Tyre industry pioneers, Michelin has a long history. Having begun in 1889, Michelin is now the second-largest tyre manufacturer in the world after Bridgestone and larger than both Goodyear and Contineantal.
A new range of Michelin tyres aimed at regional haulage operations is now available; these are positioned as products for fleets that place a priority on saving fuel. The introduction of the Michelin X Multi Energy marks the first time the company has launched a dedicated fuel-saving tyre outside of the long-haul sector.
Only recently, Michelin unveiled its first connected tyre solution that amateur driving enthusiasts can go out and buy for their cars. This is Track Connect, a system compatible with the newly-launched Pilot Sport Cup 2 Connect tyre and now on sale in several European markets. A dedicated competition version has also been developed – the tyre maker calls it Michelin Motorsport Connect, and this solution will be introduced at the next rounds of the French Rally Championship between 13 and 15 April. Michelin Motorsport Connect will then initially be released in France, with prices starting at 400 euros, before being introduced elsewhere in Europe and the rest of the world.
On 19 March 2018, Michelin announced it had reached an agreement on the terms of its acquisition of Fenner plc, specifically a recommended cash acquisition of Fenner’s entire issued and to be issued share capital. The plan is for the acquisition to be implemented by means of a court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement.
For its second edition, the Movin’On sustainability mobility summit will include a global Startup Challenge. Finalists in the Startup Challenge – up to 50 startups in total – will showcase their technologies between 30 May and 1 June, demonstrating how they can impact the future of sustainable mobility.
As of 1 April, Jens Schlemmer is director of the Michelin car tyre factory in Bamberg, Germany. He returns to Michelin’s operation in his homeland after working in plants around the world these past 14 years. Former plant director Thomas Nagel has taken on a new leadership role within the Michelin group.
When it brings a new, special version of its Pilot Sport Cup 2 to market this month, Michelin will become the first manufacturer to sell a connected tyre solution for private cars. The Pilot Sport Cup 2 Connect is a tyre aimed at amateur drivers who take part in track days and other circuit events. When paired with the newly-launched Michelin Track Connect solution, it can provide a wealth of real time tyre information.
Michelin has announced plans to convert part of the site of its closing Northern Ireland manufacturing plant to a business park following its sale to Silverwood Property Developments. The tyre manufacturer will complete the closure of its Ballymena plant in June, after the last tyre rolls off its production line in April, ending 50 years of manufacturing. Some of the site – reportedly around 10 acres – has been earmarked for Mid and East Antrim Borough Council, as it attempts to win its bid to host a regional Heathrow Logistics Hub, supporting proposed construction work at the West London airport.
At the Innovation Awards Ceremony held at the SITL transport and logistics exhibition in Paris last Wednesday, companies were honoured for their latest and greatest in six awards categories. Michelin Solutions’ MyBestRoute application was declared winner of the Technologies and Information Systems category.
A new joint venture has been set up between Michelin and industrial products distributor CFAO for importing and distributing premium and quality segment tyres into Kenya and Uganda. CFAO holds a 51 per cent share in the new entity and Michelin the remaining 49 per cent. The joint venture’s governance is equally divided between CFAO and Michelin.
While the headline Brand Finance ranking news is the resurgence of Michelin as well as the growth of the Chinese brands, Dunlop and Pirelli’s performance in the Brand Finance ranking is also worth noting – for completely different reasons.
Stating that such an acquisition would be “in perfect strategic alignment with its ambition to leverage its expertise in high-technology materials,” Michelin has announced its intention to purchase UK-based firm Fenner PLC.
Alexandre Taisne, who has been responsible for the Michelin Group’s strategy and development of gastronomic and tourist activities since April 2017, will also take responsibility for the Michelin Guide selections. His current role will expand as of 3 April 2018. Michael Ellis, Michelin Guide international director, and his inspection teams will report directly to him.
The new-generation Michelin Pilot Sport tyre set to debut in the 2018/19 Formula E season will be lighter, more energy efficient and bear an even closer resemblance to road tyres than the first-generation Michelin tyre. Its introduction accompanies changes to vehicle technical specifications that come into effect at the start of the all-electric racing series’ fifth season.
The Michelin brand’s value has grown some 30 per cent to US$7.9 billion in the latest Brand Finance Tyres 10 ranking. As a result Bibendum is now the world’s most valuable tyre brand.
Michelin has launched a new CrossClimate tyre to take on the demanding conditions in which European van drivers increasingly operate. Having successfully rolled out the “summer tyre with winter capabilities” to the consumer market with two iterations of CrossClimates for cars and an SUV version, Michelin has extended the concept to light commercial operators with the Agilis CrossClimate. To mark its launch, Michelin demonstrated the tyre’s winter characteristics at a special test site in the French Alps. With the so-called Beast from the East providing the most extreme winter driving conditions the UK has seen in more than a decade as Tyres & Accessories goes to print, the appeal of products to handle such conditions while also suiting the mostly moderate climate in a market disinclined to fit winter tyres seems likely to receive at least a short-term boost.
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