Following the news that Yanchang Rubber-produced Duraturn brand Travia AT SUV and light truck tyres have been recalled in the US, company representatives have confirmed that the measure should only affect the American tyre market.
Across the Atlantic, Chinese tyre manufacturer Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group Rubber (trading under its Duraturn brand name) is recalling thousands of Duraturn Travia A/T tyres in a move that could see as many as 33,466 products returned. The recall has been called due to manufacturing issues which could result in the separation of the tread or inner-liner from the tyre.
In the USA, industry veteran John Thomas has joined Yangchang Rubber/Duraturn as its local sales director. He previously served as director of sales West Canada for Sentury Tire North America and has more than 30 years of tyre industry sales experience.
Despite only entering the tyre business during the first decade of the new millennium (2008 to be precise), Yanchang Rubber is continuing to increase in prominence. Already known as a leading manufacturer with strong petrochemical group backing in the domestic Chinese tyre business, recent years have seen the company redouble its internationalisation efforts. One visible example was this was the company’s Tire Cologne exhibition stand, which was bigger and more professional-looking than ever and was placed in a premium position in Hall 6.
Yanchang Rubber (or Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group Rubber Co., Ltd., to give the company its full name) has announced plans to exhibited at the The Tire Cologne in May. The firm, which was born out of one of the leading petrochemical firms in China, is also amongst the largest tyremakers in the People’s Republic. Yanchang Rubber’s current production capacity amounts to 2 million commercial vehicle tyres and 8 million passenger car tyres a year. The firm’s best-known brand is Duraturn.
Premier Tyres and Plastics International (PTPI) is a new company with a long corporate history and values through Yanchang Rubber, Sinopec Solutions and China-based leading shipping and finance companies.
When Chinese New Year was celebrated in Central London it was estimated to be attended by over 700,000 people. This makes it the biggest event of its kind outside China and the main stage for the event was in the iconic Trafalgar Square.
Duraturn UK, the local branch of Chinese petrochemical giant Yanchang Petroleum’s Yanchang Rubber tyre manufacturing operation, has established a local sales team. After a recruitment process that ran through the course of 2016, Duraturn UK has appointed a team of sales, sales support and administration staff dedicated to the development of the tyre brands presence in the UK market.
First ChemChina sent shockwaves through the tyre market by successfully purchasing Pirelli in 2015. This year another Chinese firm – this time tyremaker Qingdao Doublestar – made waves by offering an US$830 million bid for 42 per cent Kumho Tire in mid-March. The obvious question is what is the next tyre-related investment to come out of China?
Reifen 2016 at the end of May marked the first time Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum (Group) Rubber Co., Ltd., (Yanchang Rubber) has taken a stand at Europe’s leading tyre fair. The company invested in a significantly sized booth and Ms Zhang Dongyang, the managing director of Yanchang Rubber, led her international team into the event in the mid-German city of Essen, highlighting that the company’s European development will be conducted in line with a clear localization strategy
Tyres & Accessories first met Duraturn at Reifen China in Shanghai in 2009. This wasn’t long after the company was founded in 2008 and yet the young companies ambitions were clear. At the point, the firm was not export ready, but things changed markedly in the few years that followed. The next time T&A met company representatives in 2010, less than two years after the business’s foundation, Duraturn’s production base was already well on the way to producing 1 million truck tyres a year truck and bus radial tyre production plant. The company broke ground on its passenger car radial tyre manufacturing line in 2013 and two years later is producing, modern compliant products for sale in China and for international export.
Originally the company referred to itself using the firm’s official name – Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum (Group) Rubber Co., Ltd. Now the company is bringing its tyre businesses under the more international “Duraturn” brand and embarking on an internationalisation programme that this year sees the firm put an emphasis on building business relationships in the UK.
Heard of Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum (Group) Rubber Co., Ltd? We hadn’t either before last year’s Reifen China in Shanghai. However, after our brief introduction at last year’s show this year the company returned to the exhibition with another substantial stand in a similarly prime position. This time round company representatives brought with them news that despite being founded as recently as December 2008, it is already well on the well to producing 1 million truck tyres a year at its Xianyang truck tyre production plant. With the company's passenger car radial line due to break ground in 2013, this could be a production base to watch.
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