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The FIA Honours Bosch for Contribution to Road Safety

The FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) has awarded Bosch its internationally acclaimed “FIA World Prize for Road Safety, the Environment and Mobility” in recognition of the contribution Bosch has made to global road safety through its ESP safety system. On December 7 FIA President Max Mosley presented the trophy to the CEO of Robert Bosch GmbH, Franz Fehrenbach, at the FIA gala in Monaco.

“Bosch has played a pivotal role in the development and promotion of the most effective car safety system since the invention of the safety belt,” Mosley explained. In his acceptance speech, Fehrenbach replied: “This prize is a distinction for all our associates: for the engineers who developed the system, for the associates in our plants who have been producing this system to the highest quality standards for many years now, and not least for the marketing experts who have never tired of communicating the benefits of this system.” The FIA World Prize is presented every year to a person or an organisation that has made an outstanding contribution in the areas of road safety, the environment or mobility.

11th December 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin to Guarantee Annual Supply of Tyres to Recycler

Michelin has recently agreed to guarantee the supply of at least 6,000 tonnes of end of life and reject truck tyres each year to Newark based recycling company Charles Lawrence International, who will convert the waste tyres into rubber surfacing material for sporting and children’s playground usage. About 200 tonnes of material will be shipped each week from Michelin in Dundee and Ballymena to the Nottinghamshire recycler.

The agreement is all the more significant as presently the UK has no legislation requiring tyre manufacturers to take responsibility for end of life products; Michelin’s actions in this area to date, in this country at least, have been purely voluntary. “Michelin has a global strategy for minimising the effect we have on the environment, and although there is no legal need to do it, we see recycling our end of life tyres as a moral obligation,” said Michelin UK managing director Jim Rickard. “Charles Lawrence is a world leader in the sector and we are very pleased to have secured an agreement to put what is effectively our waste to good use.”

26th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Semperit Launches Winter T&B Tyres

Semperit has launched a range of dedicated tyres for winter applications following the introduction of new legislation regarding the fitment of winter tyres on trucks and coaches in specific European countries.

For steer axles Semperit now offers the M440 Snow Front in 295/80R22.5 and 315/80R22.5 sizes. This tyre features numerous transverse edges ensuring safe steering and improved braking performance on roads in winter and has deep sipes which provide traction on packed snow and icy roads. Its wide open grooves and angled edges in the tyre shoulder are designed to enhance the self-cleaning characteristics of the tread pattern.

20th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyre Technology – What’s Next?

(Douglasdale, South Africa/SA Treads) People often ask me what drew me to the tyre business. Why, the dynamism, creativity and sophistication of the industry, I promptly reply. At that, I’m usually met by blank stares and looks of incredulity, as if the notion of designing and making a tyre is akin to watching grass grow. But they can be forgiven for their misplaced scepticism as they’re likely unaware of the research, development and design genius that takes place long before a tyre leaves the production line. Modern tyre technology is not only sophisticated, it’s setting new, previously inconceivable benchmarks. So where is tyre technology headed and what will the tyre of the future look like? We ask those in the know.

When it comes to strategic focus and future developments, every global tyre maker has its own agenda, but our investigations revealed a number of common buzz words around this issue, primarily, interactive, green and fuel-efficient. Evidently, these are the main trends driving tyre technology today.

12th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Amtel-Vredestein’s Voronezh Plant in Compliance

Amtel-Vredestein has reported that, contrary to the information given out by Russia’s Interfax news agency that the net assets of OJSC Tyre Complex Amtel-Chernozemye are less than its charter capital, OJSC Amtel-Vredestein confirms that its Voronezh manufacturing facility is in complete compliance with current Russian tax legislation, including the “Law about joint-stock companies”. As of 1 October 2007, and in accordance with reports submitted to the federal tax service department in the Voronezh region, OJSC Tyre Complex Amtel-Chernozemye’s net assets are 366 million roubles (£7.16 million) and its charter capital is 355 million roubles (£6.94 million).

OJSC Amtel-Vredestein is one of the largest investors in the Voronezh region and reports that it has successfully cooperated with its administration for many years. Loss reporting during a long-term investment period is a common Western business-practice. The “Long-term result of our investments are high-quality export-oriented products, based on high-technology, ecologically-friendly Russian facilities. In addition to the obvious advantages to the manufacturer in the form of higher competitiveness and profitability, our investments will also benefit the local economy by creating a higher tax base, additional employment and improvements to the social and economic level of the region,” said Petr Zolotarev, OJSC Amtel-Vredestein general director and Amtel-Vredestein N.V. CEO.

12th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Lamborghini Selects Beru for TPMS

Automotive engineering specialists Beru F1 Systems has announced that it is supplying its award-winning digital tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS) DigiTyre to Lamborghini for the Gallardo and Murciélago platforms. The safety feature, developed using Beru F1 Systems’ extensive motorsport experience, is standard fit on US Gallardo and Murciélago models to comply with the TREAD act. (The TREAD act makes it mandatory for passenger vehicles and light trucks sold in the USA to be fitted with a pressure monitoring system).

Specialist and niche vehicle manufacturers rightly demand robust and integrated solutions,” says BERU F1 Systems’ managing director John Bailey. “The higher speeds, higher cornering forces and demands experienced by performance cars rule out many solutions currently available. Our system is robust, light yet still retains all the integration features such as end of line testing and dealer diagnostics that OEMs require.”

15th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Ireland Introduces new Tyre Recycling Regulations

As of January 2008 greater responsibility for waste tyres will be placed upon tyre manufacturers, suppliers, traders and retailers in the Republic of Ireland. This increased accountability comes courtesy of a new piece of legislation, the Waste Management (Tyres and Waste Tyres) Regulations 2007, signed by Ireland’s Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, John Gormley, on October 4.

Approximately 3 million tyres make their way onto Ireland’s roads each year and an estimated 35,000 tonnes of waste tyres are generated annually. “It is time that we had a proper database on this waste stream and I believe the new system that my Department has agreed with the tyre industry will effectively address that deficiency,” commented Mr. Gormley. “These new regulations will now provide a proper regulatory framework for comparing quantities of waste tyres arising with the amounts placed on the market and for tracking the movement of waste tyres from the time they are discarded until they are either reused or processed for recycling.”

5th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Pirelli’s 2008 WRC Tyre Hits the Asphalt

The beginning of the 2008 FIA World Rally Championship and Pirelli’s involvement as official tyre sponsor lies only a few short months away, and the Italian tyremaker reports that approval for its new asphalt tyre for the series has recently been granted by its own technicians and the FIA. Fine-tuned with experience gained over numerous test sessions, the new tyre is said to contain, according to Pirelli, “a number of innovative features.”

“The Italian firm’s technicians recently signed off the asphalt tyre, after an intensive and detailed series of tests with reigning Italian Rally Champion Paolo Andreucci and the Bozian Racing Peugeot 307 WRC used by Gigi Galli on a number of WRC events throughout 2006,” the company reported in a statement. These tests, conducted by Pirelli and Andreucci in France, Spain and Sardinia, enabled the FIA to place their seal of approval on a tyre that possesses a number of new features and pre-empts upcoming environmental legislation by two years.

4th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Investing in the Future

The future of the UK tyre industry belongs to those who invest in their staff, believes David Boulton from Entyrety. Boulton, technical sales manager for the Birmingham based supplier of tyre and fleet training and support services, is concerned that a lack of investment in training will not only perpetuate existing bad workplace practices, but also will ultimately drag these businesses down.

“It is well known that in certain areas of retailing there is a shortage of good tyre technician/fitters,” comments Boulton, adding that this problem stems from a lack of investment over many years in the people who carry out this function. As a consequence, he believes, in some areas the ‘interface’ between the tyre industry and the public has been found wanting. “There has been some improvement in recent years,” admits Boulton, “but this is only in the businesses who recognise that to safeguard their future they have to invest in their staff and provide training and development schemes. These will be the companies that survive long-term, and those that do not invest could face a bleaker future.”

2nd October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

UK University Offers First Postgraduate REACH Course

With the Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals (REACH) legislation in effect since June 1, it is important to ensure that personnel responsible for implementing and managing their company’s compliance with the legislation have a correct understanding of what is required. The use of chemicals will have to be registered with a technical dossier and some substances will also require a chemical safety report and assessment.

The University of Hull is currently the only university in Europe to be offering an accredited Postgraduate course in the management of the Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals (REACH). The first day of teaching in the initial course began only days after the legislation came into force, on June 4, 2007, and each course consists of four one-week modules delivered by leading experts, as well as an industrial placement that can be carried out at the delegate’s own workplace. The course can be completed in full, as individual modules or on individual days. The cost is £300 for one day or £4,000 for the full course, exclusive of VAT. A Postgraduate Certificate is awarded upon completion of the full course.

24th September 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

US Tyre Recall Saga Could Be Over

Foreign Tire Sales Inc.’s quarter-million US recall of Hangzhou Zhongce-produced tyres will end on 25 October, according to US news sources. At the same time US and Chinese regulators are expected to sign a cooperation agreement that could help resolve disputes like this. However, according to media reports, this is not the first time such an approach has been taken. The Consumer Product Safety Commission signed a memorandum of understanding with its Chinese counterpart three years ago.

This week’s Sino-U.S. Consumer Product Safety Summit brings together the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and China’s General Administration for Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, as well as representatives of American companies that import toys, fireworks and cigarette lighters from China. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has a $63 million budget and a full-time staff of about 400 people to monitor billions of dollars’ worth of goods. Legislation is in the works to strengthen the agency.

10th September 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

North Carolina Governor Rejects Goodyear Incentive Bill

(Akron/Tire Review) As expected, North Carolina Governor Mike Easley vetoed a bill that would have given a US$40 million incentive package to Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.’s plant in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Easley claimed the bill “would set a dangerous precedent” by allowing companies to lay off workers even while receiving state aid.

While bill supporters said the legislation was developed to help all companies in the state, critics said the bill was created specifically to aid the Goodyear plant. The bill would have allowed Goodyear to receive state funding and incentives even if the Fayetteville plant’s work force fell to 2,000 employees. Currently, the plant employs some 2,750 workers.

“I take no joy in this action today,” Easley was quoted as saying, “I cannot, in good conscience, pay $40 million of taxpayers’ money to a company to lay off 700 workers. It makes no sense.” The vetoed bill will be returned to the state legislature, which will consider whether to override the veto.

5th September 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

North Carolina Governor May Veto Goodyear Support Proposal

(Akron/Tire Review – McClatchy Newspapers) Governor Mike Easley is considering vetoing legislation that gives up to $40 million in incentives to Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. to modernise its Fayetteville, North Carolina plant and keep it running, according to the company’s lobbyist and lawmakers involved in the legislation.

The move would be a sharp reversal by the Easley administration, which has used incentives to lure technology giants Google and Dell. But critics in the General Assembly emphasise that those earlier handouts were used to lure new jobs, not keep existing companies happy.

Easley has to act by September 1 or the bill, which passed the House and Senate, becomes law. Fayetteville area legislators and Goodyear’s lobbyist John Bode met with administration officials about the bill Monday.

“He’s seriously entertaining a veto,” said Rep. Rick Glazier, a Fayetteville Democrat.

28th August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Indian Tyremakers Lobby Govt to Certify Tyre Imports

In a move that echoes events taking place in the US, India’s government has listened to demands from local tyremakers to only permit ‘certified’ tyres to be imported into the country, and is now considering what measures it will introduce. Calls for legislation banning the importation of tyres not meeting this criterion have ostensibly been made in response to a number of vehicle accidents involving reportedly sub-standard Chinese made tyres, however it is also no secret that Chinese tyre imports are hurting the bottom line of Indian tyre manufacturers.

In June representatives of India’s Industrial Policy and Promotion department, Consumer Affairs department and Bureau of India Standards met with those from vehicle and tyre producers to discuss this issue and prepare a case to present to the government. A proposal to introduce a US$135 anti-dumping duty on imported tyres has also been submitted to the government.

23rd August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

‘Awesome Foursome’ Celebrate Training Success

Technicians at a First Stop dealership in Cornwall have earned a new nickname – the ‘awesome foursome’ – after their noteworthy performance on a tough training course. The quartet, from the St Austell and Bodmin branches of Steve Andrews Tyres, have each attained the Institute of Motor Industry (IMI) Level 4 Certificate in Management in partnership with Bridgestone UK. More than 30 people took the course, but the four men, plus just one other person, were the only ones to pass.

Thus, as well as being dab hands at carrying out a comprehensive range of repairs, the technicians have shown themselves to be equally adept at running the show behind the scenes as qualified managers. “The fact only five people passed the IMI certificate tells you what a demanding course it was, so to have all four of our guys amongst the successful candidates is quite an achievement,” said boss Steve Andrews. “The guys have proved themselves excellent ambassadors for the business, and the additional skills they have gained in completing the course will strengthen the team as we take things forward.”

17th August 2007/by Tyrepress Editors