Sumitomo Rubber Industries has revealed details of its new tyre production system, called Taiyo (“the sun”). It is a fully automatic system, integrating all the production process, from component preparation to tyre curing, into one cell. The process is very flexible and, says SRI, produces a more uniform tyre. The Taiyo system is in production at SRI’s Nagoya plant and 1,000 tyres of eight different sizes can be produced daily.
Up until now, Nokian Tyres’ contract manufacturing has mainly been focused on Nordman branded winter tyres. The Finnish tyre maker now plans to increase summer tyre production as well in the Russian joint venture factory of Voronez, attaining an annual capacity of two million tyres in 2004 and also plans to introduce a new summer tyre brand at the year-end.
Pirelli P6 Four Seasons tyres are to be fitted as standard on the Ford Focus ZTS in the USA and are an option on the ZX3, SE and ZX5 models. The size in question is P205/50 R16 87H and the tyres will be manufactured in Pirelli’s Brazilian factory and shipped to Ford’s plants in Hermosillo, Mexico and Wayne, Michigan. Pirelli has enjoyed OE success in the US with summer tyres on cars imported from Europe, but this latest contract puts the company in the forefront of OE all-season business.
The agreement signed last August between Indian companies Apollo Tyres and Modi Rubber, whereby the Modi factory would produce for Apollo, is off. Apollo says that its requirements for increased capacity are “being satisfied through our own expansion and through other sources.” An Apollo spokesman also said that the company “was not averse to buying into the tyre business of Modi Rubber”, providing the right deal can be struck. The Modi factory has been closed for over 18 months.
The new Dodge Ram SRT-10 is the latest and largest in pick-up trucks, with an 8.3 litre engine and 500 horsepower. The new pick-up will be shod with Pirelli Scorpion Zero tyres, size 305/40 22, made in Pirelli’s MIRS factory at Rome, Georgia. The SRT-10 will accelerate to 60 mph in five seconds and has a top speed of 150 mph.
Pirelli has introduced the Diablo Corsa, its latest super sport motorcycle tyre. What makes the tyre unique is that it was produced using MIRS (Modular Integrated Robotized System) technology, with the process being known as MIRS Moto. There is a MIRS Moto line at the factory in Bicocca, near Milan and another at Breuberg in Germany, representing a total investment of more than 10 million Euros. The new Diablo Corsa is OE on the Aprilia RSV 100 R and other homologations are currently under way.
Bridgestone is to invest 1.7 billion Thai Baht (36.2 million Euros) in a new plant to produce carbon black. The factory, which will be sited in Rayong, Thailand, will begin production next year, with an annual capacity of 40,000 tons. It will be operated by the subsidiary company Bridgestone Carbon Black Thailand Co. and it is thought that the majority of output will go for export.
South African Tiger Wheels is planning to realign its investments in wheel manufacturing, which might lead ultimately to an overseas listing for the company. This was announced by CO, Eddie Keizan, as he unveiled an impressive set of financial results for the six months to December.
Toyota is set to announce plans to build its sixth vehicle assembly plant in North America. The new factory – probably sited at San Antonio, Texas – is expected to cost $800 million and have a production capacity of 150,000 pickup trucks a year. It will begin producing vehicles by 2005.
ArvinMeritor is to close its light vehicle systems aperture plant in Tennessee as part of on-going cost-cutting efforts and a response to excess capacity. The work of the factory – the production of window regulators and sunroof systems – will be transferred to other group facilities and 317 jobs will be lost in the closure, which will happen by August.
Nokian Tyres plc and Matador AS are signing a contract manufacturing agreement. This transaction will mean that Matador will produce Nokian branded speed categories S, T, and H car summer tyres at its factory in Slovakia. The tyres will be sold in Eastern European markets. The production target for 2003 is 100 thousand Nokian tyres with initial sales taking place during the first quarter of the year. Volume manufacture will increase to 300 thousand tyres by the end of 2005. Through contract manufacturing Nokian will continue to ensure its growth potential in Eastern Europe. Production capacity at the company’s factory in Finland will be freed to produce ultra high performance tyres. The agreement will be valid until the end of 2005 and after that on a one-year basis.
Ford’s Excursion 4×2 and Super Duty F-250 and F-350 Models will run on Pirelli Scorpion STRs as OE fit in 2003. Powertrains are at the heart of doing what SUVs and trucks are designed to do. A wide range of engines give these vehicles incredible power and torque, including the all new 6.0-litre, turbocharged, Power Stroke V8 diesel. Pirelli’s Scorpion STR is designed to cope with the torque and towing potential. The LT265/75 R 16 radials will be available with either black sidewalls or raised outline white letters. The Pirelli Scorpion STRs destined for 2003 Ford Excursions and Super Duty pickups will be manufactured in Pirelli’s factory in Brazil. The technical specification of the STR includes the combination of steel belts and nylon wrap for which Pirelli is famous, being the core technology behind Pirelli’s high-speed performance tyres. Tyres will be shipped to Ford assembly plants in Louisville, Kentucky and Cuautitlan, Mexico and vehicles produced will be distributed in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
Noburo “Tim” Kawakami, president of Bridgestone/Firestone manufacturing operations in the USA, is to retire on March 31 next year. His place will be taken by Masao Wada, currently manager of the factory at Aiken County, South Carolina, and succeeding Wada will be Mike Rose, operations manager at the facility. In keeping with events in Europe, the American subsidiary is changing its name, from Bridgestone/Firestone Americas Holding to Bridgestone Americas Holding.
Nokian and Russian company Amtel Holdings have formally signed the joint venture agreement to produce and sell passenger and light truck tyres in Russia and CIS countries under the Nordman and Amtel brands. 900,000 tyres will be produced next year and 3,600,000 the year after. Upgrades of Amtel factories will require investments of US$ 25 million and the two partners intend to build a greenfield factory in Russia to produce premium tyres under the Nokian brand. The target is an annual production of 1.2 million tyres within three years of the start of the project.
Maxxis International, perhaps better known in the tyre world as Cheng Shin Rubber, is to build a new factory in Thailand to produce passenger and light truck tyres. Phase 1 of the multi-phase project will be completed in late 2004, when the factory will be producing 10,000 tyres a day, employing 1,700 staff. The site, in Rayong City, south of Bangkok, covers 72 acres. This new venture is the latest in a series of expansions for Maxxis; it is expanding its factory in mainland China, has moved to a larger distribution centre in California and expanded its US HQ in Suwanee, Georgia.
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