental and the logistics cooperation Penske/Honold has entered operation. On October 1 the Shanghai Regional Distribution Center (RDC) took over from the temporary RDC, opened in March, as the official site for operations. The interim facility will now be closed down.

“For Continental, this [the RDC] represents a logical next step in the development of Asian distribution, Following the large-scale restructuring of logistics in Malaysia, China is the next challenge to be tackled,” stated Carsten Sziegoleit, head of warehousing and tyre distribution worldwide at Continental.

The launching of logistics operations in China is based essentially on the introduction of Continental’s established logistic processes and systems. Lean processes with a minimum of interfaces have already been successfully tested in China, ensuring that the new RDC will get off to a good start. With Penske as partner in China, Continental is relying on a well-established service provider, backed up by the experience of Honold Reifenlogistik, a company specialising in tyres. Honold already serves Continental with over 100,000 square metres of warehousing.

12th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Zeppelin Acquires Chronos Richardson’s MPS Division

Zeppelin Silos & Systems GmbH (Friedrichshafen) has acquired Chronos Richardson’s Materials Processing Systems (MPS) division located in Nottingham, UK establishing a new subsidiary in the city. With the consent of the Antitrust Commission Zeppelin’s acquisition of the “Conveying, Dosing and Weighing and Control Technology” product portfolios from the British manufacturer Chronos Richardson has been completed.

According to the company’s the complementary skills of Zeppelin & Chronos will be beneficial for the future development of the important tyre and rubber manufacturing segment. The control technologies, for which Chronos set recognised technical standards, are expected to complete Zeppelin’s product portfolio and the company says the new enterprise will also become a trend-setter for research and development in various industrial sectors in the future. (The world’s largest test centre for the handling of bulk solids including two purpose built research plants (one for pellets and one for powder) is located at the Zeppelin facility in Friedrichshafen, Germany).

11th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop Aircraft to Expand With New Retreading Facility in China

Birmingham-based Dunlop Aircraft Tyres has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company Limited (HAECO) and Taikoo (Xiamen) Aircraft Engineering Company Limited (TAECO) to establish a tyre retreading facility in Jinjiang, Fujian Province, China. It is intended that a joint venture will be formed with Dunlop Aircraft Tyres as the majority partner and the new facility to be operational in early 2009.

The new follows AAC Capital Partners’ (formerly the private equity business of ABN Amro) acquisition of 74.6 per cent of Dunlop Aircraft Tyres in May this year. The most recent announcement shows that predictions that the expansion in China would come to fruition 12 – 18 months after the sale are right on track. However, at the time of the sale of 74.6 per cent of Dunlop Aircraft Tyres in May, there were also suggestions of expansion in the US. No mention of the progress of these plans has yet been made.

9th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors