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Roadsafe: MOT Must Stay Annual

RoadSafe is urging transport minister Mike Penning, to maintain the MOT test as an annual check-up for vehicles. In 2008, the Department for Transport said the MOT failure rate was high, at 35 per cent. Between 2009 and 10, the failure rate continued its steady increase to 37 per cent. Despite this, the DfT is looking into reducing the required frequency of tests to fall in line with Europe.

In the UK, vehicles must have their first test within three years of registration, and annual tests thereafter. As a minimum, EU law requires vehicles to have their first test when they are four years old and subsequent tests every two years. Most European countries follow the EU minimum requirement and there is pressure on the UK to do the same. RoadSafe is warning that this will lead to more crashes, caused by poorly maintained vehicles.

31st August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Chinese Tyre Makers to Benefit from Keyuan SBS Facility

Chinese petrochemical product manufacturer Keyuan Petrochemicals reports it entered into land use right transfer agreements with local government agencies on August 18. Following their approval, the company will instigate plans for expansion on an 111,500 square metre site adjacent to its existing plant in Ningbo, Zhejiang province. In addition to building a storage and several manufacturing facilities as originally planned, the company has now announced it also intends to establish a Styrene-Butadiene-Styrene (SBS) production plant on the site. Work will begin in the third quarter of 2010.

27th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

CGS Receives State Funding for US Plant

On August 19 it was announced that the Iowa Economic Development Board, an Iowa state government agency, has awarded CGS Tires US $924,000 from its Grow Iowa Values Fund. This amount, the board reports, will be used to support 154 of the 192 jobs to be created when the Czech Republic’s first factory in North America is built. The total project cost is $43.8 million and involves reconfiguring the former Winnebago Industries manufacturing facility in Charles City for the production of radial agricultural tyres, amongst other products.

25th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Pro-Align Joins TyreSafe

Wheel alignment equipment supplier Pro-Align has become the latest company to join TyreSafe. Pro-Align will support the industry’s safety awareness group’s ongoing campaigns which raise awareness about the dangers associated with defective and illegal tyres. The company will also provide specialist knowledge and advice relating to wheel alignment issues.

25th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Canadian Govt Promotes Michelin Plant as Recession Success Story

The photo accompanying this article depicts a world renowned and respected personality. Standing next to him is the Prime Minister of Canada, who of course is also highly respected, even if his global recognition is somewhat lower than the Michelin Man’s. Prime Minister Stephen Harper posed for this photo opportunity together with Bibendum during a visit to Michelin’s Waterville plant in the province of Nova Scotia.

20th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Ireland Tyre Tax Increase Would Compromise Jobs & Safety – ITIA

Ireland’s government apparently is considering increasing the tax levied upon tyres, and the association representing the country’s tyre industry has slammed it as a measure that would compromise safety and jobs. HGV Ireland reports that in a submission to Environment Minister John Gormley, the Irish Tyre Industry Association (ITIA) has stated that any tax increase would lead to hundreds of job losses as motorists would cross the border into Northern Ireland to make their tyre purchases.

19th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Alcoa Increases Ma’aden, Saudi Arabia Investment

Alcoa is increasing its investment in a partnership it operates with Saudi Arabian mining company Ma’aden. The cooperation is focussed on the development of “the largest, most efficient vertically integrated aluminium complex in the world,” according to the two companies.

17th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Recycled Chewing Gum – a New Resource for the Tyre Industry?

We’re not sure about this one, however the BBC reports that a campaign soon to get underway in twelve regions throughout the UK will lead to used chewing gum seeing further life in tyres and other products. The broadcaster’s website for Hereford and Worcester states that the initiative being implemented in Hereford “aims to recycle chewing gum into car tyres, children toys and mobile phone covers.”

10th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

New Tyre Research Centre Aims to Increase Vehicle Mileage by 3-5MPG

In the US the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission is to inhale $5 million into a $14 million project to establish a tyre research facility within the state. A further $5 million is to come from General Motors and $4 million from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech), and will be situated in Halifax County, in Virginia’s Southside region.

9th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Sales, Profits up at Toyo in Q1, 2010

During the first quarter of the 2010 financial year, Toyo Rubber received net sales of 72,162 million yen (£528.2 million), a 15.7 per cent increase on the same period last year. This increase in sales was matched by a 13 per cent increase in global tyre sales by volume, with a total of 43,700 tonnes of tyres produced in the three months to June 30, 2010. The bulk of this, 37,500 tonnes, was destined for the Japanese market. Operating income for the quarter was 2,612 million yen (£19.1 million), compared with an operating loss of 3,054 million yen a year earlier, and net income amounted to 743 million yen (£5.4 million) compared with a net loss of 2,620 million yen in the same period of 2009.

5th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

JK Tyre to Erect £200 Million Greenfield Facility

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed on August 4 between JK Tyre and Industries and India’s Tamil Nadu Government for the establishment of a greenfield tyre factory within the state. The plant, to be established with an Rs 15 billion (£204.3 million) investment, will produce both passenger car truck and bus radials and have an annual capacity of 5.6 million tyres.

5th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Finding a Healthy Balance

Upcoming European tyre labelling and associated regulations are serving as a laxative for some tyre manufacturers, while others are relishing their implementation. Counted amongst this second category is Michelin, who sees similarities between the label and its own ‘innovation strategy’ – the tyre maker’s focus upon three areas it sees as inseparable: Reducing vehicle fuel consumption, ensuring outstanding safety performance and offering greater total mileage.

5th August 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Rubber Costs Cause Shrink in MRF Quarter Profits

Net profit at India’s MRF Ltd dropped significantly year-on-year during the first quarter of the current financial year. The company recorded profits of only Rs 610 million (£8.41 million) in the three months to June 30, a much more modest figure than the Rs 1.26 billion (£17.38 million) achieved a year earlier. This profit slump occurred despite sales rising from Rs 14.34 billion (£197.59 million) in the first quarter of 2009 to Rs 19.244 billion (£265.26 million) this year.

28th July 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Continental, Tanzania Negotiations “Complex”

International News, News

According to Nairobi based news portal The East African, the nation of Tanzania is “struggling” to end the multi-billion dollar General Tyres East Africa (GTEA) partnership brokered with Continental AG in the mid-1990s. The East African states that Continental, 38 per cent shareholder in the venture, has been “feuding with the state” since 2006. The GTEA facility in northern Tanzania has been closed since 2007, with 400 workers locked out.

26th July 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Malaysian Motorists Warned Against Regrooved Car Tyres

A disapproving finger has been pointed at regrooved passenger car tyres in Malaysia. The country’s assistant infrastructure development minister, Pang Yuk Ming, has cited the use of regrooved tyres as a factor contributing to accidents in Malaysia. His comments were printed by Malaysia’s Daily Express newspaper.

21st July 2010/by Tyrepress Editors