North America
Goodyear comments that Goodyear and blimps go together like America and apple pie, and this association will most likely continue even though the tyre maker’s next airships will be built using technology sourced from the USA’s old lighter-than-air rival: A new agreement with German zeppelin manufacturer ZLT Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik will see Goodyear supplied with airships well into the next decade.
As of June, 1 prices for all Pirelli passenger car and light truck tyres sold in the US will increase by six to nine per cent. The manufacturer attributes the decision to further lift prices to increasing raw material costs.
Management at Point S Development – the France-based operation responsible for developing the international Point S network – have spoken of significant growth plans since late 2009. Many of their goals have already been realised and today Point S is represented by networks in 20 European countries, making it one of the region’s largest retail tyre organisations. With Point S now represented throughout much of Europe, Point S Development is casting an eye across the Atlantic. Plans for expanding into North America on the drawing board since 2009 are now being implemented in more concrete terms.
US based commercial tyre dealer Snider Tire has begun producing retreads at its sixth Michelin Retread Technologies (MRT) retread plant. The new facility is located at the company’s headquarters in Greensboro, North Carolina. Snider Tire became an MRT franchisee in May 2009, starting with two MRT retread plants, and has opened or acquired four additional MRT plants during the past two years.
A price adjustment taking effect on May 1, 2011 will see the price of all commercial vehicle tyres sold by Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. increase by up to 15 per cent, with in-line adjustments occurring. The manufacturer states this rise reflects the continued escalation in raw material costs. “Due to the steep increase in the costs of raw materials affecting our industry, we must reluctantly raise prices of our product,” said John Hagan, senior director, sales, Toyo Tire U.S.A. “We appreciate the continued support and understanding of our dealers as we remain committed to providing the highest quality products.”
Cooper Tire & Rubber has reported a net income of US$16 million attributable to Cooper Tire for the quarter ended March 31, 2011, an increase of $4 million from the same period in 2010. Net sales during the quarter amounted to $906 million, an increase of $152 million, or 20 per cent, from the prior year. Operating profit was $32 million for the quarter, a decrease of $1 million from the prior year same quarter. Results during the quarter included an after-tax gain of $3 million related to the acquisition of a controlling interest in Corporacion de Occidente SA de CV. The Company also incurred costs of $4 million during the quarter. The prior year first quarter included restructuring charges of $8 million, and $22 million of increased charges for an adverse verdict in a single products liability case.
Hankook Tire announced the highest quarterly global sales on record for the first quarter of 2011 with turnover totalling 1.4 trillion Korean won, a 16.3 per cent year-on-year increase. Hankook Tire’s first quarter operating profit for 2011 amounted to 179 billion won. Operating profit to sales ratio was 12.4 per cent, up from 6.9 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2010.
Hankook has released details of a new global TV advertising campaign. The ‘Be One with It’ campaign will roll out in nine different countries in Europe including Germany, UK, Italy, Spain, France, Russia and Hungary as well as in North America (USA/Canada). Instead of showcasing only the tyres’ performance, the campaign focuses more on the drivers feeling of ‘being one’ with the tyre and the road. Extreme sports such as jumping off cliffs and airborne helicopters with specially designed wing suits, called the ‘base jump’ are utilized to present the theme.
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The latest J.D. Power and Associates survey in the United States has revealed a growing level of tyre satisfaction amongst owners of domestic and European vehicles. According to the J.D. Power and Associates 2011 U.S. Original Equipment Tire Customer Satisfaction Study, released on April 11, levels of tyre satisfaction amongst owners of US-produced vehicles increased to 682 on a 1,000-point scale, up from 659 in 2009. Similarly, tyre satisfaction among owners of European vehicles has increased to 698 in 2011 from 689 in 2009. Tyre satisfaction for owners of Asian vehicles, however, has remained flat, declining just one point between 2009 and 2011 to its current level of 637. Tyre satisfaction amongst owners of Asian nameplate vehicles, J.D. Power notes, is well below average in all segments except for the luxury segment.
Pirelli Tire North America has renewed its ‘Interactive Agency of Record’ relationship with independent interactive agency Rosetta through 2012. Rosetta began developing an interactive advertising and marketing programme for Pirelli last year, indentifying the tyre maker’s customers and determining how they can be best reached; as part of the strategy developed as a result, Rosetta led Pirelli's search and online display marketing efforts in 2010, the first consistent digital programme Pirelli has executed in North America.
Michelin North America has extended its ‘Advantage Program’ to truck owner-operators. Initially established for smaller-sized fleets, the Advantage Program offers operators consistent programme pricing on both new tyre and Michelin Retread Technologies products plus no-fee access to the tyre maker’s ‘ONCall’ emergency road service and access to Michelin’s Commercial Service Network. Further stated benefits are resources available through the Advantage Program website, regular e-newsletter updates and – new for 2011 – quarterly webcasts on important tyre topics.
Just six months before the next edition Autopromotec, which will be held at the Bologna Exhibition Centre from 25 – 29 May 2011, the organisers are saying that the numbers of foreign exhibitors and buyer/dealer delegations confirmed so far are a “clear sign that the Bologna event is in pretty good health.”
To date, the number of exhibitors confirmed for Autopromotec 2011 remains at the record level seen at the last show in 2009, with an outstanding 35 per cent of foreign companies to highlight the increasing internationalisation aspect of the event. The increase in exhibition space seems to demonstrate that those who were there last time will be back. Only this time they are said to be booking larger spaces to increase their visibility in the professional automotive aftermarket sector. Indicators of this type, in a period which cannot be referred to as one of economic stability, are seen as ways the organisation committee has channelled efforts in the right direction.
The sale of Goodyear’s Latin America agricultural tyre business to Titan Tire was completed on April 1. Goodyear reports completing the sale for approximately US$99 million, subject to post-closing conditions and adjustments. The transaction includes the company’s Sao Paulo manufacturing plant, property, equipment and inventories and a licensing agreement that will allow Titan to sell Goodyear-brand agricultural tyres in Latin America and North America.
Marangoni’s Retreading Systems business has won Kuwait’s sole retreader as a retreading partner and brought it into the Ringtread fold. The Italian supplier of retreading materials, tread and equipment reports this deal has been reached as part of its expansion strategy in the near and Middle East. Kuwait, with its modern road network and long transport corridor connecting Iraq in the north to Saudi Arabia in the south, is considered a hub for all transport into Gulf countries.
For more than a year the Marangoni Group has operated its retreading business out of a central holding company. The Italian retreader also recently established a new corporate headquarters at its Rovereto site and consequently closed its centre in Verona. These actions were taken in response to structural changes within the market that necessitate increased speed and responsiveness. In an interview with Tyres & Accessories, Marangoni Group CEO Massimo De Alessandri explained the company’s current position in terms of its consolidation, the motivations driving it and the future facing those parts of the company not belonging to its retreading business.
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