Tech Europe, the European arm of Tech International, a producer of tyre repair materials and wheel service solutions, headquartered in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, has launched a new website at www.techeurope.co.uk. The site offers an overview of Tech Europe’s product offering, as well as providing detailed information on the company, its current distribution network, and on-going activities.
GT Radial took its European dealers to Test World’s Mellatracks Proving Ground in Ivalo, Finland on 19-24 March to test the Champiro WinterPro and studded Champiro IcePro winter tyres. Facing a range of snow and ice handling tests, the brand showed its winter tyres’ ability; the unstudded WinterPro, most suitable for European markets such as Germany and the growing UK segment, is TÜV-SÜD accredited, having completed a tyre comparison test in 2010.
Last year Kumho announced it would cease its nine year-tenure as tyre supply to the Formula 3 Euro Series at the end of 2011. The series, run as part of the Hankook-supplied German Touring Car Masters (DTM), now has a new sole tyre supplier. Unsurprisingly, it’s Hankook.
Trelleborg Wheel Systems has launched a media and online campaign to promote the rebranding of its Elite XP and Premia tyre lines, Tire Review Reports. Called “high performing resilient tyres,” the new-look lines will feature the Trelleborg brand name and logo on the sidewall.
GT Radial has announced that it will unveil its first commercial retread tyre product, the GT REE Tread, at The Commercial Vehicle Show 2012. With the brand representing an acronym for “Reliable, Economical and Environmental”, GT REE Tread is a high quality, hot cure bead-to-bead retread built on GT Radial casings. The company will present the tyre alongside its other new commercial products, the GSR220 steer axle pattern and the GDL617 non-directional long haul drive axle pattern, on Stand G40, in Hall 2.
The UK’s weather and public feeling about further hikes in fuel costs are heating up, but cooler tyre industry heads at distributor GT Radial are suggesting that road users could save around 15 pence per litre of fuel by ensuring their tyres are properly inflated. The manufacturer’s representatives say the problem of under-inflation is compounded by the shifting seasonal temperature; as the UK’s weather starts to warm up, tyres will start to lose air more quickly than during the winter months, said the company’s managing director for Europe, Richard Lyons.
According to Jürgen Gareis, plant manager at alloy wheel manufacturer Borbert’s Thuringia factory in Germany and managing director of Borbert Thüringen GmbH, the company’s cast aluminium wheel plants in Hallenberg-Hesborn and Medebach, both in Germany’s Sauerland region, combine to make up Europe’s largest wheel production complex. Company boss and (with a 76 per cent share) majority shareholder Peter Wilhelm Borbet points out the factories may not qualify for this distinction as they are not under the same roof. But whatever way you look at it, the figures are impressive: In 2012 the major OEM wheel supplier projects an output of four million units from these plants.
Alcoa Wheel Products Europe has announced the opening of its European Fleet Service Center, operational from 1 April, 2012. Located in Paal, Belgium, the Fleet Service Center will provide direct service to Alcoa wheel users, serving the majority of the European countries, according to Alcoa. The company says that the new facility will “improve the service level with better and faster support to Alcoa wheel customers”.
The makers of the Hofmann Power Weight brand of balancing weights will present various innovations and new products at this year's international tyre fair in Essen between 5 and 8 June (hall 1.0, stand 411). The theme at the Wegmann Automotive stand will be motor sports, a sector that’s all about speed. Wegmann has chosen to go for a motor sport motif as it says its new products, which have been developed on the race track and optimised for the workshop, can be mounted extremely quickly and easily.
Maxxis has announced that it has become the most recent tyre manufacturer to sign up with EDIWheel. “The economic environment means that tyre retailers are looking to maximise their existing resources to reduce the costs involved in running their businesses and EDIWheel represents a no cost benefit to them because they do not have to upgrade their software to access it,” says Maxxis International UK’s managing director Derek McMartin.
Yokohama’s general manager of its Tire Global Product Planning Division, Shigeo Komatsu announced the release of its new BluEarth AE-01 onto the European market at the Geneva Motorshow. The AE-01 is a latest generation tyre for passenger cars in the fuel-efficient BluEarth tyre series. It will be available in 40 sizes from 155/80R13 79T to 205/55R16 91H and will be sold around the world, starting in Europe.
On 26 March the Calcutta High Court appointed a provisional liquidator to assume charge of the assets belonging to Dunlop India Ltd. This measure has stripped the company’s board of directors and chairman Pawan Kumar Ruia of the power to transfer further assets or property from the company. The court’s official liquidator will serve as provisional liquidator, and in addition to conducting an inventory of existing assets he will attempt to recover any prior Dunlop India asset transfers deemed to be fraudulent in nature; according to Justice Sanjib Banerjee, the liquidator will take steps to reclaim properties sold by Dunlop in 2006-07.
Vehicles fitted with run-flat tyres as original equipment, such as the various members of the BMW range, are now entering the used car market in increasing numbers and being purchased by drivers with more limited budgets than the first owners. To cater for these motorists’ tyre needs, Bridgestone has launched its first Firestone-branded run-flat for the European market. Called the Firehawk SZ90µ RFT (Run-Flat Technology), the replacement market tyre is available in six sizes for 16- to 18-inch, 40 to 55 series, and features a reinforced sidewall rubber construction for continued safe driving if the tyre deflates or suffers a total loss of pressure.
Under a newly-announced original equipment supply agreement, Hankook Tire will supply Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) with tyres for its Freightliner Cascadia and Coronado models, starting in May 2012. The two flagship Freightliner trucks will be equipped with Hankook Tire’s AL11 steer and DL11 drive tyres, the tyre maker stated during the 2012 Mid-America Trucking Show.
Kevin Buchanan, managing director of Palletline, has added his voice to the continuing chorus of discontent with UK government fuel duty policy coming from the haulage industry. “The country needs to recover from reckless spending, but reckless taxing is not the way to do it. Hauliers are being targeted because they do not have a voice in Westminster equal to their importance,” he commented adding:
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