Labelling
At a gala dinner held during the week of the Reifen 2012 show, Ge Gurong, vice-president of ZhongCe Rubber, unveiled the tyre maker’s short-term plans for the Westlake brand. Mr. Ge told European Westlake dealers the decision has been made “with immediate effect” to end pattern sharing amongst Hangzhou ZhongCe’s different tyre brands, and from this time forward Westlake will be promoted as the company’s flagship brand.
Nexen's N'blue Eco tyre, which entered the market last July, has reportedly gain BB on the European tyre labelling scale that becomes mandatory in November. According to the Korean manufacturer's representatives and the firm's Essen show display, the range also achieves favourable noise levels of 71 dB. With Pirelli the only manufacturer to claim to be able to produce an AA rated tyre, Nexen's score puts it amongst the highest rating products currently available in the market.
As this issue of Tyres & Accessories goes to press, most of the team are en route to Essen for what has become the world’s largest tyre exhibition (look out for full coverage in our July issue and online at Tyrepress.com). Now that restrictions related to tyre labelling have been lifted, it is likely that this is the subject that everyone will be talking about. The leading manufacturers have already started positioning their companies in relation to one another and we can only imagine how they will position their respective pre- and post-labelling products compared with the rest of their group brands. Again this is something we are keeping a close eye on here at T&A.
Now the nomination process is over, the NTDA has published details of who is in the running for the 2012 Tyre and Fast Fit Awards’ tyre environment, manufacturer, wholesaler, aftermarket supplier and industry advertiser of the year awards.
Around 30 million euros have been earmarked for productivity and energy efficiency upgrades at the Lanxess high performance rubber facility in Port Jérôme, France, the company announced on 30 May. This investment will be made by 2015, and will support Lanxess’ aim of increasing capacity for rubber grades used in low rolling resistance tyres. The plant, established by Firestone in 1962 by and purchased by Lanxess in 2004, currently produces 140,000 tonnes of neodymium-polybutadiene (Nd-PBR) and solution styrene-butadiene (SSBR) per annum.
Goodyear has followed its announcement that it will exhibit AA-labelled concept passenger car tyres at Reifen 2012 with the news that its Marathon LHT II long haul trailer tyre has achieved an A grade in fuel economy. The manufacturer says that fitting a combination of its Marathon LHS II + steer tyres, LHD II + drive tyres and LHT II trailer tyres to a typical five-axle 40 tonne truck could equip the vehicle with a fuel-saving combination of six A-grade, two B-grade and four C-grade tyres, depending on tyre size. The tyres also score well in the wet grip and noise emissions categories.
Goodyear Dunlop has announced plans to present its first concept passenger car tyres to achieve A-grades in both rolling resistance and wet grip on the new EU tyre label. The two concept tyres, the Goodyear EfficientGrip AA edition and the Dunlop Sport BluResponse AA will be on display at Reifen 2012 on the Goodyear Dunlop stand (3-117) at next week’s Essen show. The concept tyres will not be available for sale.
Following the launch of its award-winning EfficientGrip passenger car tyre, Goodyear chose Portugal to showcase its new EfficientGrip SUV tyre, aimed squarely at the 4×4 and SUV market, from luxury, full-size vehicles through standard, compact and sub-compact ranges. The 4×4/SUV market in Europe is growing and is expected to reach several million vehicles by 2014, meaning increased demand for specialised 4×4/SUV tyres which combine performance and fuel economy.
The introduction of tyre labelling is likely to be the greatest change tyre dealers will experience this year. In fact some say it is the biggest adjustment to the business experienced in this tyre retailing generation, something that is likely to be true irrespective of country. Whatever your view, the introduction of this legislation comes at a time when European financial markets remain in turmoil and some of the continent’s largest tyre markets – including the UK – have returned to recession. And this at a time when incoming product prices remain high as a legacy of the last couple of years of raw material cost increases. It all adds up to significant pressure on the retail sector.
Among Westlake’s personnel in attendance at the CV Show was Johnson Su from the Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Co. (ZC Rubber), manufacturer of Westlake tyres. Su, manager, import & export at ZC Rubber with a 30 year history at the manufacturer, is responsible for importing all raw tyre production materials in addition to export sales of the finished product.
A first-time exhibitor at the Commercial Vehicle Show at Birmingham’s NEC was Westlake Tyres, whose imposing stand featured products from the brand’s truck and bus radial range. The company launched its partnership with Direct Tyre Management, a Blackpool-based fleet services provider that recently became the brand’s authorised truck tyre dealer in the UK, at the show – a partnership that was visually represented by DTM’s booth attached to the back of Westlake’s.
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Just days after the company announced that its passenger car tyre ranges have been successfully labelled according to the forthcoming European legislation, Goodyear Dunlop has announced that it has completed the testing of some 500 different truck tyres, covering 16 tyre types in over 55 different sizes, ensuring that these are ready to meet the rules that come into force 1 November 2012.
Road safety organisation TyreSafe has re-elected Stuart Jackson for the second time as its chairman for a further two years. Membership at the organisation has enjoyed continued growth during Jackson’s tenure, started in 2009, extending to car manufacturers, insurers, equipment suppliers and other relevant road safety bodies such as police forces, the Highways agency and the Association of Chief Fire Officers. TyreSafe was also awarded the Prince Michael International Safety Award, which recognises achievement and innovations which will improve road safety, in 2009
Pirelli has announced a variety of upgrades to its consumer website, including a new section about tyre labelling. The website, the main information source for Pirelli’s various products on the UK and international markets, boasts a greater degree of interactivity, helping visitors to make more informed tyre choices. Pirelli UK managing director Dominic Sandivasci commented: “We recognise that the new labelling legislation may be confusing to some of our consumers, so we felt it was important to create an interactive platform on our website to help our customers understand more about the changes, and how they can ultimately benefit from the new labelling regulations.”
Current Imported Tyre Manufacturers’ Association (ITMA) president David Seward has announced his intention to step down from this role at the conclusion of his two-year term. Seward will make way for a new president, the identity of whom will be decided by elections at the association’s annual general meeting later in June. He remains managing director of Yokohama HPT Ltd based in Milton Keynes.
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