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Bridgestone Metalpha U.S.A., Inc. (BMU), a subsidiary of Bridgestone Americas Holding, Inc., announced on August 11 that Donna Bright has been promoted to plant manager of the BMU radial steel cord manufacturing facility in Clarksville, Tennessee. With the promotion, effective August 16, Bright becomes the first female plant manager at any Bridgestone Americas facility.
Continental AG’s management is struggling to find a majority willing to back its anti-takeover strategy on the group’s supervisory board. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung confirmed earlier reports that supervisory board head Hubertus von Gruenberg sees a merger with Schaeffler as beneficial and therefore is skeptical about getting involved in a drawn out battle with the takeover aggressor. Hans-Olaf Henkel and Michael Frenzel, CEO of TUI AG. are also believed to back negotiations with Schaeffler, the paper added. However, supervisory board members Diethard Breipohl and Fred Steingraber are said to be sticking to their guns with a view to eventually forcing Schaeffler to increase its bid, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported.
The sportiest version of Renault’s Mégane yet manufactured, the Mégane Renaultsport R26.R, is to feature Toyo tyres as an OE option. The performance hatchback, which had its public debut at the British International Motor Show, will be made available from October in a limited edition restricted to just 450 vehicles, and each will be fitted with Toyo Proxes R88 tyres. The tyres are an option on the Mégane R26.R in conjunction with a roll cage for those who want to use the car on track, replacing the Michelin Pilot Sport 2 tyres in size 225/40R18 otherwise supplied with the car. As the car is a lightweight circuit special with a notable performance to price ratio, the roll cage and track tyre combination is anticipated to be a popular option.
The International Rubber Study Group (IRSG) is to stage its next World Rubber Summit alongside TyrexpoAsia09. The news means delegates, speakers and exhibitors from both events can take advantage of the enormous networking and information sharing opportunities provided. Making the announcement, Dr Hidde Smit, the IRSG’s secretary-general, said: “Joining forces with TyrexpoAsia is a perfect opportunity for us to add real value to our World Rubber Summit in Singapore. I know this will be welcomed by the hundreds of delegates, speakers and high profile figures from the global rubber industries who will be in Singapore next March.
The United Steelworkers (USW) union has voiced its approval for a labour agreement signed between Firestone and rubber workers in Liberia. Under the terms of this agreement, says the USW, workers at one of the world’s largest rubber plantations will receive wage increases, an improvement in work conditions and upgraded housing and educational facilities.
Prestivo, Stapleton’s own brand range of tyres, plays a leading role in the UK private brand segment, according company representatives. Positioned as a quality mid-range tyre, Prestivo is said to offer high performance characteristics and comes in two tread patterns, Prestivo 2000 and Prestivo Sport.
The Prestivo 2000 range offers 35 tyre sizes and the Sport range is available in 21. Both ranges are available exclusively to members of Stapleton’s Prestivo Partners scheme which ensures all retailers receive the backing and support they need to maximise sales of Prestivo Tyres. The scheme offers exclusivity, attractive rebates, branded clothing, in-store support including posters, POS materials and other branded support items.
On 1 October 2008 Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. will increase consumer (passenger and light truck) and commercial (truck and OTR) tyre products by up to 10 per cent. “The cost of raw materials, energy, and transportation continues to rise at a steep rate, making it necessary for us to increase our prices,” said Steve Weinger, senior vice president, sales & marketing, Toyo Tire USA Corp.
Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association (MEMA) has weighed in on NHTSA product marking recommendations for imported vehicles and vehicle part. The group’s input came in response to NHTSA’s request for comments its proposed regulations. Various MEMA sub-groups – including the Heavy Duty Manufacturers Association and the Automotive Aftermarket Suppliers Association – participated.
MEMA said that NHTSA’s product marking recommendations “go beyond just the ‘country of origin’ mark by adding the following: manufacturer name or trademark; date or date range of manufacture; and, any marking requirements from an industry standard or recommended practice.
It is with deep regret that Irish based tyre distributor Again & Again has announced the death of Founder Director Tom Tierney. Tom, 72, formed Again & Again over 25 years ago with his son John, and from very modest premises in Cavan led the business through a steady growth pattern to its present position as one of Ireland’s leading independent tyre distributors. Today Again & Again offers a professional service in both multi- A brands and other quality PCR tyres, along with Aris tubes, to the Irish market.
Jules Bianchi stormed to the top of the podium at Zolder yesterday in the RTL GP Masters of Formula 3, heading an ART Grand Prix trio and overcoming pole-positioned team-mate Nico Hlkenberg, who was defending the title he won last year. Following torrential rain 36 competitors from 18 countries took to the track on Kumho’s ECSTA wet tyres for 28 challenging laps. This was the 18th running of the event, which invites the top-ranked participants in the F3 Euro Series and the British F3 Championship.
Joseph Rosen has been named president and chairman of Goodyear Dunlop Tires North America Ltd. In his new role, Rosen will be in charge of the joint venture that was formed in 1999 between Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., and Sumitomo Rubber Industries. The venture employs 1,350 workers at its tyre manufacturing facility in Tonawanda, New York and its corporate headquarters in West Amherst, New York.
As report suggest investment banks have walk away from rescuing Continental AG from the Schaeffler Group’s hostile takeover, Reuters that the ball bearing maker has successfully arranged a 16.1 billion euro loan. Schaeffler is reportedly “very satisfied” with a bank meeting on the subject of raising the enormous loan. The sources said about 20 banks participated in the meeting.
Continental is considering the option of purchasing a peer company as part of its defence against the Schaeffler Group’s 11.3 billion acquisition bid, according to information published in the Financial Times on August 9. The newspaper quoted sources close to the situation as saying Conti was engaging in “concrete talks” with several listed and unlisted international rivals about a possible multi-billion-euro deal, however Conti has not commented on the validity of this news.
The report said any deal, which would be structured as an all-share bid, would most likely be funded via a capital increase of about 20 per cent, which would be worth more than 2 billion euros. The move would have the dual effect of strengthening Continental’s position, while simultaneously diluting the the value of Schaeffler’s stake. Schaeffler has previously warned Continental not to resist its bid by means of a large capital increase.
How much of the car parc is running on misaligned wheels? A new initiative (‘Alignment Data Collection Day’) led by Pro-Align, the UK’s leading four wheel alignment specialists, is seeking to answer this question. Those involved in wheel alignment claim to have a good idea already, but there is a distinct lack of accurate and current data, which is what led to the research being conducted. The statistics are being collated and will be published on the Pro-Align website from the 1 September.
The key is to ensure a random sample of cars is selected in measured. The easiest option for Pro-Align would have been to ask their Hunter equipment users to supply the data about the motorists who came to them for alignments. However, it was felt these results may not be representative as the car drivers tend to go to an alignment centre because they suspect a problem.
The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., has reported a 1.3 per cent increase in net sales, to 123.1 billion yen (£582.1 million), in the three months ended June 30, the first quarter of the 2009 fiscal year. This result came on the back of, the company explained, continuing Tire Group expansion that more than offset lower sales in the Multiple Business Group. Within Yokohama’s tyre business, sales increased most markedly in the Japanese OE market and for replacement market sales in emerging economies and natural resource exporting nations, including Russia, Latin America and the Middle East. Sales within the tyre business increased 2.5 per cent to 92.95 billion yen (£439.4 million).
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