Hannover-based Continental AG is a leading automotive supplier and – according to the company – is “the choice of leading car manufacturers, offering award-winning tyres that deliver responsive braking in all weather conditions.”
Work on its ‘Taraxagum – Dandelion Rubber Tires’ project has won Continental both the Innovation and the Green Award at Automechanika 2016. Maria Hanczuch from the Continental Business Development for Passenger and Light Truck Tires business unit accepted the award at the Frankfurt show on behalf of the tyre maker.
Continental will introduce its new Conti EfficientPro steer and drive axle tyres at next week’s IAA Commercial Vehicles show in Germany. This new, rolling resistance optimised range, specifically developed for long-distance motorway transport, draws upon the technologies already used in Continental’s EcoPlus tyre series. All Conti EfficientPro fitments have been given an EU tyre label rating of ‘A’ for fuel efficiency.
The Automechanika Innovation Awards 2016 have been announced – and tyre manufacturer Continental and tyre equipment manufacturer Corghi are amongst the winners. On 23 August 2016, the independent jury of nine experts reached agreement on eight award winners whose innovative solutions and future-oriented products will be presented for the first time in an interactive special show in the ‘Festhalle’ during the coming Automechanika Frankfurt on 13 September 2016.
To meet the growing demand of Asian vehicle manufacturers for surrounding sensors, production of short-range radar sensors was launched in Calamba in the Philippines towards the end of 2015. Short-range radar sensors perform functions like Blind Spot Detection, Lane Change Assist and Rear Cross Traffic Assist. Driving forces include legal requirements, but the customers’ demands for more safety and comfort are also of key importance. Additionally, the production of the Multi Function Camera with Lidar will be launched in autumn this year. The plan is to produce over ten million short range radar sensors and one million camera systems in Calamba in the future.
According to Continental, Asia remains the number one growth market for the automotive industry – and the numbers are impressive: Over 50 per cent of all vehicles produced worldwide come from Asian car manufacturers and approximately 30 per cent of all vehicles manufactured worldwide come from Japanese automakers. Ahead of the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japanese vehicle manufacturers are also amongst the automotive companies that are pushing the development of innovations in advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and automated driving.
On the 4 July, as the USA began to celebrate its independence day, Continental AG’s UK subsidiary (Continental Tyre Group) announced it had bought Bandvulc (B.V. Environmental Ltd.), one of only two substantially sized independent retreaders left in the UK. Legally, the takeover establishes Bandvulc as a wholly owned subsidiary of Continental UK Group Holdings Limited. T&A understands Bandvulc’s existing management team are to continue to lead the business.
As of 1 September, Vincent Charles will fill the vacancy at Continental left by the departure of Hannes Boekhoff in late March. Charles will progress from his current role of currently corporate spokesman for business and finance at continental, a position he has held since January 2015, to become the company’s head of Corporate Media Relations.
A new research facility for industrialising the cultivation and processing of rubber harvested from Russian dandelions will be set up in Germany as part of Continental’s plan to bring tyres containing this rubber to market under the ‘Taraxagum’ brand name. On 12 August, the company presented plans to establish such a facility in Anklam, near the Baltic Sea island of Usedom. Continental will operate the Taraxagum Lab Anklam in collaboration with the IME Fraunhofer Institute, Julius Kühn Institute, Quedlinburg, and plant breeding specialist firm Eskusa GmbH.
Last year, Continental celebrated a second consecutive victory for its ContiSportContact 5 in evo magazine’s annual summer tyre test. Since that time the back-to-back winner has been superseded by the SportContact 6, and Continental’s new generation rubber is proving a chip off the old block. Evo’s 2016 test of nine size 235/35 R19 summer tyres finished with the SportContact 6 gaining top points in the dry and wet braking tests, a result that helped it stave off strong competition, including wet handling category winner the Yokohama Advan Sport V105, to secure overall first place.
As many as one in four truck tyres may be running underinflated by 10 per cent, according to research conducted by Continental Tyres. This, of course, not only leads to significantly higher fuel costs but contributes to the likelihood of tyre failure, which is currently responsible for 20 per cent of all truck breakdowns. That’s where Conti’s “safe, reliable and efficient solutions” strategy comes in. Ian Jackson, Continental Tyres’ Technical Systems, sales & services manager explained how the correct application of a tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS) such as ContiPressureCheck can positively impact business. Looking forward, Conti is advocating for truck TPMS to become a legal requirement and is working closer integration between its systems and truck telematics.
On 1 August Continental Tyre PJ Malaysia Sdn Bhd (CTM) launched its Generation 3 truck tyres; the Conti Hybrid HS3, the Conti Hybrid HT3 and the ContiUrban HA3, each individually designed to suit different axles and developed with the unique Asian road conditions in mind.
Germany’s Continental AG reported its financial results for the first half of 2016 this morning and, thanks to what the tyre maker and automotive systems supplier calls “excellent operating performance” within its Rubber Group, has raised its earnings forecast for the current fiscal year.
After a decade’s absence, Continental is reintroducing its OTR and earthmover tyre ranges to the Americas. Beginning this month, the company is re-establishing its sales and product lines in all of North America as well as Brazil and the Andean markets. Continental states that the decision to return to these markets was based upon several factors, including demand from dealers for Continental products.
At a ceremony held at Continental’s headquarters in Hannover, Germany yesterday, the tyre maker signed a long-term option for acquiring additional land adjacent to its plant in Hefei, China. The deal almost doubles the space available for further expansion at the site.
Continental has opened its first training centre in the APAC region in Hefei, Anhui province in China. The facility is located in Anhui Province, in the Hefei Hi-tech Industry Development Zone, beside the company’s tyre plant and R&D test centre.
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