Raw Materials
Last week, US-based organisation the Association for the Advancement of Industrial Crops (AAIC) held its 24th annual meeting; the event’s focus was ‘developing sustainable solutions’, and during the meeting Cooper Tire research scientist Dr. Howard Colvin presented a paper, titled “Securing the Future of Natural Rubber – an American Tire and Bio-Energy Platform from Guayule.”
Solvay has inaugurated its newly expanded Collonges-au-Mont-d’Or site in France, which produces highly dispersible silica. The investment follows a similar volume expansion last year in the US and the start-up in 2010 of a new plant in China. According to the company, these three investments required 74 million euros in total.
“Our worldwide highly dispersible silica production capacity now exceeds 400,000 tons,” commented Tom Benner, president of Solvay’s Silica Global Business Unit. “Demand for highly dispersible silica is pulled by a growing need for safer and more energy-efficient tyres and the new European tyre labelling legislation applicable from 1 November,” he added. “We can now meet our customers’ needs globally as this new legislation takes effect.”
Sustainable materials company, Lehigh Technologies has appointed a former Bridgestone and a Reko International executive to drive the adoption of its micronized rubber powder (MSP) material across target markets. The addition of two tyre and plastics industry executives, Greg Henwood and Michael Kruzynski respectively, to the company’s business development team is aimed at expanding the company’s reach in the tyre, plastics and polyurethane markets. Henwood is a new sales director for Plastics and Polyurethanes, and Kruzynski has been appointed to the position of major account manager for Tire and Industrial Rubber.
Michelin has reported sales of 16.142 billion euros in the first nine months. The figure, which represents a 6 per cent increase compared with the same period last year, comes despite slow demand and continued pressure in the economic environment especially in mature markets. However, despite the increase, sales volumes were down 6.7 per cent, with the overall improvement being explained by product mix and raw materials-related price increases.
While announcing its five-year business management plan in which it expects to spend 280 billion yen ($3.3 billion) in calendar year 2013 to expand tyre capacity in emerging markets, Bridgestone Corp. also said it aiming at annual sales growth of 5 per cent and 10 per cent operating income ratio, the tyre manufacturer said it would seek diverse sources of raw materials and combine products and services in pursuit of its goals.
The board of the European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers’ Association (ETRMA) has agreed that market surveillance should be the number one priority of the work of the organisation. The next priority of the board, which meets twice a year, emphasises that environmental as well as social and economic sustainability should remain a focus of the European tyre and rubber industry.
On 31 October Continental AG will host a conference call and tyre division investor day to coincide with the release of the company’s third quarter results. Analysts at Deutsche Bank anticipate that Continental will report revenues of 8.1 billion euros for the quarter, a five per cent year-on-year increase. Other expected results include an adjusted EBIT of 844 million euros – the analysts note that this projected 13 per cent year-on-year growth is driven by Conti’s tyre business – and a net profit of 401 million euros, up 90 per cent on a year earlier.
Bridgestone Corporation’s 2012 Mid-Term Management Plan (MTP2012) leaves little scope for misinterpreting the company’s aim. In its latest plan, announced 18 October, the Japanese firm states that its ultimate goal is to become the “undisputed world number one tyre and rubber company in both name and reality.” The plan covers the five years from the start of 2013 to the end of 2017, and Bridgestone says MTP2012 reflects “changes in the operating environment” since the formulation of MTP2011.”
Maxxis International will partner its official Malaysian distributor, Kian Hon Tyres in establishing the new Maxxis Asia Education Centre for truck and bus radial tyres in Penang, Malaysia. The companies said they plan to offer leading-edge training programmes at the new centre. Maxxis said that Kian Hon was selected for this new venture because of the “remarkable performance and aggressive expansion plans for its retreading plant”. The Maxxis Asia TBR Education Centre will be housed at Kian Hon’s new building in Nibong Tebal, and feature “state-of-the-art infrastructure and first-class equipment”, Maxxis said. The collaborative effort will constitute a total investment of US$20 million and will create between 200 and 400 new jobs.
Styron has added an SSBR (Solution Styrene Butadiene Rubber) rubber production line aimed at supplying tyre manufacturers to its factory in Schkopau, Germany. According to the company, Dr. Reiner Haseloff, minister-president of Saxony-Anhalt Germany and other dignitaries celebrate the opening. The new production line introduces an additional capacity of 50,000 metric tons at the production facility in Schkopau, Germany.
Spanish Environmental Group, HERA Holding and US sustainable materials company, Lehigh Technologies Inc have announced a partnership to bring in micronized rubber powder (MRP) for the tyre, consumer and industrial plastics and coatings industries in Europe. Lehigh says that MRPs can lower costs, increase the sustainability profile of end products and deliver performance without sacrificing the reliability and performance of traditional raw materials. Its customer base already includes five of the top ten largest tyre companies in the world, and the company estimates that more than 140 million tyres have been manufactured using its MRP. The new partnership aims to bring MRP into Europe with Hera Holding adapting its recycling plant in Navarra, Spain to allow for the production of MRP.
It makes no sense at all for a distributor to ship Chinese-made tyres to Europe and then re-export them around the world, and for this very reason Danish tyre and wheel supplier NDI (Nordisk Dæk Import A/S) recently decided to establish a local operation in China. NDI China was established in May 2012 with the signing of a cooperative agreement between NDI and the local government in Beiguan, Jiaozhou City, which is located near the major port of Qingdao.
A particular tyre on display at the 2012 Paris Motor Show represents Bridgestone’s vision of its tyre manufacturing for 2050 and beyond. The “100% sustainable materials” concept tyre on show at the Bridgestone stand in Paris exclusively utilises sustainable raw materials and was developed through a collaborative effort involving a number of resources, including academia.
Visitors to the MINExpo show in the US were given a chance to get up close with Michelin’s newest earthmover line, the XDR2. This range, which replaces the XDR, is intended for the market’s largest rigid dump trucks and is claimed to improve safety while enabling users to improve their productivity and optimise environmental performance.
At its media day in New York, German specialty chemicals company Lanxess announced a new mid-term goal for its leading earnings indicator – EBITDA pre exceptionals. The company projects that its EBITDA pre exceptionals will reach 1.8 billion euros in 2018, and says its previous 2015 EBITDA pre exceptionals goal of 1.4 billion euros will now be reached a year ahead of schedule. This key performance indicator has increased by an average of 20 per cent per annum since 2004, and for 2012 Lanxess reconfirms its guidance for EBITDA pre exceptionals to increase by five to ten per cent year-on-year.
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