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Bridgestone Sued in Australia for Tyre Injury

An Australian man has sued Bridgestone Tyres for more than AU$400,000 (£194,000) following two workplace injuries. Former forklift driver Brett Suna, employed at premises operated by the company in suburban Brisbane, was injured in July 2002 whilst trying to manually lift a 40-kilogram truck tyre from a raised cage. It is said Mr. Suna fell backwards and the tyre dropped onto his head. A year later he was again injured, his arm wrenched while attempting to retrieve a tyre for a customer. Doctors report that the impact of the tyre dislodged a disc in Suna’s back, causing him recurring pain, restricting his movements and limiting his future job prospects.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

First Michelin Tyre Shop in East Malaysia Opens

Fei Yue Tyres Service Centre, the first Michelin Tyre agent in East Malaysia, has opened today (Thursday 12 June 2008), according to the Borneo Post. Deputy chairman of Sibu Municipal Council, Daniel Ngieng; Michelin Malaysia Sdn Bhd managing director Yves Pouliquen; and Michelin national sales manager of Malaysia Phillippe Chul were in attendance.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Kumho, BFGoodrich Joint Winners of 4×4 Magazine Ultimate Tyre Test

The Kumho Road Venture MT KL71 and BFGoodrich Mud-Terrain T/A have been named joint winners of 4×4 Magazine’s ‘ultimate tyre test’. In conducting the test, in which 4×4 Magazine aimed to discover the UK’s best mud terrain tyre, the tyres were reportedly subjected to the key obstacles and conditions encountered throughout the country. Size 235/85 R16 tyres from eight manufacturers were in turn fitted to a 2007 Land Rover Defender 110 and subjected to six challenging real world tests – mud climb, bog run, side slope, rock crawl, gravel and tarmac braking – at a venue in South Wales.

The Kumho and BFGoodrich products finished the test eight points ahead of their nearest rivals, the Goodyear Wrangler M/T and Maxxis Mudder Buckshot. The magazine found the Kumho KL71 radically different in appearance from all its competitors and, in fact, to be the best looking as well as the joint best performer. The Kumho was awarded top marks on the rock crawl and gravel braking tests and performed with credit on the mud climb and bog run. The BFGoodrich tyre, said 4×4 Magazine, is an item considered by some to be the original and best mud terrain tyre. “Slippery mud and dangerous grass were its key strengths, with both obstacles proving no problem for the traditional American,” reported the magazine.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Smithers Group Appoints Leadership Team

Akron, Ohio-based The Smithers Group has announced its leadership team for its newly amalgamated unit, reorganised from the previously separate organisations Smithers Scientific Services and Smithers Rapra.

Jim Dowey, previously vice president and managing director of Shropshire-based Smithers Rapra, is now the president of the division, while Jay Lutz – for two years the leader of Smithers Scientific Services – remains vice president and chief operating officer of the company. Former director of sales and technical consultancy for Smithers Rapra Michael Day has been promoted to managing director, leading testing, consultancy and processing activities in Shropshire, and Carole Lee, the former director of Smithers Rapra Information Products Group, has become managing director of the group. Having spent nearly 30 years with Smithers Rapra, she has lead the information group since 2000, overseeing the group’s implementation of many global growth and diversification initiatives.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin X-Crane Tyres Now Capable of 50mph

Michelin’s latest X-Crane tyres now offer an ‘F’ speed rating (50mph) in place of the previous ‘E’ rating (43mph). The move follows technical approval from the European Tyre and Rim Technical Organisation (ETRTO) under recommendation to the Department for Transport, which has granted authorisation for ‘F’ rated tyres with the same load/speed chart used for tyres with an ‘E’ speed index. It also states that for speeds below 40mph, a formal tyre manufacturer agreement is required.

The ‘F’ rated Michelin X-Crane tyres were launched in response to requests from crane manufacturers for a tyre which could meet the high performance of the latest generation cranes, which are capable of speeds in excess of 50mph. Furthermore, legislation announced at the end of 2004 governing the use of mobile cranes on a public highway changed, with a series of new weight and speed restrictions being introduced.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

New BFGoodrich Long Trail T/ATOUR

BFGoodrich has launched the new Long Trail T/ATOUR 4×4 tyre, which is designed for mainly road use and occasional off-road use. The new Long Trail T/ATOUR is designed to offer high levels of safety through its braking performance and road holding on dry, wet and loose surfaces. According to the company, the tyre is also one decibel quieter than its predecessor – something that is particularly important for road-going 4x4s.

The new tread pattern’s wet grip performance is provided by a combination of four longitudinal grooves to clear standing water, and heavy siping to grip wet and damp surfaces. Dry road performance is enhanced by a central rib in the tread that is made rigid by tie-bars. The combination of on and off-road performance comes thanks to staggered shoulder blocks, which are designed to give traction on loose surfaces including grass, mud and sand.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Hankook Introduces AW01 All Position Winter Tyre

Hankook has applied the company’s SCCT (Stiffness Control Contour Theory) design technology to its latest range of cold weather commercial vehicle tyres. The new line-up, named the AW01, is a studless all position product that Hankook reports offers excellent traction and powerful grip capabilities on snowy and icy roads.

Featuring a wide tread and block shaped tread elements intended to enhance traction, Hankook adds the AW01 uses its optimised design to ensure more stable driving under snowy road conditions, and lateral wavy sides provide grip performance throughout the life of the tyre. The AW01 also features a stepped shoulder rib, designed to deliver confident steering performance in winter.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Holiday Competition for Viking and Barum Dealers

Viking International is offering Viking and Barum brand tyre dealers the chance to win a holiday in exciting destinations such as Rome, Nice or Amsterdam. Two dealers for each brand can win £500 worth of holiday vouchers towards a short break to a destination of their choice as a reward for increased tyre sales. Dealers have been automatically entered into the promotions which are currently running from 2nd June until 25th July.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

RPG Investing in CEAT, Philips Carbon Black

India’s RPG group recently outlined plans to invest Rs 30 billion (£357 million) in its tyre and carbon black subsidiaries over the next two years. In late May company chairman Rama Prasad Goenka told media that this investment was part of the group’s expansion programme, and that from the disclosed total, Rs 20 billion would be directed towards the Ceat Tyres operation and Rs 10 billion to Philips Carbon Black.

The investment was necessary if the company was to remain competitive following the government’s liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation policies, he said. The group was, he added, aiming to increase productivity, quality and facilities to workers by the expansion.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Pirelli Sponsors ‘Blade Runner’ Oscar Pistorius

The Pirelli Group communicates has sealed a sponsorship deal with South African athlete Oscar Pistorius. Pirelli Chairman Marco Tronchetti Provera described Pistorius as: “An extraordinary person. We are happy to be able to give him our support. For Pirelli, he could represent our new Carl Lewis; his story witnesses to the fact that will, passion and technology can vanquish any obstacles, improving the lives of many.”

“Pirelli” – added Oscar Pistorius – “is a great company and an important brand. This agreement is another sign, after winning my case to have the chance to participate in the Olympics, that barriers are in the eyes of the beholder, of those who believe them to be barriers. It would be a dream come true for me to be a testimonial like Carl Lewis.”

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Company Fined £63,000 for Illegally Keeping Waste Tyres

On 5 June 2006, Eurowaste Recycling Plc was convicted and sentenced in absence at Rugby Magistrates’ Court for keeping waste tyres without the correct documentation, failing to supply waste transfer notes and failing to remove waste. The charges were brought by the Environment Agency under the Environmental Protection Act. Eurowaste Recycling Plc was fined £63,000, ordered to pay costs of £7890.85 and compensation of £3516.00 for unpaid licence fees.

Michael Robinson, representing the Environment Agency, told the court that in the summer of 2006, Eurowaste Recycling Plc entered into an agreement with Fraser Evans and Sons Ltd for shredded tyres to be supplied to Eurowaste Recycling Plc’s site at Long Marston Airfield in Stratford-upon-Avon. Environment Agency officers visited the site in September 2006 and October 2006 and saw that significant amounts of waste in the form of shredded tyres had been deposited. Further investigation revealed that over 1300 tonnes of shredded tyres had been deposited at the site from June 2006 to September 2006.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

980 Tyres in 8 Days – Dunlop Prepared for Le Mans

A fifth of the vehicles starting at the 24 Hours of Le Mans on June 14 are not running on rubber supplied by a certain French manufacturer – these eleven vehicles will instead have their tyres supplied by Dunlop, a company that some would be surprised to learn had driven more cars to Le Mans victory than any other make of tyre. Since 1923 Dunlop tyres have helped to deliver a total of 34 wins during the famous endurance race.

From the moment the test session began at Le Mans on June 1, Dunlop’s engineers and technicians started gathering information and making decisions on which tyres to make for the race. The recent wet weather has meant the tyre development programme was not as decisive as Dunlop had hoped, but from early on the morning of June 9 the factory began work to produce an extra 980 of the best performing tyres, in addition to the 3000 already built for Dunlop’s eleven teams. The turnaround for these tyres, including different compounds and for both wet and dry conditions, was just eight days before the trucks left Fort Dunlop in Birmingham for the journey to Le Mans. The company’s 14 tyre fitters left with the trucks and were joined by the rest of the team over the following two days.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Explosion at Goodyear Chemical Plant

The Goodyear Chemical plant in Houston, Texas, was evacuated after a heat exchanger exploded. One person was reportedly killed and six injured in the blast, which took place at 7:30 on Wednesday 11 June, after inhaling ammonia, which was being used as refrigerant to cool the exploded heat exchanger. However, company officials report that the rest of the roughly 250 employees were back on-site by 11:00. The Goodyear Chemical plant in Southeast Houston, Texas makes synthetic rubber and the blast occurred in a heat exchanger, an official said. A Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company spokesman said that an investigation into the cause of the explosion has already begun.

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

NGK Adds Spark Plug Plant in US

NGK Spark Plugs (U.S.A.) Inc. opened its third U.S. manufacturing facility, located on located near Charleston, West Virginia. The 85,000-square-foot plant has a total capacity of 20 million spark plugs per year for the US OE and replacement markets. NGK also has plants in Chicago and Irvine, California.

Shinichi Odo, president and CEO of NGK Spark Plugs (U.S.A.), said the plant will further strengthen NGK’s global network and better position the company to service its North American manufacturing customers. (Tire Review/Akron)

12th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

MAK Launches New Wheels

Italian wheel manufacturer MAK used the Essen show to launch a number of new additions to its product range.

The first of these is the Corsa, designed with young customers in mind, hence its sporty appearance and attractive price/quality ratio. The wheel’s 20 spokes give the Corsa a light and modern look; the spokes are slim and tapered and the wheel is presented in a finish known as Ice Titan – dark grey for the rims, high sheen diamond for the spokes.

The Corsa is available for four and five stud fitments, maximising the number of 15″ and above fitments for which the wheel is suitable. It comes in four sizes: 6.5J15″, 7J16″, 7J17″ and 8J17″.

New wheel number two is the MAK Veloce – the name means ‘fast’ – and it boasts a stylish, 10 coupled spoke design with a “satin” finish. The spokes curve slightly and the design of the wheel is graceful and open.

11th June 2008/by Tyrepress Editors