The foundation stone for a MIRS-factory was laid in the presence of Ministerpräsident Koch from the area of Hessen/Germany. Pirelli is investing 100 million Euro to produce about 1.5 million ultra-high-performance tyres by the year 2005. MIRS will create 200 more jobs. In addition to its own investment, Pirelli will receive an additional government grant of about 15 million Euro for meeting special environmental requirements.
To boost market position Degussa-Hüls wants to invest Euro 80 million to expand the production of precipitated silicas at its factory in Wesseling/Germany. Silicas, along with rubber silanes and rubber carbon black, are important components in reducing the rolling resistance of tyres.
The first production line utilising MIRS technology (Modular Integrated Robotized System), was unveiled by Pirelli chief Marco Tronchetti Provera at an international press conference on 11 July at the company’s Bicocca factory. The MIRS process is managed entirely on-line. In the next three years, four more MIRS plants will be opened in Germany, the UK, the USA and the Far East, representing an investment of 500 million Euro (excluding building and servicing costs). Total production capacity will be 10 million HP and UHP tyres a year.
Dunlop Tyres UK announced today that it will cease truck tyre manufacturing at its Birmingham factory. 650 jobs from a total workforce of 1,700 will be affected. Car, light truck, motor sport and racing tyres will still be made at the plant. Dunlop says the move is part of a Europe-wide rationalisation process as a result of excess capacity in the European tyre industry and the current market situation.
Following a recent feasibility study, Michelin has announced that Bangalore is the most likely site for a new manufacturing plant, as various producers have factories in this region. Other cities being considered are Pune and Baroda.
Israeli company Alliance Tire is to close its Petach-Tikva plant (Tel Aviv). Production will continue in the second Alliance factory at Hadera.
Bridgestone has launched the production of passenger car and light truck tyres in Poland. Right now the factory has a capacity of about two million tyres for passenger cars but in 2001 Bridgestone plans to manufacture three million high performance tyres.
The news that BMW was going to sell its loss-making (1999 losses alone were 1 billion Euros) subsidiary Rover provoked an understandably strong reaction in Britain. Some estimated that 50,000 jobs (including those of suppliers) could be lost and BMW’s name was mud with workers, unions and the British Government, which accused BMW of lying. Undeterred, BMW began breaking up the Rover group, selling Land Rover to Ford for 3 billion Euros and the Longbridge car factory to venture capitalists Alchemy Partners, with BMW writing off debts of £2 million. BMW is retaining the factory at Cowley, where the new Mini will be made. Alchemy plans to re-name Rover as MG Cars and to move away from volume production to make sports cars and sports saloons. This would keep the Longbridge factory open, but with a much reduced workforce. Amid the thousands of paragraphs criticising BMW, some industry pundits have questioned the vulnerability of the German group and there are rumours of larger companies (VW and Ford are two who have been mentioned) sniffing around BMW. The major shareholder in BMW is the Quandt family, whose members insist that the company will remain independent. More details in the April issue of TYRES & ACCESSORIES.
The Ford Motor Company in Dearborn has bestowed its Q1 award on Hankook’s tyre plant in Taejon, which produces light truck tyres for Ford. The factory is located 130 km south of Seoul and produces 65,000 passenger car and light truck tyres daily.
Tenneco Automotive has announced that it is to start formal consultations with employees regarding the closure of its Monroe factory in York with the loss of 392 jobs. Tenneco blames competitive pressures, requiring the company to reduce capacity. Subject to consultations, the closing will be complete by the end of the year.
Pirelli and Alcatel are the European market leaders in power cables, and together with Corning, Lucent and Draka in telecommunication cables. The market suffers from overcapacity, but Pirelli is the most active company when a factory is for sale in order to secure market share.
Two agreements have been signed by Nokian and Michelin concerning the off-take manufacture of Nokian brand agricultural, industrial and truck tyres at Michelin’s Polish factory. The agreements will last for three years and will be renewed annually thereafter. Sales of agricultural and industrial tyres will start this year and truck tyres early in 2001.
The Nissan factory in Barcelona is not working to capacity and is the obvious candidate for joint production work in similarly built Renault models, according to a statement at the Detroit Motor Show by Carlos Ghosn, ex-Michelin manager, now responsible for the integration of Nissan with Renault. Vehicle suppliers hope to profit from the new arrangements, as Ghosn announced a significant reduction in their numbers. For instance, Hayes Lemmerz supplies nearly all the aluminium wheels to Nissan Europe and is now making big strides with Renault as well.
King Juan Carlos recently visited Bridgestone/Firestone plant in Burgos, one of the group’s three tyre plants in Spain. The reason for the visit was the 100th birthday of Firestone this year. In 1990 Burgos was the group’s first European tyre factory to start producing Bridgestone-branded tyres, at that time Firestone’s new parent company.
Quoted in the Asian Wall Street Journal, Bridgestone President Yoichiro Kaizaki said that the company’s factory in Decatur could be temporarily closed, should improvements need to be made. Mr. Kaizaki also said that permanent closure of the plant could not be ruled out.
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