Conti confirms 2013 guidance after weaker Q1
Although admitting that difficulties were encountered in the first quarter of 2013, Continental says it “held its ground” during this period and has confirmed its guidance for the full year.
Although admitting that difficulties were encountered in the first quarter of 2013, Continental says it “held its ground” during this period and has confirmed its guidance for the full year.
Apollo Tyres has opened its sales hub to the ASEAN region in Bangkok. The region has become one of Apollo’s strongest export markets for its India produced tyres, the company said. Over the last three years, Apollo said the region has doubled in sales.
Dr. Ron Commander, head of Lanxess’ Butyl Rubber business unit, will retire at the end of this year. Before this takes effect, the 62-year old will spend his final six months or so with the specialty chemicals company in a new, Canada-based role. Commander’s new position will take effect on 1 July, and on that date he will be succeeded as head of the Butyl Rubber business unit by Dr. Guenther Weymans, who is currently head of Lanxess’ Keltan Elastomers business unit.
Japan’s Zeon Chemicals says its new solution styrene-butadiene rubber plant in Singapore will now enter operation in September, two months behind its initial projected start-up date. The hold up has been attributed to the construction of a number of public service tunnels. Despite this delay, the company states the plant will run “flat-out” as of September.
UK brake supplier Apec has expanded its product range with the addition of 13 new brake pads, continuing the expansion of what the company says is Europe's largest range of direct replacement braking items, which now stands at over 1,400 brake pads, and over 6,000 braking products.
Five years ago Indonesia’s leading contract mining company PT Pamapersada Nusantara (PAMA) decided to install a turn-key OTR retread facility from Rösler in Balikpapan. Now the company is celebrating half a decade since the successful completion of the project. Rösler engineered and designed the entire factory, supplied the equipment and transferred the know-how. In total over 200 tons of equipment was shipped from Germany to the island of Borneo where in February 2008 the first 27.00R49 tyre was retreaded.
In 2013, the Rösler retreading plant run by Indonesian coal mining contractor PT Pamapersada Nusantara (Pama) enters its sixth year in operation, and the German retreading specialist says that plant output will be increased this year. Rösler reports that Pama is currently “evaluating expansion plans to meet the increasing demand.” Details on planned capacity or other information were not given.
On 1 April, Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations celebrated the implementation of capacity expansion projects at its Aiken County plant in South Carolina. The facility has begun production of an additional 12,750 passenger car radial and light truck radials per day following a US$346 million investment that has created almost 300 full-time jobs.
Yokohama Rubber’s tyre plant in China, Hangzhou Yokohama Tire Co., Ltd., has benefitted in RMB 13.47 million (£1.4 million) in grants from Hangzhou City and the Hangzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone (HEDA). The grants cover the period between December 2012 and March 2013 and the Japanese manufacturer says they were given in recognition of the company's economic and environmental activities. The grants awarded to Hangzhou Yokohama are said to represent the largest amount awarded to a single company (as opposed to a group of companies) amongst the 340 or so located in the HEDA.
In addition to reporting its 2012 results, US-based aluminium wheel manufacturer Superior Industries International, Inc. has announced plans to build a new manufacturing facility in Mexico to expand capacity and meet anticipated growth in product demand.
Along with displaying its range at the Geneva motor show for the fifth consecutive year, Turkish tyre brand Lassa has outlined its recent activities. Halit Şensoy, international sales and marketing director of Lassa manufacturer Brisa, shared that last year the tyre maker benefitted from the largest investment in production capacity in the company’s entire history. Brisa’s factory in Izmit, Turkey now has the capacity to produce ten million tyres per annum. The investment, Şensoy added, was made in order to meet growing demand in both local and export markets.
Blackcircles.com managing director Michael Welch has hinted that company may employ a closer relationship with leading supermarket Tesco as one way of moving towards its goal of £100 million (around 10 per cent of the UK market) in the next five year. Welch revealed the plans in an interview with The Telegraph published on 26 February, which also gave details of the guidance the company has received from a number of ex-Tesco executives and particularly former CEO Sir Terry Leahy.
Motor Wheel Service Distribution (MWSD) has announced an expansion to the xlite forged aluminium wheel range, manufactured by Wheels India, launching two of the lightest super single wheels on the market. The 11.75×22.5 wheel, with a 0mm inset and 10x26mm mounting holes, boasts a weight reduced by 1.6kg to 22.1kg. The new 120mm inset wheel weighs 3.7kg less than its predecessor at 24.3kg. Both wheels have an increased load index from 4,500kg to 5,000kg.
At Hankook Tire America’s annual ‘Partners Day’, the tyre maker gave an overview of its recent successes and shared it plans to build upon these accomplishments. US industry publication Tire Review was there and shares news of the event held in Cancun, Mexico.
Solvay is investing 75 million euros in building an 85,000 ton a year Highly Dispersible Silica (HDS) plant in Włocławek, Poland. Combined with further capacity expansion at its site in Qingdao (China), these two investments are designed to increase Solvay’s global highly dispersible silica production capacity by 30 per cent.
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