Hofmann and Balco are to merge their administration and IT functions as part of a rationalisation within the Snap-on group, with a new name; European Equipment Group (EEG). The Hofmann and Balco brands will continue, as will the different channels of distribution. Chris Grimm, MD of Balco, will become MD of EEG, while Gavin Masterton, MD of Hofmann, is to retire. Our article looks at the reasons behind the new move.
Tenneco Automotive has reported an 8 million dollar loss in the fourth quarter of 2001, this completes a 130 million dollar loss for the year, compared to a 40 million dollar loss for the previous year. The company is to close eight facilities worldwide, with the loss of 900 jobs. This will form part of a global lean manufacturing and distribution initiative.
Bandag has announced consolidated net earnings of $17.4 million for the quarter ending 31st December 2001, bringing total net consolidated earnings for the year to $43.8 million, or $2.12 per diluted share on sales of $964.9 million. This compares to 200 net earnings of £60.3 million on sales of $996.1 million. Martin Carver, Bandag’s CEO stated that strong results in the last quarter were offset by performance in offshore operations. He noted that offshore operations continued to experience difficult economic conditions and strong competitive pressures.
Goodyear Spain has reached an agreement with Neumaticos JM Martinez which will assist the tyre distributor switch core business from distribution to manufacturing. JM Martinez is to cease distribution of Marshal and Lassa and will concentrate on selling Goodyear brands. The Spanish press speculate that this may open the door to a Goodyear takeover of JM Martinez.
German wholesaler Bohnenkamp (Osnabrück) has been the exclusive distributor for the Israeli agricultural tyre manufacturer Alliance in Germany, Austria, Poland, Hungary and Czech Republic since the beginning of July. With this step Bohnenkamp intends to underline its leading position in the distribution of imported tyres. The company has been chosen by Alliance due to its elaborate distribution network and flexible logistics. Alliance offers more than 500 different sizes in the agricultural, MPT-, EM- and industrial tyres sectors and presents – in the neighbourhood of Bohnenkamp – a completely renewed product range with many new profiles and dimensions.
Trials, tribulations and shady deals have, in recent years, been the order of the day in the contacts between the Corporation’s management in Hanover and the Semperit GmbH subsidiary in Vienna. On the one hand, due mostly to the fighting spirit of a large part of the personnel, we had the image of a totally unruly company in Traiskirchen, and on the other hand the image of those at the top of the Corporation; not to be trusted any further than they could be thrown. Like the devil fears holy water, the Austrian associates fear the physicist Hubertus von Grünberg who, first as the Continental Corporation’s CEO and now as a sort of Supervisory Superintendent, is spending a lot of time making life impossible for the plant in Traiskirchen. As far as the Austrians are concerned, there can be no possible justification for these measures, and closure of the plant would be seen as a token of utter ingratitude, because Semperit Traiskirchen has amply rewarded the Corporation with returns on their previous investments. The question today is: can Traiskirchen be saved? The company offers employment to 1,500 associates, manufacturing products for a world market under pressure due to overcapacity. The bitter truth is this: the plant is no longer needed, however, the brand is, and so is the market. What they have not quite figured out yet, is how to lose the one and keep the others. Employees point to the closure, at the beginning of the eighties, of the Firestone Plant in Pratteln, Switzerland, which consequently reduced the then market leader to a mere “also ran”. The same fate will befall the Continental Corporation, is the suggestion in Vienna. But the reality may be quite different. At that time, Firestone had withdrawn from the market in the heat of its struggle for survival, tyres had to be ordered by the container load from the Spanish or French plant, the infrastructure had gone, and so had the distribution service. If lights go out in Traiskirchen today, the impact on the market may be close to zero. Austria will be in turmoil but once the telephones of the works council members have been cut, the interest of the public and the press will die down, and so will the interest of the politicians, who are trying to capitalise on the situation, pretending they are fighting to keep the jobs. It will be like in any obituary: fought, hoped and lost. Matters should be approached from a different angle: ranting and raving does not create new jobs.
Bridgestone/Firestone has issued the results of its four month investigation into the accidents in the USA involving certain Firestone tyres. A number of causes were identified, including unspecified manufacturing problems at Decatur, tyre design in the shoulder area, driver abuse (travelling too fast and at the wrong pressure) and the weight of the Ford Explorer vehicle, particularly an alleged uneven weight distribution on the back axle. Ford denies that the margin for error between the load capacity of the tyres and the weight of a fully-laden Explorer is too slim.
Nomura International, which holds a “substantial” equity stake in Romanian tyre manufacturer Tofan, has announced the sale of parts of the company to Michelin. The French company has bought the Victoria car tyre plant, the Silvania truck tyre factory, a retreading unit, a number of warehouses and the Tofan-owned distribution network. The purchase price was not revealed but a number of tyre manufacturers are said to have been interested. Tofan will continue to manufacture agricultural and implement (brand name: Danubiana) tyres and this business will be expanded, says Nomura, which remains a significant shareholder.
Mark D. Ponton (50) has been appointed vice president of materials management for Goodyear in the USA. The post entails looking after Goodyear’s initiatives in warehousing and distribution in North America.
With the arrival of the “Sportec M-1”, Metzeler has launched its latest motorcycle tyre which is planned to replace the “ME Z3”. The international press was invited to Biarritz, France, to take a close look at the new tyre designed to meet the niche between the race oriented “Racing” tyre and the touring targeted “ME Z4”. The “M-1” is dedicated to the customer with a sportier riding style. The “Sportec M-1” will be available from the beginning of October in five front wheel dimensions and six real wheel sizes. With a 0° steel-belted carcass and the multi-curvature tyre contour allied to the so-called MAW system (Metzeler Advanced Winding), or with the new compound and tread design, Metzeler has done a great deal to guarantee more enjoyment and safety for motorcyclists using the new “Sportec M-1”. Metzeler say that prices for the new tyre will “match the market requirements”, we can only guess what distribution manager Holger Schwedt means by that. Obviously Metzeler want to offer the “Sportec M-1” below the price of its predecessor, the “ME Z3″, in order to minimise the advantage to its competitor, Bridgestone, who – if you look at market shares – came very close to the German market leader in recent years. ” We are no longer seeking to simply retain a stable market share, we wish to fight for more,” explained Schwedt.
Hankook Tires has recently completed the construction of its new European Distribution Centre at Rotterdam, enabling the tyre manufacturer to improve its service to customers throughout Europe. The EDC – a 10 million Euro investment – was officially opened on 7th March.
The German subsidiary of the Italian tyre producer Marangoni was founded six years ago in Wedel near Hamburg. The foundation of Marangoni Tyre GmbH took place at the beginning of May 1999, with General Manager Dirk Rohmann and Area Manager Martin Werner the only two people to work for the German company daughter up till now. One of their most important tasks is to increase the low awareness and attention the tyre brand receives from the end users at the moment. It was for this reason that the company held an international press conference in Rapallo in March 2000 that was attended by more than 100 journalists from all over Europe. The effect was a very positive one; Marangoni tyres have been represented in some summer- and winter-tyre-tests of international magazines, in which they performed quite well. The number of countries that are managed from Germany has increased from 16 to 22 in the previous one and a half years. New countries are: Ireland, Iceland, the Netherlands, Slovakia and Romania. The present market share in Germany amounts up to one percent – representing 400,000 tyres. The products are delivered directly on trucks from Italy. Twelve distribution partners handle the local distribution in Germany. In the western part the coverage is more ore less complete, whereas in the eastern part there are still some holes, that are due to be filled by spring next year. Furthermore Rohmann and Werner want to employ a third person who will keep a close contact with the 250 German tyre dealers where Marangoni products are sold.
Press reports say that financial investors in Stomil Olsztyn, the Polish tyre maker, are threatening to take Michelin to court over alleged abuse of the rights of minority shareholders. There is a shareholders meeting, at which the disaffected investors are set to demand the appointment of an independent auditor to look into the financial links between Stomil and Michelin. Failing this, legal action will be taken, says the investors group.
In Mid-September, the Spring-, Suspension- and Chassis-specialist celebrated its 50th anniversary in Finnentrop, with the slogan: “50 years of experience – Ready for the future.” More than 400 guests accepted the invitation for the central celebration event, approximately 50 percent of them being customers, coming from 40 countries. The terror attacks in the USA had their effect on this event too: is it possible to celebrate an anniversary thinking about thousands of victims in the States and the pain of their families? “The main impact has come from our colleagues in the United States, who wanted us to continue with the programme. We also want to give a example of multinational understanding and positive relations”, declared a visibly-moved Wilfried Eibach, head of the family owned company. The success story started in 1951 with the production of industry springs. In the Seventies the department for automotive springs was founded. Nowadays the name Eibach is known world-wide as a synonym for leading chassis technology. For some years the programme has gone far beyond the pure spring. The construction process has been supported by “CAD”-applications and it has carried out pioneer work in the field of new methods of corrosion-protection. Also the chassis system harmonisation is a huge field of activities in the year 2001. Today Eibach AG stands as a family holding on top of the German company group, consisting of four daughter companies. Abroad, Eibach is represented with production, engineering and/or distribution facilities in Irvine (California, USA), Broughton Astley (Leicestershire, GB), Tokyo (Japan) and Warriewood (New South Wales, Australia) and through more than 50 exclusive distributors. In Germany the 250 employees have achieved a turnover of 25.2 million Euro. The world-wide turnover in 2000 of the 400 employees amounted to 48 million Euro. During the celebration guests had practical experience of the secret of Eibach’s success: the fact that – beyond the many technological qualifications – the family owners have never neglected the human dimension, and they have always been aware of their social responsibilities.
Australian company Pacific Dunlop has revealed restructuring plans, which involve splitting the group in two. The Ansell health care business (turnover $Aus 1.3 bn) will be floated as a separate company. The second company will include the distribution of consumer products (Pacific Brands) and automotive products (Pacific Automotive and South Pacific Tyres). Turnover of these units totalled $Aus 2.7 bn.
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