More than a year and a half after the event took place, Carlisle Magistrates’ Court has heard the case of a worker injury at the nearby Pirelli plant. The case was brought to court by the Health and Safety Executive, which prosecuted Pirelli Tyres Ltd after an investigation found that the safety procedures for carrying out maintenance work on the machine were poor.
Mak has released its new Rennen wheel, designed specifically for Porsche. Mak says it has put in plenty of its heritage and experience at the top of the wheel market into the latest multispoke design – an elegant twist on the classic ‘Y’ spoke genre. Each pair of spokes curves into the factory-styled stud bowls, balancing concavity with a lengthened spoke design to create an impression of strength, lightness and size.
Additional greenfield land has been made available adjacent to Michelin’s Waterville plant in Canada, reports a local media source. The Kings County Advertiser & Register writes that the Municipality of the County of the Kings in Nova Scotia has formally committed to divesting its municipal airport property in Waterville to make a factory expansion possible.
YHI reports that its expanding Malaysia factory has gained some new OE deals including one with Proton as part of its strategy to grow its aftermarket and OEM businesses in Malaysia and wider region. According to YHI, the contract is to supply alloy wheels to Proton for its Satroa Meo R3, Global Small Cars and Saga FLX models. This order of alloy wheels will be manufactured at the Group’s Malaysia plant.
Leading suspension firm Eibach has released a range of suspension enhancements for global models of the rear wheel drive BRZ/GT86 sports coupe developed jointly by Toyota and Subaru, and known as the “Toyoburu”. The company aims to be at the forefront of the modifications aftermarket for the car, which has gained traction within this segment. The latest designs to come from the German company are an adjustable rear toe arm, bespoke rear control arm and camber bolts.
According to local media, Michelin may expand its Olsztyn tyre factory in Poland. The country’s economic minister Janusz Piechociński is reported to have named Michelin as one of two automotive sector firms that may potentially invest in Poland; the tyre maker is said to be considering investing zł.379.5 million (£77.8 million) in the plant expansion, which would create 51 new jobs.
Italian braking brand Tarox has launched its latest kit, a product that it excitingly calls “the very definition of over-engineered”. The company says the finished 410mm front brake upgrade for the popular Toyota Land Cruiser 4.5 V8 J200 model offers improvements in both control and retardation. The kit is aimed at both enthusiasts looking to get more out of their car off-road, but also at the many conversion companies that armour or equip the ultra-tough Land Cruiser for life on the front line.
On 15 July 2013, Marcos Guzman took over the position of production manager, responsible for B&J Rocket’s factory in the USA. With immediate effect, Guzman is in charge of quality assurance and improvement for all B&J production. In addition to further optimising production processes he will closely monitor costs and the resources utilised. Furthermore, he is responsible for improving maintenance to ensure a consistently high quality output.
The Southeast Asian country of Myanmar, formerly Burma, now stands amongst the ranks of the world’s tyre producing nations. The country’s first tyre factory, MEC Tire, officially entered operation on 1 May. The occasion was marked by ceremony attended by Myanmar commander-in-chief Min Aung Hlaing, the commander of the Navy, commander of the air force and other military and government officials, along with representatives from Chinese rubber and tyre industry machinery supplier Mesnac, who set up the plant. The MEC Tire facility was Mesnac’s first overseas turnkey project.
A little over two months ago, Yokohama Tire Corporation (YTC) announced its plan to build a new commercial tyre plant in the US. On 11 July it announced that the first phase of the facility in West Point, Mississippi will be designed by Kajima Associates/Architects & Engineers, PC of Atlanta, Georgia. The project taken on by Kajima Associates calls for the design of a 931,000 square foot (86,500 square metre) factory that includes production, warehousing and operations facilities.
Leading Indian retreading equipment supplier Elgi is targeting new tyre manufacturers with the launch of a monorail tyre handling system, developed by its Brazilian subsidiary Armonas. India is home to 39 tyre manufacturers and 60 individual production plants and Elgi hopes to take advantage of producers moving into, or developing their retreading capacity.
Aebi Schmidt has selected Hankook’s Vantra LT tyre for its Swingo 200 street cleaning machines. At over four tonnes, the Swingo 200 is tough machine that can expect a long and arduous working life. This specialist machine also boasts a large hopper capacity, resulting in a 50 per cent bigger payload than other street sweepers.
Milltek has released details of its new performance exhaust system for the new BMW M135i. The latest F20 chassis car features BMW’s twin scroll turbo engine, which Milltek says suits its extraction technology and craftsmanship. Initially launched as a cat-back only set-up, Milltek will provide the additional option of a turbo-back system, complete with large bore downpipe and high-flow cat configurations.
The words “sporting Volvo diesel” may have seemed paradoxical not long ago, but exhaust supplier Milltek believes the manufacturer’s new C30 R-Line 2.4 and 2.5 T5 respond well enough to tuning and enhancement that it has added an exhaust system for both models to its burgeoning portfolio. The company has also created a tailored system for the V50 model with the same engine options.
The longest-serving Goodyear employee. Sidney Richardson, recently celebrated his 70th year of working at Goodyear’s Gadsen tyre factory in Alabama. Richardson – also known within the plant as ‘Legend’ – began working at the Gadsen factory on 22 June 1943, aged 17. To celebrate his achievement, the plant planned a cookout for employees. Richardson received a special coin from Goodyear CEO Richard Kramer and a certificate of recognition from Alabama Governor Robert Bentley.
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