Manufacturing Archives - Page 189 of 257 - Tyrepress

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.

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Scientist: Tyre Manufacturing By-products Reduce Fertility

Research carried out at Australia’s Newcastle University indicates insecticides and tyre industry by-products could be adversely affecting fertility. Local news sources are reporting that the work found that low doses of certain chemicals can cause eggs to grow prematurely. Researcher Eileen McLaughlin told Australia’s Radio National’s Science Show that means women will run out of eggs at a younger age.

“We’ve discovered that sub-acute doses will actually trigger the eggs prematurely into growing,” she said. “Obviously they are destined to die, they are not going to be ovulated. And this is depleting the population of ovarian follicles in the ovary so effectively the woman will run out of good eggs earlier.”

5th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Dunlop Names New Supply Chain VP for EU and EEMEA

Goodyear Dunlop has announced the appointment of Robert Scholte as vice president of supply chain for the company’s EU and EEMEA regions. Scholte joins the company from Nestle Purina Petcare where, for the past 3 years, he has been European Supply chain director. The appointment is effective 1 January 2008.

In a joint statement, Arthur de Bok, president EU, and Jarro Kaplan, president, EEMEA, said: “This appointment follows our recent announcement of the new supply chain organization across both regions. Robert joins us with an outstanding background, covering all the supply chain elements….he has held senior positions with responsibilities for raw materials, manufacturing, logistics, through to the final delivery of products to customers. We have underlined the strategic importance of this position and have found an individual who will work with all areas of the company to provide the most effective supply chain to our customers.“

5th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Alcoa and Greg Weld Design Offer Tru-Forged Wheels

Greg Weld Design and Alcoa Wheels will have decided to combine their efforts to design, manufacture, market and sell what they say will be “some of the most advanced forged alloy wheels available for the automotive aftermarket.” The two companies’ aim is to exceed the needs of the most demanding 4×4 or “Tuff Truck” enthusiast by offering Greg Weld Design’s new Tru-Forged wheels by Alcoa. The wheels will be Available in 20, 22 and 24 inch diameters and up to 14 inches wide. All Tru-Forged wheels will feature a unique polished finish that carries a limited 5 year warranty supported by Greg Weld Design.

All Tru-Forged wheels will be hot-forged from a billet of 6061-T6 aerospace alloy for maximum strength and durability. The one-piece design is 100 per cent CNC machined. The lightweight design, 3500lb. load rating and lifetime limited structural warranty are reportedly unmatched in the industry.

1st November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Samson Machinery – Designed to Last

Taiwan’s Samson Machinery Inc., has enjoyed steady growth since its establishment in 1975 by Mr. Lin Kun-Te. During this time the company has acquired a high level of knowledge in the area of tyre manufacturing equipment. This knowledge, along with the experience gained through 32 years in the business, has been instrumental in facilitating the company’s expansion, especially during the last few years. In order to keep pace with customer demand Samson moved into a newer and larger premises in September 2006, and from this new location it continues to provide equipment to customers worldwide.

Today Samson supplies a full range of tyre building machinery suitable for large or small tyre manufacturers engaged in a range of market segments. The company’s main products include: Tyre building machines, band building machines, ply servicers, building drums & related accessories, tyre trimming machinery, green tyre splicing machines, curing presses, and horizontal ply auto cutting & splicing machines. Machinery that is suited to the production of most tyres, including bicycle, scooter, motorcycle, passenger car radial, light truck radial, SUV, truck & bus, industrial and OTR, even aircraft tyres and radial truck tyres can be ordered. Customers can order machinery for bias and radial, semi-steel or all-steel, small and large sizes.

31st October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Titan Reports ‘All-Time Record’ Q3 Sales

Titan International reports that its third quarter sales reached an all-time record figure of US$195.5 million, an increase of 25.2 per cent over the previous year’s third quarter result. This strong result has contributed towards record year to date sales of $632.1 million, a 23 per cent increase on the nine-month figures for 2006. Gross profit was $18.3 million for the third quarter, a 7 per cent increase over the $17.1 million obtained in the third quarter of 2006.

“The agricultural market for wheels and tyres is finally starting to show the growth we’ve been waiting for since 2006,” said Titan chairman and CEO Maurice M. Taylor Jr. “The orders for wheels and tyres are as strong as we’ve seen since 2004, and we believe it could continue to grow not only through 2008, but also into 2009 and beyond.

“The OTR mining tyre business remains strong. Since Titan announced the decision to build super giant 57- and 63-inch tyres, almost every mining company in the top 30 has made plant visits to Titan and found that we will be able to supply them with both wheels and tyres for all equipment they use in open-pit or underground mining. This should add tremendous volume going forward for Titan.

30th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Hankook Tire – Double Digit Growth in 2008

Hankook Tire plans to sustain its double-digit growth during 2008 and continue to develop as a producer of quality high performance tyres. And the Korean manufacturer’s status in this segment will be further bolstered by the company’s recently announced KRW 10 billion (£5.4 million) wet proving ground for the integrated development, production and testing of UHP tyres. This facility is the first of its type in Korea.

In 2008, Hankook Tire will renew its strategic focus on driving retail sales through more intensive marketing activities across all of its major markets, leveraging its growing reputation for producing quality high-performance tyres. The Hankook Tire Masters Program for distributors in Europe will be expanded, and a new distributor education plan for high performance tyres, featuring an emphasis on Hankook Tire’s technological innovation and its benefits for customers, is in development.

29th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti to Invest 150 million Euros in China Tyre Plant

Continental AG is to substantially expand its presence in China through the establishment of a new tyre manufacturing facility in the city of Hefei, Anhui province. Conti will invest a total of about 150 million euros into the project, and construction is scheduled to get underway in mid 2008. A date of early 2010 has been put forward for the start of tyre production. An appropriate investment plan for the project was agreed upon on October 28 and the company is currently in the process of obtaining the required permits from China’s central government.

“With this move, we are entering one of the world’s most dynamic tyre markets, following careful analysis and intensive preparation,” stressed Continental Executive Board chairman Manfred Wennemer in Hanover on October 28. “In addition to Automotive Systems and ContiTech the Passenger and Light Truck Tires division will thus have a production location in China and profit from the continuing positive development.”

29th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Company Taps into Scrap Tyres for Carbon Black

(Akron/Tire Review – Recycling Today) Delta-Energy LLC, Monroeville, Pennsylvania, has introduced two carbon black-based products recovered from tyre shred that can be used as alternatives to virgin carbon black in rubber and plastic compounds. The products were introduced in mid-October at the 2007 Rubber Expo, held in Cleveland, Ohio. Delta-Energy has been test marketing the product line for the past two years with good industry reception, according to the company. “We are extremely excited about the D-E Black product lines – Phoenix Black for rubber reinforcement and Zephyr Black for plastic and coatings pigmentation,” says Bill Cole, Delta-Energy’s vice president-product management. “Phoenix Black’s reinforcing properties are comparable to virgin carbon blacks.”

26th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyrexpo Asia: Wholesalers Keep a Strong Presence

It appears that Tyrexpo Asia – like other leading international tyre shows – represents a must-do for wholesalers from Europe. At a minimum members of these companies’ top management come to Tyrexpo Asia as visitors, but many companies each year book floor space in the Singapore Expo Centre for Tyrexpo Asia. Counted amongst the latter is the commercial tyre specialist Heuver Banden from the Netherlands, which displayed its products together with the manufacturer of the new “Maitech“ OTR tyre brand. The distribution rights of this brand have been granted to Heuver Banden for major parts of Europe by Uzmai International from Verona, Italy – however, the tyres are produced in Turkey, as Oskar Snijders, director wholesale with the Dutch distributor, explained.

26th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop Falken Unveil Low Petroleum Tyre

Sumitomo subsidiary Dunlop Falken Tyres Ltd has lifted the lid on a new, almost entirely non-petroleum tyre at the Tokyo Motor Show. Known as the “Enasave 97”, the new tyre is 97 per cent comprised of non-petroleum natural materials.

The proportion of petroleum materials used in the new tyre was able to be significantly cut through the use of materials other than synthetic rubber for its sidewall and airtight inner liner. Owing to the molecular structure of natural rubber, creating an airtight skin using this product is more difficult than with synthetic rubber, therefore a change in its structural composition was required before being deemed suitable for use.

26th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Watts Tyres Acquisition brings new MD to Watts Industrial Tyres

The Watts Tyres acquisition of Mobile Industrial Tyres Limited, first announced on October 22, will bolster the company’s operations in Southeast England. The Essex based industrial tyre and wheel specialist will be integrated into Watts’ existing regional operation, with Mobile Industrial Tyres’ managing director Edward Woolley becoming the managing director of Watts Industrial Tyre Services.

Jean-Paul Mindermann, chief executive of Watts Tyres Plc, commented: “This enhances our presence and service offering in the Southeast, in line with our aim of continually improving customer satisfaction. Edward Woolley brings a vast amount of experience in the industrial tyre market with him and will focus on further developing our UK service operation. This acquisition reinforces our position as a business that is focused on and dedicated to the materials handling industry.”

26th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

New R&D Centre Making Konstrukta’s Ideas Reality

An essential part of the development and production of any item of tyre manufacturing equipment is the availability of a suitable testing centre, a facility that permits engineers not only to test the functionality of their equipment but also to solve and whenever possible prevent technological problems during the production process. This fact has not been lost on Konstrukta–Industry, a Slovakia-based manufacturer of machines and equipment for the tyre industry. In recent years the company has grown considerably in terms of product range, customer base and market share, and these last two factors have prompted Konstrukta to engage in the construction of its own new research and development centre.

The centre’s main focus, says Konstrukta, is the development and examination, by means of simulation, of new functional components for extrusion devices and lines. A major initial project for the centre is a 120 mm-diameter extrusion testing machine equipped with additional sensors that are not fitted to standard machines. These sensors allow for detailed monitoring of the extrusion. The company has also mounted a feeding conveyor, temperature control units, shrinkage conveyor and other accessories to the machine, and further plans to add a new type of cooling equipment to the machine – a spiral drum –cooling device – a product of centre’s own R&D technicians, are now under way.

25th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Tire Technology Expo 2008 to be Largest Ever

The organisers of the Tire Technology Expo 2008 are confident that next year’s show will be the largest yet and boast its best ever conference programme and speaker line-up. Held between February 19 and 21, 2008 at the Köln Messe exhibition centre in Germany, the exhibition is, despite its location, organised by Surrey’s own UKIP Media & Events, organisers of the Testing Expo China event held alongside CITExpo in Shanghai.

Next year’s Tire Technology Expo will host more than 140 exhibitors and therefore floor space has been increased, and those attending the show will also be able to enjoy the free gala dinner and Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence presentation held on the evening of February 20.

The Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence are being judged by an international panel of renowned tyre industry experts and their criteria reflects the true scope of the products and equipment that will be on show at Tire Technology Expo 2008, with categories comprising:-

23rd October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Nokian Signs JV Agreement in Kazakhstan

After months of speculation about Nokian Tyres’ involvement in a new project in Kazakhstan, the Finnish manufacturer formalised its commitment to establishing a greenfield passenger car tyre factory in this northern Eurasian nation on October 19 through the signing of an agreement with Kazakhstanian multi-industrial company Ordabasy Corporation JSC.

The two parties’ cooperation will take the form of a joint venture company called Ordabasy – Nokian Tyres JSC. Nokian will hold a 10 per cent stake in the joint venture company, with an option to increase ownership to a minimum of 50 per cent.

19th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Breaks Ground on New Central America Components Plant

As of late 2008 Continental will begin sourcing engine and transmission control units for customers in the NAFTA region from a new facility in Costa Rica. On October 17 a groundbreaking ceremony was held for the new plant, situated near the capital San José. In attendance were Henner Cnyrim, head of electronics plants Continental Division Automotive Systems, Dr. Sami Krimi, future head of the Costa Rican plant and Mayoress of Alajuela Joyce Zurcher. A reception was then held by the President of Costa Rica, Oscar Arias Sánchez, and Minister of the Presidency, Rodrigo Arias Sánchez, along with customer representatives.

The US$61.5 million Conti invests in the facility will give them 16,000 square metres of production and office space that will house 350 employees, and the new plant will specifically manufacture control units and transmission systems for passenger cars built in the NAFTA region. By 2011 the company plans to expand the workforce to 550 and to increase the size of the plant.

18th October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors