North America
Trelleborg president and CEO Peter Nilsson has reported a “strong quarter” for the Swedish company. During the second quarter of 2012 the firm’s sales rose slightly to SEK 5.66 billion (£520 million) while operating profit increased 34 per cent to SEK 875 million (£80 million). Net profit amounted to SEK 712 million (£65 million).
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is using a commercial truck tyre casing from Yokohama Tire Corporation to establish a SmartWay verification program for retreaded tyres fitted to Class 8 line-haul trucks. “We are excited that the EPA has designated the RY617 steer and all-position tyre for their verification program as the benchmark casing for retread technologies,” said Rick Phillips, Yokohama director of commercial sales. When a retread receives EPA certification, fleets using those tyres become compliant with California Air Resources Board (CARB) regulations for low rolling resistance tyres.
Former Apollo Vredestein head of R&D, Peter Becker, has taken on the role of research and development director at Kumho Tyres. Becker’s key task in his new position is the setting up of Kumho’s European Technical Center in Mörfelden-Walldorf, Germany, the tyre maker’s replacement for its now-closed centre in Birmingham. The 53-year old will lead Kumho Tyres’ activities in the areas of tyre technology, research and product development and work closely with Kumho’s design teams in Korea, China and North America. The team working under Becker will focus on developing optimal products for the European replacement and original equipment markets.
In ČGS Holding’s freshly-published 2011 annual report, the Czech Republic-based parent company of tyre maker Mitas a.s. reported its tyre division “successfully continued in its strategy to become a leading global producer of off-road tyres, significantly increased sales and launched major investment projects.”
In response to economic conditions, Goodyear Tire & Rubber is considering closing down production at its Fayetteville, US plant for a week in August. Plant spokesman Richard Evans told media that discussions have been held about the possibility of “taking production days out” if the market doesn’t improve. According to Evans, closing down production on certain days would be done to “reduce the inventory level because of a soft market.” Goodyear has not made any official statement regarding a temporary closure at Fayetteville, and it is not known which week the plant may close.
Michelin isn’t the only company developing an electric in-wheel drive system. US-headquartered company Protean Electric boasts its own competitor to the tyre major’s ‘Active Wheel’ system, and has announced it has received US$84 million in new funding from its key investors GSR Ventures, New Times Group, Oak Investment Partners, and the city of Liyang, in China’s Jiangsu Province, China. This capital will be used to bring Protean's electric drive technology to production through the erection of manufacturing facilities in Liyang.
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Kumho Tire USA Inc. has released the KMD41 medium truck and bus radial for on- and off-road applications, reports Tire Review. Designed for applications such as refuse, construction and mining and logging, the Kumho KMD41 shows improved traction against the previous offering, and “removes the 55 miles per hour speed restriction of the previous product, increasing the speed certification to 65-miles per hour for normal highway driving,” the tyre-maker said.
On its Hall Three stand and during an evening event at Essen’s central Mövenpick Hotel, Nankang unveiled its new logo at Reifen 2012 alongside two new products. The Taiwanese company’s staff also presented the array of new lines it has recently introduced, in addition to previewing its latest asymmetric tyre, the AS-2, which is in the “final evaluation” stage of its development. Manufactured in Taiwan (“14,000 pieces per day”) and China (“25,000 pieces per day”), Nankang turned over 461 million euros in 2011, and with 40 per cent of its sales, Nankang said that Europe is by far its biggest market (comparing favourably with 18 per cent in North America and 15 per cent in Asia). The company also presented its comparative sales figures in Europe over the past five years, which showed a dip from 120 million euros in 2007 to a nadir of 97 million in 2009 – having ascended significantly in 2010, the figure now stands at 184 million euros in 2011. The company also noted the growing demand for its winter tyres in Europe, which has climbed from 0.336 million in 2008 to 1.215 million in 2011. It is, according to the company, “the main line we are focusing on.”
Upon visiting Hankook Tire’s global website, one of the first things to be seen is a positions vacant advertisement for PT. Hankook Tire Indonesia’s new factory in West Java, indicating that a start to production lies just around the corner. A senior Hankook manager has now confirmed to local media that commercial operations at the Lippo Cikarang plant will begin in the last quarter of 2012 with a workforce of around 1,200.
Continental Tire will serve as the “official tyre” of 2012 Herbalife World Football Challenge in the US following the signing of a sponsorship deal. Under the agreement, Continental Tire will receive field board signage, end board signage, in-stadium media, hospitality, and category exclusivity at all the championship, which will take place across North America between 18 July and 11 August. This latest deal is in addition to the company’s official status sponsorship of Major League Soccer (MLS). Last year Bridgestone was a sponsor of the event.
According to Lyssa da Costa, manager of marketing at Hercules Tire’s Canada and international divisions, Reifen 2012 was a “busy, productive show” for the wholesaler. At the exhibition, the company displayed a wide range of its products, including three recently launched winter tyres in the Hercules and Ironman ranges.
On 2 July Bridgestone celebrated the groundbreaking of its new passenger car tyre facility in Vietnam, the company’s first factory in the country. The ceremony at the chosen plant site in the Dinh Vu Industrial Zone, Hai Phong City, was attended by the Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister, Hoang Trung Hai, along with other government officials and management from Bridgestone’s business partners. Representing the tyre maker at the ceremony were Kazuhisa Nishigai, Bridgestone Corporation COO and Representative Board member, and Susumu Yazaki, president of Bridgestone Tire Manufacturing Vietnam Limited Liability Company.
The latest report from AlixPartners reveals that the decline in vehicle sales is not evenly distributed across Europe, but has distinct focal points.
Belgium, Italy and France have experienced double-digit declines in sales and the outlook remains negative. In the UK, Germany and Spain, by contrast, declines have been relatively moderate (between 0.8 per cent and 2.4 per cent), while the markets in Russia and Poland have grown slightly.
The European automotive industry is severely in need of consolidation, says AlixPartners. In North America, the crisis of 2008/2009 led to "a healthy streamlining" of the automotive industry – by contrast, only three car factories have been closed in Western Europe since 2007, while eight Eastern European plants were opened during the same period.
Bridgestone’s high-profile sponsorship of the National Football League in the US, which got underway in 2007, has been extended for a further four years. Under the terms of the new agreement signed between Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations and the NFL, sponsorship will continue through to 31 March 2016 and Bridgestone will no longer sponsor the Super Bowl Halftime Show. Instead, the tyre maker says it will focus on “reinforcing the Bridgestone brand performance message” at various games throughout the season, culminating at the Super Bowl. The Bridgestone brand will continue to be the “official tyre” of the NFL.
Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations has earmarked a further US$74 million for capacity expansion at its Des Moines, Iowa agricultural tyre plant. This latest investment at the tyre maker’s main North American agricultural tyre facility follows a $77 million investment announced in March 2010; Bridgestone says the two projects confirm its “commitment to maintaining its leadership position in the agricultural tyre industry” and will help the plant meet growing demand for tyres that provide better traction and an increased footprint.
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