Nokian Tyres
Reading the recent UK winter tyre usage survey commissioned by Manheim Auctions, anyone would think that the concept of fitting winter tyres was a) peculiar and b) a “minority purchase.” The reality is that all across Europe millions of winter tyres are fitted every season and that the numbers of motorist taking the winter option are at an all-time high and growing fast.
On the back of a 41.3 per cent year-on-year increase in net sales in the first nine months of 2011, Nokian Tyres retains its outlook that it is “positioned to provide strong sales growth and to improve operating profit clearly compared to 2010.” The Finnish tyre maker recorded group net sales of 974.3 million euros, up from 689.4 million euros between January and September 2010. During this same period operating profit doubled from 130.4 million to 261.0 million euros. Earnings per share also effectively doubled, from 0.85 euros to 1.66 euros per share. Net sales increased 41.2 per cent in the third quarter to 346.3 million euros, operating profit jumped 97.4 per cent to 95.4 million euros and earnings per share increased 122 per cent year-on-year to 0.60 euros per share.
Nokian Tyres has announced it will open four new Vianor Industrial outlets in Sweden at the start of next year, and the company says it also plans to expand the concept into Russian and Kazakhstan. At present 34 Vianor Industrial outlets are in operation; Norway is the currently the largest single Vianor Industrial market, with 16 outlets, followed by Sweden, with 12 outlets. The Ukraine and Nokian’s home market of Finland each boast three Vianor Industrial outlets.
Premium tyre manufacturers such as Continental AG are going to struggle to meet demand for replacement winter tyres stock this season, according to the latest research. Continental’s management, for example, said it has upped winter output this year, but it still won’t completely meet demand and therefore customers may still face shortages of certain sizes. But, speaking off the record, representatives of other leading tyre manufacturers have said much the same thing.
A new lap record has been set at the Nürburgring’s Nordschleife circuit – and Nokian Tyres is proud of the role its products played. The Electric RaceAbout (E-RA) vehicle, built by the Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences and fitted with Nokian Z G2 tyres, zipped around the Nordschleife in 8:42.72, setting a lap record for road legal electric cars. The E-RA averaged more than 142 km/h during its run and cut more than a minute from the previous record.
Nokian Tyres is widely acknowledged as a winter tyre pioneer, but other companies also played a part in the introduction of season-specific tyres. One such firm is Semperit, who this year celebrates three quarters of a century in the winter tyre business.
A new addition has been made to Nokian Tyres’ Hakka summer tyre range. Called the Hakka Blue, this latest product from the Finnish tyre maker is designed with ‘northern’ roads in mind and thus is intended, in Nokian’s own words, to offer “the best possible traction and precise handling for challenging wet roads.” The Hakka Blue is aimed at high-powered cars and is produced in a total of 21 sizes in V and W speed ratings for 15 to 17-inch rim diameters. All dimensions offered will be XL marked. Retail sales of the new tyre will begin in spring 2012 in Nokian’s most important market areas: the Nordic countries, Russia, and Ukraine, as well as Kazakhstan and Belarus.
Nokian Tyres styles itself as “the only tyre manufacturer in the world that focuses on products and services that facilitate safe transportation in Nordic conditions”, and its 2011 range reflects the company's expertise in the area, developed in variable Central European conditions. The manufacturer says its WR D3 and WR A3 tyres are “designed for different vehicles and drivers but for any winter weather”. The company calls its tyres “environmentally friendly premium products” that feature nanotechnology and canola oil, which helps to improve their reliability in the winter conditions of Central Europe. Nordic Tyres (UK) usually imports Nokian Industrial, Forestry and Agriculture, though increased demand in the last UK winter led to its decision to stock passenger car winter patterns. The UK distributor says it suggests “early contact… in order to meet expected demand before winter really bites”.
Canadian specialist yard management and dock scheduling software solutions provider C3 Solutions reports that Nokian Tyres has adopted its C3 Reservations system in its key European manufacturing facilities and distribution centres. The Finnish manufacturer’s sites in Nokia and in Vsevolozhsk, Russia are two locations named as beneficiaries of the new system, which is intended to optimise the scheduling of raw materials and finished products to, from and between the company’s facilities.
Nokian Tyres reports that the group’s net sales increased by 41.4 per cent to 628.0 million euros during the first six month of 2011 (444.2 million euros in the first half of 2010). Operating profit grew faster still, almost doubling to 165.6 million euros (2010: 82.0 million euros) and earnings per share increased to 1.06 euros (2010: 0.58 euros).
Tyrepac has become the exclusive distributor of Nokian tyres in Singapore. The deal will see Tyrepac retail the tyres exclusively online. According to a statement released by the company, Tyrepac will further promote Nokian tyres via a variety of marketing campaigns. The deal Tyrepac’s brand count to a total of 18 marques for its Singaporean customers.
Nokian’s Vianor fast-fit network entered southern Europe on July 27 with the opening of an outlet in Montebelluna, Italy. This first Vianor outlet in the region is also the 800th centre the Finnish manufacturer has launched since the first opened for business more than a decade ago.
In its 2010-2011 annual report, the European Tyre & Rubber Manufacturers’ Association reports on what it calls the “dominant sentiment amongst industry leaders” – enhancing, or at the very least maintaining, the competitiveness of its member companies. Elaborating on the situation behind this sentiment, ETRMA secretary general Fazilet Cinaralp comments that “Europe is the most highly regulated area for tyre production and marketing but our global competitors are well aware that there is no market surveillance to enforce our strict rules. This undermines equality in regulatory enforcement and at worst leads to a competitive disadvantage for European producers.”
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.
As of May 23 the wholesale operations run by Nokian Tyres in the US city of Denver, Colorado will be taken over by Tire Factory, a group of independent tyre dealers that operate more than 200 locations in 15 states. The Meadow Creek facility in Denver will joint Tire Factory distribution centres operating in Portland, Oregon and Salt Lake City, Utah.
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.
