Whether its raw materials, machinery, research and development or the latest manufacturing trends, this tag provides up-to-the-minute insights into the upstream part of the tyre industry.
American Le Mans Series drivers on Dunlop tyres took two victories from pole position at Lime Rock this weekend in the Le Mans Prototype (LMP) class and the GT category in the gruelling 2h45m race. Sanjay Khanna, managing director, Dunlop Brand EMEA, stated: “Dunlop focuses on endurance racing to build longer lasting tyres for road performance.
On June 30 a groundbreaking ceremony was held to mark the start of work to convert the former Winnebago Industries factory in the US state of Iowa into a production site for Mitas agricultural tyres. A number of civic representatives attended the ceremony in Charles City, which was hosted by project leader Vladimir Dusanek, vice-president of Mitas Tires North America.
Lassa tyres, produced by Brisa Bridgestone Sabancı Tyre Manufacturing and Trading Inc, (Turkey’s largest tyre producer and Europe’s seventh largest producer), exhibited its range of products at Autopromotec.
Visit a tyre plant anywhere in the world, and the chance of encountering equipment manufactured by the VMI Group is very high; the Dutch company, which began business in 1945 repairing war-damaged industrial equipment, is today easily one of the top producers of machinery for the global rubber industry. These days equipment produced for the tyre industry accounts for around 80 per cent of VMI’s global sales and the company has been a dominant force in tyre building machinery since its development of the single-stage process in the 1970s. This landmark concept brought about a revolution in production process quality, and in the years since its release VMI has repeatedly shown its strengths as an industry innovator; the latest developments from VMI, and those just around the corner, suggest the company’s tradition of innovation still remains very strong.
Last year, sales of tyres accounted for just under three quarter of Toyo Tire & Rubber’s total net sales. The remainder came from a portfolio of other rubber and chemical products. Included within this non-tyre business is the manufacture of anti-vibration rubber components for railway vehicles; Toyo has now furthered its activities in this area by entering into a joint venture arrangement with Chinese firm Wuxi Meifeng Rubber Products Manufacturing Co., Ltd. On July 5 the two firms signed an agreement to form a new company, “Wuxi Toyo Meifeng Rubber Products Manufacturing Co., Ltd.” This new entity is to be based in Wuxi City, Jiangsu Province, China, and will manufacture and distribute air springs and anti-vibration rubber for railway vehicles. Toyo has invested 30,484 million yen (£234.6 million) in the venture, giving the company a 51 per cent shareholding.
Michigan-based business L-Ray has been manufacturing non-destructive tyre testing equipment for almost 40 years – previously under the names IHI (International Holographics, Inc) and Grant Engineering. While a small business, it operates on the global stage in manufacturing and retreading segments – in total, the company says it provides over 250 machines in more than 24 countries – first producing holography machines and then shearography machines. In 2007 L-Ray introduced its new Differometric Technology, which president Lee Petrimoulx says is “much faster and provides high quality digital images for checking tyres or retread casings”.
Since being relaunched in its present trading format eight years ago, Rochdale-based Carter international says it has evolved into a “leading manufacturers of mixing room machinery” and other tyre manufacturing products; the upwards curve in the company’s development has led to the organisation’s current plan to relocate to a greenfield site. Carter says its “ongoing success in a highly competitive market” has encouraged the company to improve its manufacturing and operational facilities for greater “professionalism and efficiency”.
As of July 1 the per tonne price for Lanxess’s Perbunan and Krynac synthetic rubber ranges and its Baymod and Nanoprene products increased by 150 euros. The given reason for this price adjustment is a rise in manufacturing costs.
Toyo is currently in the High Court answering a claim for damages by siblings Dharmendra Joshi and Joshi Divya, who were passengers in a car whose tyre blew out on the M4 in Wales on 25 June, 2006. One of their fellow passengers, 26 year-old Neha Bhatt, was killed in the accident after being thrown from the Mitsubishi Pajero jeep, which reports say “flipped at least ten times”. Mr Justice Mackay established that the “tyre tread separated from the rest of the tyre along about half of its circumference, resulting in the loss of control and causing this terrible accident”. The point of contention is whether the tyre was defective, as the six survivors of the crash claim, or whether there was an impact “that triggered some progressive rapid stripping of the tread”, as Toyo contends. The hearing is set to run well into next week.
Vee Rubber has had a long period of sustained growth in the last two decades, and is now the employer of over 4,000 at its three large manufacturing facilities on the outskirts of Bangkok. Their combined production now exceeds 25 million tyres per annum, about half of which is now exported through branch offices throughout Asia, Western Europe, USA, Canada and Latin America.
Detailed information of Continental’s planned new factory in Russia has been released, and this shows that instead of selecting a site in the Ivanovo region as speculated, the new plant will be located in Kaluga, some 170 kilometres southwest of Moscow. In a press statement released July 1, Nikolai Setzer, head of the company’s Passenger and Light Truck Tires division and Continental AG Executive Board member, shared that the Kaluga plant will focus on meeting Continental’s strategic goal of achieving above-average and profitable growth, particularly in emerging markets.
Prices for new Bridgestone truck and bus tyres in the Japanese market are to rise by an average of 10 per cent as of September 1, while retreaded truck and bus tyre prices will simultaneously increase by five per cent. The increase applies to both summer and winter tyres.
Following a successful Tyrexpo Asia earlier this year, Zafco, the Dubai based tyre distributor of tyres, batteries and lubricants, opted for a second high profile exhibition stand at Automechanika Middle East. Tyres & Accessories was on-hand in Dubai to find out more.
Shortages make become an issue within India’s tyre industry following the release of a quality control order by the country’s Department of Commerce. Reporting on the threat, the Business Standard newspaper explains that the order prevents the sale of tyres and tubes in India unless they feature a Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) mark or a certification mark licence is otherwise obtained. The business daily also states industry sources claim the country’s tyre manufacturing industry “has come to a standstill” as it possesses a substantial inventory that cannot be sold without the BIS mark.
Following the news in April 2009 that Shandong Wanda Boto Tyre Co., Ltd., was to build a passenger car production facility nearby its existing tyre manufacturing complex in China, company representatives have given a update of the construction process. Speaking to Tyres & Accessories back then, company representatives explained how, despite the ongoing economic downturn, Boto Tyre was planning to build a 15 million passenger car radial a year plant. Around 1 billion yuan was said to have been earmarked for the expansion work.
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