On 1st September 2008, Italian company MAE Industria Gomma will move to a new production plant.
The address of the new production unit and offices is:
MAE Industria Gomma
Strada Prov.le Morolense, SNC
Loc. Paduni Zona Industriale
03012 Anagni (FR) – ITALY.
The new telephone numbers are: +39 0775 776087 and +39 0775 769944, while the fax number is +39 0775 774011. The e-mail address remains unchanged at info@mae-industry.it
Bridgestone Corporation announced on August 8 that its board of directors has approved the following proposals of the changes in corporate officers:
The following corporate officer positions and responsibilities are changing, effective August 16, 2008
– Koki Takahashi
New position and responsibilities: vice president and officer; chief financial officer, Finance; concurrently director, Internal Control Division
Current position and responsibilities: Vice president and officer, chief financial officer, finance
In the US a National Guard unit is trialling a non-pneumatic tyre that could protect military vehicles from becoming sitting ducks in combat zones due to punctures. The tyre, developed by Resilient Technologies LLC and the University of Wisconsin-Madison over a two-year period for the US Department of Defense, features a patent-pending six-sided honeycomb construction.
Increased competition from budget imported tyres has led Australian tyre remoulder Motorway Tyres to close its doors. Staff at the company’s facility in Stawell, Victoria, were told on August 1 that the company’s facilities would cease operating, effective immediately. The decision affects 34 staff in Stawell, along with a further eight in Melbourne.
In a statement released on August 2, the company cited difficult trading conditions for the closure. Tyre imports, along with increased materials and distribution costs, were named as key factors. “Over the past three years, management has injected several million dollars into the business, to improve efficiencies in the production and distribution of remoulded tyres and truck treads,” said company director John Bresnehen. “During this time there were also significant efforts made by staff to improve the efficiency of the business.
Aufine Group Co. Ltd is to raise prices for shipments from 1 September. According to a price adjustment notice dated 1 August 2008, the price increase is the “unfortunate” result of the current high cost of steam, electricity and raw materials. This has apparently resulting in the “not small” increase in the cost of Aufine’s production. “We therefore regretfully inform you our prices for shipments from 1 September 2008 will be further revised. Exact details are expected to follow soon. The Qingdao, China-based Aufine Group last raised its prices in June following a 23 per cent increase in natural rubber prices.
Carrying tyres produced using the latest technology and state-of-the-art tyre-building machinery, Interstate offers a range of high-quality own-brand winter options. The company is able to offer the tyres at competitive prices thanks to 25 years of experience of co-operating with world leaders in the development of advanced technology in the design and production of tyres.
The winter program contains 14 sizes, in one pattern: the IWT-2. These tyre sizes cover a large part of the replacement market for passenger car tires, a market Interstate aims to develop. All the winter offerings from Interstate are e-marked, DOT approved and produced in the newest ISO-certified facilities.
Steel cord and wire manufacturer Bekaert has stated that anticipated increased raw material costs would lead to price increases for its products, including those employed in the tyre production process. These increases are expected to be implemented before the end of 2008.
Chief executive Bert de Graeve told a news conference on August 1 that “Price increases will have to be passed on to customers,”
Titan Tire Corporation shipped its first giant 63-inch OTR tyre and wheel assemblies on July 29. These tyres, each measuring nearly 14 feet or 4.3 metres tall and weighing approximately 5.7 tonnes, are being shipped to Canada’s oil sands for use in mining applications.
“A lot of people in the industry doubted that Titan could build these giant tyres in less than a year,” said Titan Chairman and CEO Maurice M. Taylor Jr. “I am happy to prove to them that we are committed to achieving the company’s goals.”
Longer lifespan, greater reliability and far more accessible cold starting energy are all claimed as benefits of PowerFrame; a new battery grid technology being used in the Varta Trio range of car batteries. The application of PowerFrame technology in Varta Silver, Blue and Black Dynamic batteries has been made possible by the introduction of an advanced manufacturing process for the battery’s positive grid, with the high precision process ensuring consistent and stable grid quality.
South Korean vehicle manufacturer GM Daewoo Automotive and Technology recommenced production at is Bupyeong facility on July 22 following the resumption of its tyre supply. According to a GM official, “Hankook Tire and Kumho Tire resumed their supplies from this afternoon. Both tyre makers told GM Daewoo that they accepted an order by the court to not suspend tyre supply.”
Despite particularly heavy downpours, this month Michelin staff have been giving members of the public free tyre pressure checks – all part of the company’s “Fill up with Air” campaign. The tour (which is being run in parallel across Europe) is designed to communicate messages warning of the dangers and expense that come with underinflated tyres. The plan is to reach out to consumers at high footfall sites, such as: Eurotunnel; Tesco and Asda branches; and Total Fitness gyms. In addition the tyre pressure roadshow will visit Michelin’s Ballymena truck tyre production plant in Northern Ireland.
Titan Tire has released its new 63-inch steel-belted radial OTR tyre to full production at its Bryan, Ohio, plant. The 59/80R63 radials will begin full production as of July 7.
“We believe this is the beginning of a change in the specialty tyre and wheel business worldwide,” said Titan Chairman and CEO Morry Taylor. “This tyre should out-perform any tyre out there and we think as production moves forward, we should continue to find more ways to improve these giant tyres.
Goodyear’s Napanee plant between Belleville and Kingston in Ontario, Canada is to close for a week as the manufacturer continues to react against a stagnating marketplace. The closure, which has an impact on up to 760 jobs, will take place between 30 June and 7 July.
Company spokesman Tom Hogeboom told local journalists that the closure’s timing made relative sense, coming as it does in the week that contains Canada Day and the United States’ Independence Day, which has a predictable effect on production rates. Hogeboom stated that “it’s not a decision we make lightly but the marketplace is telling us it’s something we have to do,” adding “all of our North American plants are doing it.”
The Rubber Chemicals business unit of Lanxess AG is increasing prices for the antioxidants (Vulkanox), accelerators (Vulkacit) and specialties (Vulkazon, Coagulant, KS 95) as of July 1, 2008. Increases will be in the range of up to US$1,200 per tonne, depending on the product and region. The company reports that continued cost increases have, in spite of cost-cutting programmes previously introduced, made a price rise unavoidable.
Russian media has reported that Amtel-Vredestein shareholders will receive no 2007 dividend from the Amtel Chernozemye tyre factory in Voronezh, Russia, following a decision made at the facility’s annual meeting on June 9. The 2007 profit will instead be retained.
A second tyre making facility at the site – Voronezh-2 – is scheduled to enter series production in the near future, and will have a capacity of 2.5 million tyres per annum. The Voronezh-2 plant will bring the number of facilities operated by the company to four; factories also operate in Kirov (Amtel Povolzhye) and the Enschede, the Netherlands (Vredestein).
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