Viking International customers are reported to be pleased with the new upgraded online ordering system launched last year. Huw Lewis Tyres, a Viking International customer for a number of years, commented: “The new site is an excellent selling aid. Customers’ transactions can be completed without having to leave the office. I can immediately see stock availability and offer customers an instant quotation plus guarantee next day delivery.”
In April Tyres & Accessories experienced a 103 per cent increase in the number of visits to the company’s international tyre news websites (tyrepress.com, reifenpresse.de and tyrepress-asia.com). Between them, the three group sites registered over 461,000 visits, up from 226,000 in April 2007. The latest figures represent a new record for the company and follow four straight years of continuous monthly growth in online circulation.
April also saw the group websites achieve a new high in terms of page views, registering 4.3 million in April, up from 4.1 million last year. However, this is still short of the company’s all-time record of 8.3 million page views, which was achieved in December 2007. The distribution between group sites remained constant with a roughly 50:50 balance between the English and German language pages.
On 1 May Birmingham-based tyre market analysts, Encircle Marketing, added an online tyre retailer price monitoring service to its portfolio. “We shall be continuously monitoring the prices quoted by centre Staff and those available online. Head to Head analysis of the traditional retail sector versus the developing online arena,” company representatives told Tyres & Accessories. Encircle Marketing currently collates over 8,000 telephone prices each month and will add to this an audit of over 3,000 online prices (each month).
Titan International reported “all-time record” first quarter sales of US$253.5 million, up 12 per cent period-to-period compared to 2007’s sales of $226.3 million. Gross profit for first quarter 2008 was $32.3 million, up 19 per cent versus the same period last year, while net income hit $8.1 million, up $10.6 million compared to 2007’s first quarter loss of $2.5 million.
“Titan’s first quarter reached record levels. The growth was spurred by the huge demand in the agricultural market,” said Chairman and CEO Morry Taylor “Increases in grain-based ethanol and soybean-based biofuel has increased commodity prices throughout the ag market.” Taylor said Titan is on schedule to start production of 57- and 63-inch OTR radials in July 2008. “Looking forward, production of these giant OTR tyres will build as equipment is brought online,” he said. “With the new capacity to produce giant OTR tyres and the continued demand in ag, Titan’s sales should remain strong.” (Tire Review/Akron)
Racing fans that spend more time in front of the computer screen than behind a windscreen can now participate in their own global race series. Yokohama has announced its partnership in the new Virtual World Touring Car Championship (V-WTCC), an online championship for motorsport enthusiasts.
V-WTCC, explains Yokohama, is an online version of ‘RACE 07 – The Official WTCC Game’. Participants from around the globe can demonstrate their skills, competing for the title of V-WTCC Champion. After successfully competing in the earlier knockout rounds, six lucky qualifiers will receive invitations to the Grande Finale, held at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza in Italy. The V-WTCC winner will make his or her way into the simulated racing history books and receive a yet-to-be revealed grand prize.
Pro-Align’s latest 20 page Products & Services brochure, featuring the company’s complete range of Wheel Alignment and Tyre Servicing equipment has been published in both print and virtual form (brochure, CD and Internet).
This comprehensive guide, brings together the Hunter and Pro-Align brands in an easy to view brochure. The equipment range is divided into sections; Wheel Aligners: – featuring the very latest technology with the New Hunter HawkEye imaging sensors; Balancers – includes Hunter’s Road Force Balancer which solves vibration problems that balancers alone can’t fix. This section also highlights the unique weight saving software – SmartWeight which is available on all models; Tyre Changers – Hunter Quality changers; Alignment Lifts – Scissor and Four post wheel alignment specific lifts.
The March 2008 Retreading Special, produced by Tyres & Accessories and German sister publication Neue ReifenZeitung, is now available for free download from our website. The handy pdf format electronic version of our popular supplement focuses upon the important players in the in the European and world markets, and the changes that affect everyone in the industry. Your electronic copy of the Retreading Special can be downloaded from here. Back issues can be found in the “Reports” section of the tyrepress.com website.
B&J Rocket’s unique Pro-Team online competition concludes in May at the ‘Reifen 2008’ trade fair. The campaign started mid-November and the growing image gallery of Retreading Pro Teams worldwide can be viewed in the competition pages under www.bj-rocket.com. In addition to the competition, B&J Rocket will be promoting its wide range of products on its show stand situated in hall 4-308.
MAM Software, a leading UK provider of aftermarket IT solutions, announced on March 28 that three aftermarket automotive suppliers – Pearl Automotive, Solid Auto (UK) Ltd and Sovereign Rotating Machines are installing MAM’s Autonet B2B Seller electronic trading solution to power their e-commerce initiatives. Their participation takes the total number of suppliers Autonet-enabled to almost 70.
Autonet B2B Seller will integrate with each supplier’s existing MAM Autopart systems and allow them to trade electronically with their individual motor factor customers. Autonet B2B Seller is fully compliant with the recently announced PACT protocols and will, says MAM, allow communication with most systems currently used by motor factors, including MAM’s own Autopart.
Since the start of the first ever Bike Tyre Safety Month, which extends throughout the month of March, TyreSafe has witnessed a surge in the popularity of its “Motorcycle Tyres and Your Safety” leaflet, one of several information guides on tyre safety downloadable from the TyreSafe website. In February alone, there were nearly 2,000 downloads, highlighting the fact that the TyreSafe online portal, launched in January 2007, has now become an importance resource for the motoring and motorcycling public.
The motorcycle tyre safety leaflet provides essential information to bikers on the different types of motorcycle tyres which are fitted by manufacturers, how to interpret the information on the sidewall of a tyre, and the importance of running with the correct tread depth and pressures. After all, only two very small contact patches connect the rider with the road, therefore maintaining tyres in good condition and using the correct levels of tyre pressure is critical to safety. Furthermore, TyreSafe also warns motorcyclists that in certain European countries it is illegal to use replacement tyres which differ in certain respects from those fitted originally by the vehicle manufacturer.
Last year Kwik-Fit expanded its range of services through the introduction of MoT testing, and in September the company launched its new-look website. These two customer services have been combined to create a further customer-friendly offering – on March 6 Kwik-Fit announced that customers can now arrange their MoT inspections online through its kwik-fit.com website.
The addition of an online MoT booking facility means that customers now have a 24/7 means of arranging an MoT inspection at any one of the 250 Kwik-Fit centres in the UK offering this service, and the company anticipates its online booking service will be highly popular. Kwik-Fit expects a third of all MoT appointments to be booked this way in 2008. The cost of an online booked MoT inspection is £39.95, which Kwik-Fit points out is 20 per cent below the recommended Vosa price.
Online tyre retailer Blackcircles.com has launched a website aimed at German consumers called Meinreifen.de. “The decision to enter the German market was very much driven by what we were seeing amongst competitors who are growing on the back of offering customers an inferior deal,” an official statement read. Naming the site mein reifen (literally my tyres in English) together with company’s comments about its competitors offering an “inferior deal” appears to be a direct attack on German company Delticom AG, which trades as mytyres.co.uk in Britain. While both companies trade online they follow quite different business models so could we be witnessing the start of an online tyre war?
Kwik-Fit Fleet has extended its business partnership with leasing and fleet management company Fleet Hire into a fifth year with the signing of a new 12-month solus preferred agreement. The Solihull-based company operates a fleet of almost 6,000 vehicles and now uses Kwik-Fit Fleet for the supply of virtually all fast-fit related services, from traditional tyre repair and replacement utilising Kwik-Fit’s High Street centre network and 200 Mobile units to brake, exhaust and battery services.
To mark the forthcoming 2008 F1 season, Autogem will be hosting a series of online Playstation 3 (PS3) races for its customers, staff and suppliers. The idea is to host an ongoing competition that replications the season’s tour of real-life F1 circuits in the virtual world. Autogem is offering prizes for the 2008 championship, which is totally free of charge.
As Autogem’s managing partner Prashant Chopra explained: “We already have a select number of colleagues and friends within the industry that go absolutely bananas racing so we thought we’d put together a championship of our own and have some fun. Each race will coincide with actual races in the season and we already have a good online turnout. With prizes on offer and bragging rights to win for, come online and see if youre really as good as you think you are!”
Serbia banned used tyre imports on 1 February, apparently due to “environmental concerns,” Environmental Protection Ministry officials stated. Online news reports quote tyre producers as saying that they would ask for licences to continue to import used tyres, because they are needed as a basis for making their own products. According to the reports, tyre imports have steadily decreased over the years and the minimal amount used for production purposes is disposed of according to all ecological standards.
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