North America
Mark Twain once stated that “the report of my death was an exaggeration.” Now it’s the turn of Retread Tire Association managing director Harvey Brodsky to discover others had received word of his demise. Unlike in Twain’s day, news now travels around the globe at the click of a mouse and the misunderstanding over Brodsky’s status arose from a Google alert announcing the death of another Harvey Brodsky that hailed from the same neighbourhood.
BKT Tire (USA) has added a number of new sizes to some several US and Canada market product line-up. The tyre maker’s FL 639 flotation radial has a size 560/45R22.5 added to its roster. The on/off-road agricultural implement and trailer tyre was designed for high load capacities at low inflation pressures for minimum soil compaction, and its wide footprint is ideal for soft soil conditions, BKT said.
For the six months to June 30, 2011, Bridgestone Corporation reports net sales of 1,459,125 million yen (£11.7 billion), 1.4 per cent lower than the sales projection announced on May 13 and 5.3 per cent higher than net sales for the first half of 2010. Operating income during the first half of this year was 93,629 million yen (£751.0 million), 30.0 per cent higher than projected, and ordinary income amounted to 91,880 million yen (£737.0 million), 43.6 higher than the projected figure. Net income for the six months to June 30, 2011 was 54,115 million yen (£434.1 million), a 54.6 per cent increase on the May 13 projection and up 21.6 per cent year-on-year.
Continental Tire the Americas has introduced what it calls its “most innovative SUV, crossover and light truck tyre to date,” the CrossContact LX20. Priorities when developing this all-season tyre were fuel economy and tread wear improvements along with competition-beating wet braking. In respect to this last-mentioned quality, Continental says that in an independent wet braking test the CrossContact LX20 in size 265/70R17 stopped 34 feet shorter than its leading competitor, Pirelli’s Scorpion STR A P265/70R17 113H.
Michelin North America has been acknowledged by the US military for its tyre supply and logistics services. At the 2011 DLA Industry Conference and Exhibition the tyre maker received two Best Value Awards from the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). Michelin Truck Tires and Michelin Aircraft Tires each received their fourth consecutive award at a ceremony held during the conference. Out of the more than 7,000 firms supplying equipment to the military, Michelin was one of 182 companies recognised for meeting performance requirements in the Automated Best Value System.
As of September 1, prices for Michelin North America’s entire OTR tyre line-up in the US, Canada and Mexico will rise. Increases will range between five and 13 per cent, MNA reports. This is the third price increase MNA has implemented for its OTR tyres this year; previous increases were up to 7 and 8 per cent, respectively.
Sears Holdings, parent company of US retail chains Sears and K-Mart, has named Cooper Tire & Rubber a 2010 Partner in Progress. In acknowledging receipt of this award, which Cooper Tire gained through the supply of its passenger and light truck tyres, the tyre maker notes that less than one per cent of the more than 30,000 Sears Holdings suppliers are recognised in this way each year.
A faultering US tyre market contributed to poor second quarter results for Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. The tyre-maker saw second quarter net income of just $12 million, down nearly 38 per cent year-on-year, against sales of $922 million, up 15 per cent from the second quarter of 2010. For the entire first half, Cooper posted sales of $1.83 billion, up from $1.56 billion for the same period last year. Net income, however, came to $32.9 million, down considerably YoY from $67.3 million.
The US replacement consumer tyre market will remain depressed through 2011, according to an update by the Rubber Manufacturers Association, even as OE shipments to automakers are continuing to grow. The RMA now says that replacement P-metric tyre shipments will fall short of even posting 1 per cent growth for the year, “as continued high energy costs, decreases in non-essential driving, and continued economic uncertainties weigh on the consumer.”
Brembo Racing and Roush Yates Performance Products announced the start of a partnership in North America, with the latter appointed as an authorised distributor of Brembo Racing high-performance brakes and accessories for the “Oval market”, including series such as Nascar. In additional motorsport news, Brembo has also been made the official supplier of Truck Sport Lutz Bernau (TSB) team at FIA European Truck Championship, marking the brake manufacturer’s entrance in the segment of racing trucks races. On the non-motorsport side Brembo, headquartered in Italy with plants in 15 countries, has also signed an agreement to acquire Perdriel SA, an Argentinian manufacturer of brake discs with plants in the Buenos Aires area, a workforce of about 150 and expected revenues of about €20 million.
Recent thefts of tyres from parked trucks in the UK have been outdone in terms of scale and audacity by a crime that took place in the US state of Florida last week. Tire Review reports that a group of thieves stole two semi-trailers full of passenger, performance and light truck/SUV tyres from behind a tyre dealership in Fort Lauderdale in the early hours of July 27. Unlike their British counterparts, who loaded tyres into their own vehicle or vehicles before making a getaway, the US criminals saved considerable time and effort by bringing their own Freightliner tractor unit to remove the trailers from the store’s loading dock.
Richard J. Kramer, chairman and chief executive officer of Goodyear Tire & Rubber, says he is “very pleased” with the tyre maker’s “outstanding second quarter results.” Goodyear’s figures for the three months to the end of June, which were released on July 28, show a 24 per cent increase in sales to US$5.6 billion, despite a two per cent decline in unit sales. The results, Kramer added, “represent another step on the path toward our 2013 targets. They present confirmation that our strategies are right and that they are working.”
Michelin has released its first half financial results, showing stable operating income of €971 million for a 9.6 per cent operating margin, with net sales up 21 per cent. The Group says the figures are in line with its corporate “road map”, revising its full year sales volumes objectives upwards – after 12.6 per cent market growth in the first half – and reconfirming its profitability estimates. The Group suggests market growth should accelerate in line with long-term trends by the end of the year, targeting an 8 per cent growth in full-year sales volumes.
The Warren County tyre plant operated by Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations has received the highest health and safety award given out by health authorities in its home state; on July 27 the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development’s Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration (TOSHA) unit honoured the plant with its Volunteer STAR (Safety Through Accountability and Recognition) award.
The British Drift Championship’s third round at the Teesside Autodrome saw two major drifting tyre brands competing for top spots in the championship standings. Title sponsors of the series Maxxis supported third-placed drifter Paul Smith, moving him up to fifth in the Super Professional Championship, while the Falken brand supported Matt Carter claimed his third consecutive second place podium position to maintain his lead at the top, and Team Green Falken’s domination of the Team Championship.
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