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Shuttle Tyres Up For Loan

Stories about tyres that travel 100,000 miles are much less of a novelty, but its not very often you come across a set that have been 5.3 million miles. The products in question are retired rubber from the Space Shuttle discovery which, NASA announced last week, would be rolled out as the pilot for a new artefact loan program targeted at museums.

OK so while saying that the tyres lasted 5.3 million miles is, quite literally, an astronomical claim, the performance characteristics of these products should not be underestimated. According to news sources, just one of Discovery’s main gear tyre can carry three times the load of a Boeing 747 tyre or 40 race cars – all hitting the pavement at 250 miles per hour. When you consider that to qualify for a three-year renewable loan, organisations need only insure the tyres for a retail value set by NASA of $250 per tyre, they really do appear to be quite a bargain.

14th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

BIPAVER Meeting to Take Place During Reifen Show

The pan-European organisation representing retreading manufacturers, BIPAVER, is to hold its annual general assembly meeting concurrent to May’s Reifen show in Essen, Germany. The meeting will take place between 10.00am and 12.30pm on Wednesday, May 21 at the exhibition site’s Congress Centre South, Room L.

A key event of the general assembly will be the election of BIPAVER officers. It is expected that the candidate for the 2008/2009 president, Mr. Brenno Benalglia from Italy’s AIRP, will be elected to the position. Outgoing president, Mr. Peter Hülzer, from Germany’s BRV, will according to the BIPAVER charter assume the position of vice-president. Jan Driessen, from the Netherlands, is the candidate for the other vice-president position. Incumbent vice-president, Bandvulc’s Richard O’Connell, will resign from his position.

14th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Superior Industries’ Net Income Increased in Q1

Supplier of OE alloy wheels, Superior Industries International, have announced a decrease in net sales for the quarter period to March 31, 2008, but despite this a marked increase in net income. Net income, at US$3.71 million, delivered a result of $0.12 per diluted share compared to net income of $0.08 per diluted share for the first quarter of 2007. Commenting on these results, company chairman and CEO Steven Borick said: “The benefits of our hard work these past few years to optimise our manufacturing performance have continued into 2008. Reflecting our continued progress in improving production efficiencies in our plants, we delivered sharply higher gross margin for this year’s first quarter versus the prior year despite the impact of the American Axle strike on our shipments to GM.”

14th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

GEA Appoints New President

The Garage Equipment Association has elected Gary Shepherd as its new president. The association’s new head also recently announced that the organisation plans to start training and assessing Vehicle Lift Engineers. Speaking at the GEA annual dinner, Shepherd said: “The scheme will be designed to ensure high standards of safe, efficient and effective lift installation and maintenance across the UK. Engineers will be trained and then assessed at the GEA offices in Daventry, only those achieving above 80 per cent during the final assessment will become GEA accredited.”

14th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Nexen Adds New UHP Sizes in US

Nexen Tire is releasing 9 new sizes to its UHP lineup in the company’s N7000 and N3000 treads.

The new sizes are as follows:

N7000
275/30ZR20
275/35ZR20
255/30ZR24

N3000
225/30ZR20
275/30ZR20
285/30ZR20
245/40ZR20
255/30ZR24
275/25ZR24

14th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Further Price Rises for Sumitomo Group Tyres Announced

SRI Tire Trading, the tyre exporting company belonging to the Sumitomo Rubber Group, is to increase the export prices of its Dunlop, Falken and Sumitomo brand passenger car, light truck, truck and bus and motorcycle tyres in Europe, North and South America, Asia and the Pacific, Africa and the Middle East. Increases will be implemented gradually from July onwards, and will range between 5 and 15 per cent, depending on tyre type, size and market. The company, however, reports that most increases will be in the vicinity of 5 to 10 per cent.

The increases are due to, SRI adds, surging raw material prices, including those for rubber and crude oil. The company says the level of these increases since last year is now to great for it to absorb internally, and thus it must introduce this, its second price increase this year – a 3 to 7 per cent price rise was also announced in the first half of the year.

14th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Accuride Posts Quarter Loss Results

Components manufacturer Accuride reports that in the quarter to March 31, 2008 the company achieved sales of US$238.2 million, a decrease of 26.2 per cent on the same quarter a year earlier. This decline in net sales, says the company, reflects a 33 per cent decline in North American Class 8 production and a $24 million reduction due to products re-sourced by a light vehicle customer during 2007.

A net loss of $11.7 million was reported for the first quarter of 2008, compared to a loss of $1.9 million in the corresponding quarter of 2007. Adjusted EBIDTA was $18.5 million, compared to adjusted EBIDTA of $49.2 million a year earlier.

14th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Half of Tyrexpo Asia’09 Stand Space Already Sold

Exhibitors have snapped up more 50 per cent of the floor space at next year’s Tyrexpo Asia show despite there being 11 months to go before the event opens its doors at the Singapore Expo Centre, between 24-26 March 2009. As well as the early commitment to taking space, ECI also report that companies are generally taking larger stands to promote their products and services than at previous shows.

According to organisers ECI International, the strong demand for space has justified the decision to bring the show forward from its traditional scheduling in September. Sales director Rowena Suthers said: “We have been delighted by the response which has already seen dozens of companies commit themselves to the event. We brought the show forward by six months to create more space in the calendar for our exhibitors and the reaction so far has backed this decision decisively.”

14th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

CE Marking to Disappear from Pirelli’s NA Motorcycle Tyres

Motorcycle radials sold by Pirelli in the North American replacement market will, from May 2008 onwards, be manufactured bearing solely the markings required by local legislation, including the DOT markings. Pirelli reports this change is taking place for logistics reasons. Pirelli’s North American market motorcycle tyres will no longer be marked with the European CE sign.

This change, said Pirelli, is intended to protect the consumer, and the company comments that all tyres supplied to any market must be purchased only through the legitimate distribution network.

14th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Pirelli Quarter Results Show Net Income Rise

Pirelli & C. Spa reports that its Pirelli Tyre operation “substantially held its position in an unfavourable quarter for the world car market” during the first quarter of the 2008 financial year. Results for the quarter ended March 31, 2008 also reflected the company’s decision to further focus upon core businesses, including the repurchase of the 38.9 per cent share in Pirelli Tyre held by shareholders in Speed SpA since August 2006.

Group revenues for the quarter amounted to 1.31 billion euros, up 2.1 per cent on the first quarter of 2007, at constant exchange rates and net of the effect of sales relating to deconsolidation of the real estate assets of DGAG. Taking into account the effect of DGAG, sales as of 31 March 2007 amounted to 1.81 billion euros. EBIT, at 114.6 million euros, was substantially in line with the figure in the first quarter of 2007 (117.5 million euros), net of the result linked to the temporary consolidation of DGAG that had characterised the previous year period. Taking into account the effect of DGAG, EBIT as of 31 March 2007 amounted to 129.5 million euros.

13th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Hayes Lemmerz to Close US Aluminium Wheel Facility

On May 12 Hayes Lemmerz International announced the planned closure of its aluminium wheel manufacturing facility in Gainesville, Georgia (USA) by the end of this year. The company has taken the decision to close the factory due to global overcapacity in the light vehicle aluminium wheel market and the increasing level of aluminium wheel imports coming into North America from countries with lower production costs. The company says the closure announcement reflects its overall strategy to continue to focus its business on the “right products in the right geographic regions”.

The Gainesville facility, which has been producing wheels since July 1994, employs approximately 290 people. Employees were advised of the closure during a meeting at the facility. A portion of the production currently at Gainesville will be moved to the Hayes Lemmerz aluminium wheel facility in Mexico.

13th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Cooper Drops Starfire Brand in North America

Cooper Tire & Rubber has reportedly ceased production of its Starfire associate tyre range in North America, and the company may further reduce the number of brands it sells. Manufacture of Starfire tyres ended last year and, as inventories are now mostly depleted, Cooper has begun recommending ‘suitable alternatives’ for dealers that formerly sold the brand.

Cooper launched the Starfire brand in 1994 to fit between the Cooper and Mastercraft brands, and the range was produced in sizes for passenger cars, SUVs and light trucks. The range continues to be sold in Asia.

13th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Alliance to Present Recovered Carbon Black at Bridgestone TC

Alliance Recovery Corporation has announced that company representatives have been invited to attend the Bridgestone Firestone US Technical Center in Akron, Ohio to present merits of their carbon black products. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss the use of Alliance carbon black in Bridgestone Firestone rubber formulations. The proposed meeting is scheduled to take place in late May 2008.

Alliance’s carbon black is produced as a by product of the thermal chemical process utilized to recover the fuel oil resource in scrap rubber that will be subsequently used to make electricity at Alliance installations. Alliance are presenting themselves as the green option in comparison to conventional carbon black production that uses large quantities of virgin fossil fuels. “We expect that each Alliance installation will be capable of producing approximately 15 Million pounds of carbon black annually as a byproduct. Commercial grades of carbon black that Alliance can produce are currently sold in the range of $.55/ pound to $.70/ pound. European market prices are significantly higher,” company representatives explained in a statement.

13th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Solideal Introduces Steel Surcharge

Solideal has announced that it is to introduce a steel charge on all wheels and assemblies, effective 15 May 2008. According to an official statement on the matter, the action is “strictly due to the hyper-inflation in steel prices. The surcharge will be evaluated monthly and will begin at the rate of US$0.49/kg.” Solideal CEO, Cesar Clemente, explained: “As commodity prices are increasing so dramatically, we have absolutely no choice but to make this move.” The company is also planning to announce a general price increase on tyres and wheels in June.

12th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Additional Hero Atlanta AR01 Sizes

Hero has extended the size range it offers for its Atlanta AR01 tyre line. The company announced five new sizes including 14 and 17-inch fitments and T to W speed ratings. The new sizes are: 175/70R14, 195/65R15, 205/65R16, 215/60R16 and 215/55ZR17. The line up will be introduced to a greater breadth of fitments at later stage. The Hero Atlanta line already covers a range of sizes for wheel diameters of 13 to 17 inches and aspect ratios from 70 series down to 55 series – 28 sizes in total.

12th May 2008/by Tyrepress Editors