Michelin Archives - Page 244 of 324

Michelin and Goodyear Dunlop Chosen for Pan-Govt Supply Agreement

Michelin, with its service partner ATS Euromaster, has been appointed as one of two suppliers of tyres and associated services in a three-year framework agreement for a pan-government tyre sourcing initiative led by the NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency (NHS PASA), in conjunction with the Office of Government Commerce (OGC). The other supplier is understood to be Goodyear Dunlop who will service the agreement through its HiQ and Truck Force retail networks. According to sources close to the arrangement, the contract is divided equally between the two suppliers.

Available to all Public Sector Organisations (PSOs) across the UK – encompassing a combined vehicle parc of more than 300,000 vehicles, ranging from cars and motorbikes to vans, trucks and earthmovers – the deal represents the largest tyre framework agreement of its type ever established in the UK. It also includes the option of a 12 month extension until January 2011 and is estimated to be worth tens of millions of pounds.

The agreement has been set up to deliver significant efficiencies as a result of combined volumes, additional leverage and collaborative working between central government departments and wider public bodies nationwide.

14th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Files Suits Against Double Coin Dealers

Product News

Michelin has informed the media that it is filing suits against tyre dealers selling the Double Coin brand as it follows up previous notifications regarding the sale of tyres with tread patterns resembling those on Michelin truck tyres. The French tyremaker alerted more than 5,000 dealers of the risks involved in marketing these look-alike tyres sourced from Asia back in December 2005, stating that while the treads may look the same on both tyres, the look-alikes may not deliver the same grip or longevity as an authentic Michelin tyre.

With tyres bearing unauthorised copies of patented Michelin tread patterns still available on a number of markets 18 months later, the company has chosen to pursue legal action against dealers of these products in all countries where Michelin sales teams have identified the products.

11th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Thai Hua Rubber – Set to Tap the Boom

Product News

(India/Rubber Asia) Thai Hua Rubber (THR), a leading natural rubber supplier to tyre manufacturers, is making vigorous efforts to emerge as a top global player by tapping the enduring NR boom to its maximum. “Our idea is to emerge as a dominant global player covering the entire rubber business cycle as fast as we can and in the most credible manner,” says Mr Luckchai Kittipol, the company’s ever dynamic founder and CEO.

The latest plans include major marketing forays into China and India, the emerging power centres of global rubber industry and ambitious plantation initiatives in potential Asian countries. For instance, in Laos, the company will be investing US$50 million to develop NR plantations in 40,000 hectares during the current decade.

9th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

NTDA Names 2007 TAFF Award Winners

Premium, Product News, UK News

On Wednesday 2, alongside the Brityrex International exhibition, the NTDA named the 2007 TAFF award winners. Michelin took best single company result of the night, winning two awards. But Bridgestone, Vellco, Apaseal and Group Tyre were also celebrating success in categories including production innovation, wholesaler of the year and tyre and aftermarket equipment supplier of the year.

The awards were presented during a glittering ceremony at Manchester’s Palace Hotel, which featured well-known stand-up comic Stan Boardman. The Tyre and Fast Fit (TAFF) Awards, which are sponsored by Renault UK, are the NTDA’s own awards which were established in 2005 to reward excellence from industry suppliers and, in that short time, they have firmly established themselves as the premier awards for the UK Tyre Industry.

The 2007 TAFF awards included categories for Tyre Manufacturer, National Wholesaler, Tyre and Aftermarket Equipment Supplier, Product Innovation and a special award for Industry Advertising Campaigns. A special category covering scrap tyre disposal, collecting and recycling is entitled the Environmental Award.

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9th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin to Change UK Pension Scheme

Product News

The retirement plans of 4,000 Michelin employees in the UK – including workers at the Stoke-on-Trent, Dundee and Ballymena plants and ATS employees – have been affected by the company’s planned closure of its final-salary pension scheme to existing members and decision to transfer staff onto a money-purchase plan. The company said this decision was made in the face of a continued deficit of more than £250 million, despite the fund receiving a £100 million top-up in recent years. In 2002 the company’s UK pension deficit sat at only £57 million.

The proposed changes would see members of its pension scheme cease building up any further benefits from January 1, 2009. Accrued pension benefits will be preserved and will remain linked to the employee’s final salary at retirement. Michelin stated that it plans to pay off the deficit in its final salary scheme over the next decade.

8th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Announces Truck Tyre Price Increases

Product News

Michelin has announced a price increase of up to 4 per cent for its truck tyres in the US. The increase will take effect on 1 June. In addition from 1 July prices of agricultural tyres sold under the Michelin, BFGoodrich, Kleber and Taurus brands will rise by an average of 3 per cent in the US and Canada, the group said.

Referring to the truck tyre price increase, Deutsche Bank analysts said: “We believe that only a small portion will stick. However, this small portion will go directly to the bottom line since natural rubber price (primary used in truck tyres) is now more or less stable since the beginning of February. So far the reporting season of the industry has highlighted a very strong price/mix effect.”

4th May 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Redcap Brings One Stop Auto Care to the Middle East

Product News

Motorists in Saudi Arabia are now able to benefit from the convenience of having all their automotive purchasing and servicing needs met under the one roof. The giant Tamimi Group has announced the opening of four car care hypercentres, a concept Tyres & Accessories are informed is brand new to the Middle East. The centres will trade under the brand name ‘Redcap’ and will cater for every make and model, from the smallest car to the largest SUV.

The chain’s initial four hypercentres have opened in the cities of Dammam, Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Hassa, with a fifth outlet opening in Al Khobar in the near future. The Tamimi Group state that Redcap hypercentres in numerous other locations – including outlets in Dubai, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman and Kuwait – are also in the pipeline.

27th April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Q1 Sales Praised

Product News

Analysts have praised Michelin’s strong first quarter sales which saw sales increase 9.5 per cent when restated from foreign exchange impact. The company also reported market share gains of 4.9 and 4.4 per cent in Europe and the US respectively. “…this gives us comfort in our first half EBIT of 900 million euros, 40 per cent (250 million euros), significantly above consensus,” Deutsche Bank analysts commented, reporting the consensus as 765 million or 120 million euros. Meanwhile Thomas Aney of Dresdner Kleinwort maintained his “hold” rating on Michelin, while raising his estimates for the company.

27th April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

A Different Approach

Product News

(Akron/Tire Review) Possibly the quietest, one of the most accomplished and certainly one of the most respected head of a major tyre company, Jim Micali has also had one of the longest careers, having first joined what is now Michelin North America some 30 years ago as a staff attorney. Micali worked his way up through a number of assignments, including two stints in France, before becoming chairman and president in 1996.

In 2001, Micali was appointed to the Groupe Michelin executive council, and served a term as RMA chairman in 2002. He has also served on the boards of Sonoco and Lafarge North America, and was named distinguished senior fellow in political economy and leadership management at Furman University in 2004, where he is still a guest lecturer. Micali also received the Order of Merit from the French government.

This past December, Micali sat down with Tire Review to discuss legacy and raw material costs and their impact on North American tyre manufacturing and competition, and how MNA is tackling these key issues.

27th April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Second Life

Product News

Berwickshire based Rocklug Tyres are well aware of the affect a good tyre – and a bad one – can have on the performance of an earthmover. That is why the company, who have been in the tyre business since 1974, decided to make the provision of quality remoulded OTR tyres one of their priorities.

When Rocklug Tyres co-director Graham Redpath spoke to Tyres & Accessories he likened earthmoving machinery to high performance cars. “They are designed around a particular tyre and are optimised for its specifications,” he said. “For example, a Caterpillar 50 tonne dump truck may be homologated for Bridgestone tyres, and it works at its best when fitted with these. But if the operator is unable to replace the OE tyres with another set and instead must fit cross-ply tyres sourced from China, the equipment will not be able to work to its full design capacity. In many cases there have been major shortcomings in the tonne-per-hour capabilities specified for these machines.”

27th April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Revenue up 5.5%

Product News

Michelin’s revenue during the first quarter of 2007 rose 5.5 per cent thanks to higher prices and demand from commercial vehicle manufacturers. The tyremaker reported that sales during the quarter came to 4.2 billion euros, compared with 3.98 billion euros a year earlier. The company is sticking to its forecast of a “tangible increase” in full-year profit as a proportion of sales.

In February Michelin affirmed its goal of a margin of 10 per cent by 2010 (compared with 8.2 per cent during 2006), and stated it will reduce costs by as much as 1.7 billion euros by 2010. The company plans to cut spending on purchasing and manufacturing.

According to the company, higher prices and changes in the type of tyres purchased added 4.4 per cent to Michelin’s sales in the quarter. The company had been expected to report sales of 4.15 billion euros.

25th April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin to Double Tyre Donations to Emergency Crews

Product News

(Akron/Tire Review) Michelin North America plans to double the number of tyres it will donate to local fire and EMS departments as part of its Driving America’s Safety program. The company has already donated tyres to 25 first-responders this year.

Beginning today, communities and individuals can nominate their local fire and/or EMS teams to receive a set of new Michelin tyres. Nominations will continue through Nov. 23. For 2008, MNA will donate 50 sets of tyres to local first responder units.

24th April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin to Investigate Rossi’s MotoGP Tyre

Product News

Michelin has taken the rear tyre from MotoGP rider Valentino Rossi’s Yamaha back to Clermont Ferrand for a thorough investigation into its sudden failure during the Turkish Grand Prix on April 22.

Rossi experienced difficulties throughout the race and later complained of tyre problems. “I immediately started to have problems with the rear tyre,” he stated after finishing tenth. “It did get up to temperature, but then I started sliding all over: something went wrong on the right side of the tyre and it gave us a lot of problems.” It is believed the tyre began to vibrate violently on lap 14 of the race.

Pierre Alves, Michelin’s technician in the Yamaha garage, believes the problems to be the result of how the tyre has been made and not a matter of rubber degradation. “It seems that it is inside the tyre rather than what happened in Laguna [July 2006], when it was starting to blister,” he explained.

A source from within Michelin has commented that Rossi’s recent tyre problems may have been caused by a manufacturing problem rather than anything inherently wrong with the tyre’s design.

24th April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin’s Gift to the Community

Product News

Up in Dundee Michelin is creating more than new tyres – the company, through its Michelin Development division, is creating opportunities. An estimated 200 plus jobs will be created as a direct result of funds – almost half a million pounds – that Michelin Development has invested in twelve new or fledgling Dundee companies during the past few years.

Michelin Development was established with the aim of helping small and medium businesses flourish in regions were the tyremaker has plants or other strong community links. These locations also include Stoke-on-Trent, Ballymena and Burnley – the closure of Michelin’s factory at the latter site in 2001 prompted the establishment of Michelin Development. The investment Michelin Development provides comes in the form of unsecured base interest rate loans (at present 5.25 per cent), the risk for which is covered by Michelin. And it appears these investment loans are doing what they were intended to do – throughout the UK almost a thousand jobs have been created through Michelin Development’s support, with an expected 211 new jobs in Dundee alone. One Dundee company has secured £500,000 worth of contracts thanks to the programme, while another has trebled its payroll.

24th April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Romania Truck & OTR Tyre Production up 23%.

Product News

Michelin’s subsidiary in Romania, Michelin Silvania, has indicated it expects production at its facility in the city of Zalau will rise by 10 per cent this year, following an increase of 23 per cent during 2006. The factory, which focuses on the production of truck and OTR tyres, currently has an annual output of 600,000 units

Speaking to local media, factory manager Jana Popa painted an upbeat picture of the coming year. “We have already conquered the market of tyres for agricultural equipment, heavy vehicles and lorries, which will ensure an over 10 per cent increase in the volume of our production, while at the same time doubling the volume of semi-finished products exported to Eastern Europe,” she said. “We are also relying on the fact that we have regular clients buying our tyres and demand on the market is currently witnessing an upward trend.”

23rd April 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

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