Hofmann, a brand within Snap-on Equipment, has unveiled its new duo of machines under the brand name Fusion. The company says that the wheel balancer and tyre changer both aim to be class leading. They are available as a package for £3,999, including a 24-month parts and labour warranty, delivery, installation and training.
The establishment of Wegmann Automotive in October 2009 saw some of the world’s leading wheel weight brands (Hofmann, Franken, F-Ecoline and Perfect [US]) reorganised into a single unified group. Now united under the Wegmann umbrella brand, sales and marketing director Thorsten Thom reports that the company is facing the current market challenges well and in certain cases actually gaining market share. Thom also praised the positive impact made by recently appointed UK sales manager, David Peacock. According to Thom, 2009 UK market sales have experienced double-digit growth compared with 2008.
Garage equipment specialist, The Trade Group has recently introduced new own-brand products to compliment its range (it specialises in the distribution of Hofmann Megaplan equipment). Company representative, Stefan Bullworthy explained that The Trade Group now believes its range contains products to suit the smallest garage to the largest tyre shop, including the new own brand, Trademaster wheel care equipment:
MIRA, the leading automotive design, development and certification consultancy, has chosen a Hofmann geodyna 6900p wheel balancer for its vehicle dynamics laboratory. The geodyna 6900p wheel balancer features a number of patented innovations, including virtual plane measurement to ensure accurate balance results that are insensitive to ambient conditions such as temperature, humidity, fatigue and overload. In addition, it also includes a so-called “WeightMiser” function which allows removal of sufficient vibration from a tyre and wheel by applying a lower amount of weight than a normal balance function recommends, thereby reducing the amount of costly balance weights required.
Snap-on Equipment equipment recently became the first garage equipment manufacturer to gain independent, third-party authorisation to provide training courses for mounting and demounting run-flat and UHP tyres at its European Competence Centre in Pfungstadt, Germany. WDK, the Association of the German Rubber Industry, provided the authorisation, which included certification of turntable and roller-type tyre changers.
Snap-on Equipment, Europe’s leading manufacturer of garage equipment, offers a comprehensive range including tyre changers and wheel balancers. Products under the Hofmann and John bean brands include entry-level machines that are ideal for low-volume workshops, through to top-of-the-range equipment for high-volume fast fit operations.
The latest generation John Bean, Hofmann and Boxer automatic tyre changers – the Quadriga 1000 and Quadriga 1 – are ready for their market launch. These changers from the three Snap-on Equipment brands offer fully automated mounting and demounting and are amongst the first changers of this type to come with certification from the ‘wdk’, Germany’s rubber industry association.
Snap-on reports that the changer offers outstanding dynamic procedures along with controlled power and accuracy and consequently; therefore, it says, optimum results are guaranteed as all operations, especially bead braking, are accomplished efficiently and without harm to tyre and rim.
Former Ebley Tyre and ProTyre colleagues John Price and Chris Mullins have resumed a working relationship spanning almost 25 years by joining forces to open a new tyre retail centre in the heart of Gloucester’s busy commercial centre. The new venture, Chris Mullins Tyres, is a £250,000 investment in a 5000 sq ft centre specialising in car, motorcycle, 4×4 and van tyres on the city’s Bristol Road, a few hundred yards from the ProTyre centre which Mullins managed for 10 years.
The pair first met while working for the west country independent group Ebley Tyres in 1985 and their career paths ran in parallel when both moved on to ProTyre in the late 1990s. Price owned and managed centres in Gloucester, Bristol and Alcester before selling his interests in the company in early 2006, while Mullins looked after the flagship centre in Gloucester until late last year.
Hofmann, a brand within Snap-on Equipment, has introduced the new monty universal 2 ‘all-round’ roller type tyre changer. The new product enables lever-less tyre changing for all wheel variants, including run-flat and ultra high profile rims of up to 30” diameter and 17” wide.
The company states that the aim of the monty universal 2 is to build on the popularity of the monty 3300 racing, a tough act to follow considering the 3300 is, according to Snap-On, Europe’s best-selling professional tyre changer. Chris Behan, general manager at Snap-on Equipment, comments: “With more and more cars on the road using run-flat and ultra high profile, high performance tyres, workshops need to keep ahead of the game with the right equipment to safely handle these rims without risking costly damage. The new monty universal 2 sets a new standard in addressing these challenges with built-in features that helps to ensure operator health and safety and easy tyre changing for all wheel types.”
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Garage equipment specialist The Trade Group has introduced a new selection of wheel care equipment to its Trademaster range, including a new fully automatic tyre changer and a wheel balancer, designed in conjunction with Hofmann Megaplan. The company is a major distributor for Hofmann Megaplan and Beissbarth wheel care products in the UK, and is introducing new products to complement its range. Its Trademaster selection now contains products to suit many sizes of garage and tyre shop.
Representative of The Trade Group Steve Bullworthy explained the roles of the new additions: “The new Trademaster T2510 fully automatic tyre changer is designed to offer performance combined with versatility. An air operated tilt back column speeds set-up time whilst the turntable offers 24” clamping to accommodate the biggest wheels. If you need to deal with stiff, low profile or run-flat tyres there is a powerful, pneumatically operated robotic arm, T2510/1, which can be supplied initially or retro-fitted.
Parts supplier Unipart Automotive has teamed up with market leading garage equipment manufacturers to launch the latest edition of Megawisebuys offering vehicle workshops, body shops and commercial vehicle operators added-value deals on quality capital and mobile equipment.
Some of the deals in the March/April edition include: A free remote control handset with any set of Stertil Koni mobile column lifts ordered in March or April along with a free two-year warranty on the FORCE30 two post three tonne hydraulic lift from Maywood; a free set of high lift pads with the Bradbury 2903CD 2 post 3 tonne mechanical lift; a free Karcher domestic pressure washer (inc accessories) with selected Karcher hot & steam pressure washers along with a free hose storage trolley with selected Karcher cold washers for a limited period only.
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Hofmann Megaplan, one of the UK’s leading suppliers of high performance tyre equipment, has recently introduced two new models into their range; the ‘Spacy’ and ‘The Major’.
The Megamount Spacy represents an evolution of a model that the company says was a commercial hit, the popular 701XL model. According to Hofmann Megaplan, the 701XL has established itself as the best selling tyre changer in its class within the UK tyre and wheel industry, leaving the new edition plenty to live up to. The Spacy offers an identical specification to the 701XL, put together in a smaller package to reduce the area needed to operate the machine. The Spacy has the demount head swing up and away, as opposed to tilting back, as it does on a traditional column, allowing the space in which the machine works to be used more economically.
John Bean and Hofmann, brands within Snap-on Equipment, have unveiled their new cabinet designs and equipment overhauls for the company’s ranges of wheel aligners, balancers and tyre changers. Hofmann has redesigned its high specification monty 3300 racing tyre changer, in order to allow it to handle run-flat and ultra high profile (UHP) tyres, while the John Bean range of aligners now features ergonomically designed cabinet fittings.
The Trade Group boasts a wealth of experience in every area of garage equipment and, the company believes, nowhere more so than in wheel care products. As Trade Group spokesman Terry Bullworthy explains, “We not only select and specify the most advanced, most user friendly and most cost effective equipment but we will always offer our customers a choice to suit their budgets and because of this our range includes market leaders Hofmann Megaplan, Beissbarth and also the newly introduced range of Trademaster tyre and wheel equipment.
Maywood Equipment Group has been appointed sole importers in The UK for the Cartec range of car and commercial brake testers. All Cartec brake testers are approved for MOT and ATL applications. Cartec are a company within The Snap-On Corporation and are one of the leading manufacturers of brake testers in the world with their manufacturing base and head quarters in Germany. Cartec have large design and development facilities and claim to be always at the forefront of brake testing technology. Many brake testing innovations have come from Cartec.
Hugely successful and full of ambition– a description that could be applied to both tyre equipment supplier Hofmann Megaplan and League One Football outfit Peterborough United, and the 2008/2009 football season will see the pair join forces as ‘The Posh’ target promotion to The Championship with Hofmann Megaplan as one of their commercial partners.
Hofmann Megaplan have become official sponsors to the Cambridgeshire team, whose ground is only a short drive up the A1 from the company’s HQ, and whose terraces have been a regular haunt for Hofmann Megaplan MD James Boon for the last 20 years.
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