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Maxxis International will sponsor the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees throughout the 2009 season. Maxxis’ signage will be displayed behind home plate for half an inning during every other home game at both Dodger Stadium and U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago. Signage will also be placed at new Yankee Stadium. (Tire Review/Akron)
Yokohama Rubber has released its results for the first three quarters of the current financial year, and the company has joined the growing list of firms whose income has been severely curtailed in recent months. Operating income to December 31, 2008 declined 43.8 per cent from the same period of the previous year, to 17.3 billion yen (£134.19 million), on a 0.2 per cent increase in net sales, to 410.6 billion yen (£3.18 billion). Net income declined a whopping 99.1 per cent, to 222 million yen (£1.72 million).
Sales growth in Yokohama’s Tire Group offset a decline in the Multiple (diversified) Business Group, the company reports. Operating profitability suffered from the rise in raw material costs during most of the nine-month period, from the appreciation of the yen, and from the sharp decline in demand for tyres and hoses, which undermined productivity in those product sectors. Net income reflected the downturn in operating profitability, the effect of the strengthening yen on foreign currency–denominated sales receivables and on debt liabilities at overseas subsidiaries, and the partial relinquishment of a tax benefit associated with the write-down of unrealised gains on inventories.
Figures released by Michelin have confirmed what we already knew – these are not happy times for the tyre industry. Between January and December 2008 the passenger car tyre segment in Europe (including the CIS) shrank for both the OE and replacement markets. The OE market dropped 7.2 per cent during the year, while replacement market sales declined 4.0 per cent. During the month of December 2008, OE sales plummeted 39.1 per cent year-on-year, while aftermarket sales grew by 7.6 per cent.
The European OE truck tyre market declined by 0.9 per cent between January and December 2008, and the replacement tyre market by 9.7 per cent. During December 2008 OE sales dropped 40.7 per cent year-on-year, and replacement market sales 31.0 per cent.
Automotive technology and services supplier the Bosch Group has announced that former vice president of Sales for the Bosch Independent Aftermarket West Europe & Mediterranean, Ken Ford, has been appointed to a new role as regional president for Asia/Pacific. Ford begins in his new position on April 1, 2009 and will be based in Singapore.
The new Asia/Pacific regional president began his career with Bosch in 2004 as the divisional director for Automotive Aftermarket Bosch UK and Ireland. His other previous roles have included general manager for the Aftermarket Western Europe and, most recently, vice president of Sales Western Europe & Mediterranean.
Valeo and Groupe Michelin are combing efforts to develop electric and rechargeable hybrid vehicle systems. The pair will work on such systems as drive train, engine and battery cooling management, climate control, lighting, energy management and tyres.
“Michelin and Valeo are convinced that by joining forces they will help to accelerate the emergence of electric vehicles in France and worldwide,” the companies said in a statement. (Tire Review/Akron)
According to Reuters, Conti shares grew 6.7 per cent on Friday (13 February 2009) after Renate Schmidt, member for the SPD in the German Bundestag, reportedly declared that state aid for Schaeffler may be possible under certain conditions. The news follows potential investor Abu Dhabi-owned IPIC denying it was interested. Pirelli also ruled itself out of any possible deal earlier in the week.
ATS Euromaster’s centre in South Street, Newport, Isle of Wight, has been appointed as a Michelin Exelagri Centre through the tyre manufacturers’ national accreditation scheme for agricultural and construction specialists. In joining this select group of accredited Exelagri Centres, ATS Euromaster becomes the first tyre dealer on the Isle of Wight to be recognised by Michelin for its ability to supply a high quality service to customers in these two key business sectors.
Paul Murtha, manager of ATS Euromaster in Newport, says: “Over the last three years our sales in the agricultural and construction sectors have risen to represent nearly 40 per cent of our overall turnover, from an original base of less than 10 per cent.
Bridgestone has chosen the Chicago Auto Show as the venue for the North American replacement market release of its low rolling resistance Ecopia range. The first tyre in the line-up to arrive on American shores is the Ecopia EP100, a summer tyre fitment for vehicles such as the Mini Cooper, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic Hybrid, Nissan Versa and Toyota Corolla. Available in H- and V-speed ratings, the Ecopia EP100 has a UTQG of 400AB and will be offered in six different sizes ranging from 14 to 16 inches. The tyre will be available in March in the first phase of a two-phase rollout during 2009.
Derbyshire-based Magna M/S Ltd has been appointed to represent the interests of Italmatic Srl, of Italy, in the UK market. Italmatic has a long association with the UK, stretching back to 1969, when the company exhibited a buffer at the London Motor Show. Today the Italmatic product portfolio includes retreading equipment, such as autoclaves, or even complete turnkey retreading installations, a range of retreading accessories (bladders, curing envelopes, buffing blades etc) and tyre shop consumables and accessories. A recent addition to the product range is a series of Comfort, superelastic industrial tyres.
Director of Magna M/S is Ian Smith, who has many years technical and hands-on experience in the tyre industry, in both new tyre manufacturing and retreading. Speaking of the new arrangement, he said: “I have a long association with Italmatic and as such understand their products and their market, having been a customer in the tyre manufacturing and automotive wheel and tyre assembly industries.” The agreement between Italmatic and Magna, he says, shows Italmatic’s commitment to the UK market.
As part of its 2009-2011 Industrial Plan, Pirelli Tyre reports it is continuing with the cost cutting strategy it commenced last year. The goal of this plan is to save more than 300 million euros over a three-year period through the rationalisation of manufacturing structures and staff in Europe, the renegotiation of raw material purchasing agreements in order to take advantage of falling prices, and savings from lower energy and logistics costs.
Manufacturing capacity in emerging markets is to be expanded so as to take advantage of increasing demand in these regions, coupled with their lower manufacturing costs. In the commercial tyre sector 87 per cent of Pirelli’s total production is already located in low-cost countries, compared with an average of 50 per cent for the company’s four major competitors.
First Stop has launched a brand new website (www.firststop4tyres.co.uk) designed to help customers get more from their local tyre dealership.
The website features a UK-wide dealer locator as well as detailed information on Bridgestone’s tyre range and – currently – details of the network’s free fuel competition.
In parallel with the launch of the updated web site, a brand new dealer locator text service and phone-line is also running. To be put in touch with their nearest dealer, customers simply need to text or call the dedicated number which will be featured in a First Stop advertising campaign being rolled out across the UK.
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The Abu Dhabi government-owned International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) denied on February 12 it was negotiating to acquire a share in Schaeffler or its 49.9 per cent owned subsidiary Continental. In a statement, IPIC managing director Khadem al-Qubaisi said “this speculation has surfaced recently in the German media. We are quite surprised that this has arisen at all.”
The downturn in the automotive industry has seen Apollo Tyre’s OEM demand drop 43 percent in terms of value during the last financial quarter, and according to company chairman and managing director Onkar S Kanwar, “car sales have plummeted [and] tyre sales have also gone down proportionally.” During the last quarter commercial vehicle tyre sales have also experienced “a serious drop”, he added. In light of this decreased demand for the company’s products, the Hindu Business Line reports that Apollo is considering laying off 1,500 workers.
Temperature and time are both crucial factors for the vulcanisation of rubber during both the mould and pre-cure retreading processes. For this reason, in October 2008 Germany’s Rösler Group founded an R&D department to work on developing specific software for accurately determining these two factors during vulcanisation. Rösler reports that its software has helped improve the quality and consistency of the products made by its two major retreading brands, Rodos and Schelkmann.
The mould cure process used by Rodos in the retreading of OTR tyres takes several hours to complete, and it is particularly important to precisely determine the curing time in connection with the curing temperature, as any unnecessary prolongation of the time will result in the rubber becoming over-vulcanised.
In these froward economic times, it is difficult to make plans. Apollo Tyres, however, appears to be pressing ahead with its inroads into European markets. The company’s chairman and managing director Onkar Singh Kanwar recently spoke to India’s largest financial daily, The Economic Times, and explained why exports are so important for Apollo at present.
“The passenger car segment (in India) has been badly impacted,” related Kanwar. “As car sales have plummeted, tyre sales have also gone down proportionally. Apollo Tyres however has managed to maintain a growth of 22 per cent despite the overall scenario, as exports have helped in tiding over this period so far.” He added that, in this most recent financial quarter, exports grew by 37 per cent year-on-year.
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