Known for its style, speed and performance marketing values, Pirelli & C. S.p.A. is a multinational company based in Milan, Italy, listed on the Milan Stock Exchange since 1922, with a temporary privatization period by the consortium led by the Chinese state-owned enterprise ChemChina.
Pirelli has appointed Paolo Ferrari as chairman and chief executive officer of Pirelli’s NAFTA region. He will be tasked with driving the group’s growth and further strengthening its commitment to its US, Canadian and Mexican operations, according to a Pirelli statement. Matteo Battaini will focus on the role of NAFTA region chief operations officer.
Pirelli has announced the first three P Zero slick compound allocations to be taken to the opening Grands Prix of the 2012 Formula One World Championship season. In Australia and China teams will receive the P Zero White medium and the P Zero Yellow soft compounds. The P Zero Silver hard and the P Zero White medium tyre have been nominated for Malaysia.
Pirelli’s new Diablo Supercorsa SP (Sport Production) will be fitted to Ducati’s 195hp 1199 Panigale in 120/70 ZR17 (front) and the new 200/55 ZR17 rear size. Pirelli says the tyre’s SC – “Special Compound” – version will be used by Superstock 1000 FIM Cup riders this season. The announcement was made at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi, the scene of the company’s recent 2012 season Formula One tyre launch.
AM Bromley Limited has launched new products intended to keep large off-road vehicles on the go for longer. TMS Log Graph is an analytical tool to be used in conjunction with its existing tyre pressure system, which features improved sensors.
According to news published by Autosport.com, Pirelli may not be far from closing a deal that will provide it with a new Formula 1 test car. The tyre maker has been without its own test vehicle since the end of last year as the modified 2009 Toyota used in preparation for its F1 comeback is now a museum piece, its technology deemed too outdated to provide Pirelli with good data.
Micheldever Tyre Services distributed in excess of 800,000 4×4 tyres in the UK tyre market in 2011, especially through its Southam division which has a history specialising in the 4×4 sector. According to the company, this makes Southam “probably the largest distributor of 4×4 tyres in Europe.”
Looking forward into 2012, company representatives warn that major changes face the 4×4 market, particularly in the off-road sector, where traditional all-terrain and mud-terrain patterns are being forced to change in the face of increasingly tough noise regulations. And with tyre labelling being rolled out from June this year, followed by mandatory implementation in November before the rules are upgrade a few years later, this trend is set to continue.
With impeccable timing during the current cold snap, Pirelli and the Mercedes-Benz Driving Academy have got together to help learner drivers become more aware of the risks of hazardous driving conditions.
Pirelli has supplied the Mercedes-Benz Driving Academy’s fleet of A-Class cars with Pirelli Cold Weather tyres to help raise awareness of the importance of preparing your vehicle before the onset of wintery road conditions.
Ugo Forner, senior vice president of Pirelli’s truck business unit, shares an insight into a sector of the world’s fifth largest tyre maker that is sometimes concealed in the shadow of the company’s sporting ambitions (such as Formula 1) and its positioning as a leading high performance passenger car tyre brand. This sector is of course commercial vehicle tyres, a business in which Pirelli has a presence in many markets around the world, including South America, where it is market leader; indeed, the region is considered the company’s “cash cow”.
This week, as the 2012 Formula One season gets under way at Jerez in Spain, F1 teams will have their first chance to sample the definitive specification of Pirelli’s latest tyres. During the four-day test at the Andalusian circuit between 7 and 10 February, each car will have 25 sets of Pirelli’s new soft, medium and hard compounds available, along with wet tyres if needed. Teams are allowed a maximum of 100 sets of tyres per car each year for testing purposes, and they are permitted to choose the compounds they would like to test within their allowance. Not a single team nominated the supersoft compound – the only one to remain unchanged from 2011 – for Jerez.
The latest new motorcycle and scooter figures show sales overall were up 6.3 per cent compared with January 2011. Under 50cc scooter sales were up 1.3 per cent in January, while over 50cc motorcycle sales increased 7.4 per cent.
Starting in 2013 Pirelli will supply World Superbike Series (WSBK) riders and teams with 17-inch racing tyres instead of the previously used 16.5-inch rubber. This decision prompted Tyres & Accessories to ask Pirelli racing director Georgio Barbier what led to this “important step”, as Pirelli itself describes it, and how it can benefit the average rider. Unsurprisingly, Barbier retained a professional silence regarding the costs involved in Pirelli’s role as Superbike tyre supplier and how this compares to its Formula 1 commitment. The same applies to questioning on whether the planned switch to 17-inch tyres in 2013 is a sign of Pirelli’s intention to seek a continuation of its WSBK tyre supply beyond 2015.
Pirelli has extended its Cyber Tyre technology to the commercial vehicle sector through the introduction of Cyber Fleet, an ‘intelligent’ tyre that uses an electronic sensor and computer system to provide drivers and fleet managers with up-to-the-minute data regarding the tyre’s condition and the vehicle’s geographical position. The new product was unveiled at the manufacturer’s recent Truck Safety Day in Italy.
During a special meeting held on 31 January, the holders of Pirelli & C. SpA savings shares nominated Professor Giuseppe Niccolini as their common representative for the years 2012, 2013 and 2014. He will replace Giovanni Pecorella, whom Pirelli wishes to thank for his service.
After two successive cold winters (2009 and 2010) a lot was hanging on a frosty conclusion to 2011. While only five years ago winter tyre sales barely registered at less than 1 per cent UK market share, by the end of the opening months of 2011 various sources were reporting that the market had swollen to around 450,000 units, doubling and even tripling some wholesalers’ stock forecasts.
Research conducted by Encircle Marketing reveals that Pirelli was the most recommended tyre brand in the UK during 2011, the second year running for the Italian-based manufacturer. The analysis, which continuously monitors brand recommendations in the market, found that Pirelli came top with 6.7 per cent of all recommendations.
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