North America
Following the launch of its award-winning EfficientGrip passenger car tyre, Goodyear chose Portugal to showcase its new EfficientGrip SUV tyre, aimed squarely at the 4×4 and SUV market, from luxury, full-size vehicles through standard, compact and sub-compact ranges. The 4×4/SUV market in Europe is growing and is expected to reach several million vehicles by 2014, meaning increased demand for specialised 4×4/SUV tyres which combine performance and fuel economy.
With fuel prices at near-record levels, US consumers are driving less and contemplating a move to smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles, according to recent survey by Consumer Reports. Tire Review reports that the survey found that 37 per cent said their leading consideration when shopping for their next car will be fuel economy. A distant second was quality (17 per cent) followed by safety (16 per cent), value (14 per cent) and performance (6 per cent).
There is a serious effort afoot to have the iconic “Firestone Tire Building” in Los Angeles designated as a Historic-Cultural Monument, Tire Review reports. According to a story on la.curbed.com, the Art Deco Society of Los Angeles petitioned the Los Angeles City Council's Planning and Land Use Management committee, which quickly passed a motion approving the designation. The proposal now must go before the entire city council.
For the first quarter of 2012, Bridgestone has reported net sales of ¥726.2 billion (£5.6 billion), a three per cent increase over the first quarter of fiscal 2011. The company’s operating income amounted to ¥63.0 billon (£490.0 million), an increase of 13 per cent, ordinary income was ¥61.7 billion (£479.9 million), an increase of ten per cent, and net income was ¥42.2 billion (£328.2 million), a year-on-year increase of 35 per cent.
Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations has appointed Mitch Burke plant manager at its Warren County, Tennessee truck and bus tyre factory. Burke has been with Bridgestone Americas since 1989, starting his career as a junior engineer at the Warren County plant. Subsequently, he served in numerous engineering and management roles of increasing responsibility, including positions as quality coordinator, section manager, operations manager, area business manager, division manager of Truck Bus Radial Technical Services, and, most recently, division manager, Operations.
The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., has reported that first quarter net sales (1 January to 31 March) increased 7.4 per cent over the same period of the previous year to 135.3 billion yen. At the same time operating income increased 403.3 per cent, to 9.3 billion yen; and net income increased 389.7 per cent, to 8.8 billion yen. According to the company, the first-quarter sales growth reflected strong gains in OE sales to Japanese OEMs as well as progress in raising prices for tyres and other products.
Double Coin and the China Manufacturers Alliance have launched a new mobile website aimed at North American customers. The site will complement the existing www.doublecoin-us.com and is designed and formatted for optimal viewing on any web-enabled Smartphone, including iPhone, Android, Blackberry and others. Features accessible through the mobile site include product specifications and warranty information, and visitors can use the dealer locator function to access over 1,000 independent Double Coin tyre dealers across North America. The phone’s GPS automatically redirects to the closest dealer based on the user’s current location.
Despite higher manufacturing costs in the first quarter of 2012, including costs related to the lockout at its Findlay plant, Cooper Tire & Rubber has announced improved results. The company reports net sales of US$984 million in the first three months of the year, an increase of $82 million, or nine per cent, compared with the first quarter of 2011. Operating profit was $48 million for the quarter, an increase of $16 million from the prior year same quarter. Net income attributable to Cooper Tire & Rubber for the quarter ended 31 March 2012 was $22 million, or $0.34 per share on a diluted basis, compared with $16 million, or 25 cents, for the first quarter of 2011.
Hankook Tire has reported continued sales growth during the first quarter of 2012. Growth was experienced in North American and European markets, and the company said demand for its ultra high performance tyres had rapidly increased during the first three months of the year. Seung-Hwa Suh, vice chairman & global CEO of Hankook Tire said: “Despite continued global economic downturn, we have been able to set global sales growth and operating profit based on consistent tyre quality improvement as well as brand equity enhancement.
Bob Majewski, president of the US-based Tire Retread & Repair Information Bureau, has reminded all member retreaders of the costs involved in TRIB’s day-to-day operation, and appealed for annual membership dues to be paid – before errant members find themselves out of the loop.
Sales at Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company during first quarter of 2012 were a record for the period, the US tyre maker claims. Announcing the company’s results for the opening three months of the year, Goodyear chairman and CEO Richard J. Kramer commented “I'm pleased with our results as our businesses posted solid operating income.”Our teams delivered these results in the face of a difficult volume environment and high raw material costs, with a strong focus on price/mix.
Following positive experiences at its Mt. Vernon, USA plant, Continental has implemented a ‘Work-in-Process’ (WIP) Visibility solution from AeroScout at its tyre plant in Sarreguemines, France. AeroScout, a specialist in enterprise visibility solutions, first supplied the Wi-Fi RFID-enabled solution to Continental Tire the Americas as part of expansion plans for the Mt. Vernon facility; AeroScout says its product helped enable the site achieve a 20 per cent reduction in component tyre losses. Continental anticipates the French project will increase daily output at Sarreguemines by 4,000 units.
Moody’s Investor Service has upgraded Compagnie Générale des Etablissements Michelin's long-term credit rating to Baa1 from Baa2, with a stable outlook. Michelin’s P-2 short-term rating remains unchanged.
Michelin reports having achieved Group net sales of 5.304 billion euros in the first quarter of 2012, an increase of 5.1 per cent on the same quarter last year. This growth was propelled by a 23.8 per cent rise in net sales in the company’s specialty businesses; sales of earthmover, agricultural, two-wheel and aircraft tyres, along with Michelin Travel Partner and Michelin Lifestyle, amounted to 940 million euros during the quarter. A more modest 2.9 per cent growth in net sales to 2.760 billion was witnessed in Michelin’s passenger car and light truck tyres division, while truck tyre division sales decreased 0.1 per cent year-on-year to 1.604 billion euros.
Goodyear has converted the last bits of its former Truckwise truck tyre programme to the FleetHQ moniker, reports Tire Review. Announced at the recent Truck World event in Toronto, Goodyear rebranded its Canadian fleet tyre and service to FleetHQ. The new Canadian brand will “create a consistent business solutions brand that offers products, services and information tools for trucking fleets and owner/operators throughout North America,” the company said.
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