Raw Materials
Bridgestone Corp. is partnering with the World Agroforestry Centre in a program to help small rubber tree growers Indonesia. The partnership will provide growers with information and guidance on best practices in the cultivation of rubber trees. The parties will also conduct joint research intended to help stabilize the region's agricultural rubber industry into the future.
The National Tyre Distributors Association (NTDA) and its wholesale arm, the Tyre Wholesalers Group (TWG) have warned that "substantial" price rises are imminent. The core raw material price increase reasons for the shortage are nothing new, but the fact that a number of tyre manufacturers closed factories in recent years means there is now insufficient capacity to make up the shortfalls. In addition the fact that last winter was particularly severe across much of northern Europe led to unprecedented demand for winter tyres. With this year's winter selling season due to begin shortly, manufacturers are replenishing stocks of winter tyres in preparation.
At the recent Reifen tyre show in Essen, Italian company MAI International showed examples of its Maxam range of all-steel radial OTR tyres, designed to cope with the requirements of vehicles working in today's construction, mining and civil engineering industries. And all this comes with the backing of a five-year warranty against manufacturing defects.
The range of tyres consists of a variety of sizes and tread patterns to suit different applications. For example, the MSV01 is designed primarily for on- and off-road use and its construction means minimal road noise and reduced vibration for enhanced operator comfort. The MS201 features an off-road directional tread design and it is said to offer low noise and reduced vibration too. For more demanding and winter/snow applications, the Maxam MS202 SnowXtra tyre is available in 24 and 25-inch rim sizes, suitable for loaders and articulated dumpers. The self-cleaning tread provides excellent winter traction and the cut-resistant compound prolongs service life.
Evonik has announced that it will close its Botlek, Netherlands carbon black plant on 31 July 2010 as part of a production “realignment” programme. Plans are said to be in place for the site to continue as a supplier of energy to businesses located in the vicinity for the news few years. "While the Botlek facility has always excelled in quality and efficiency, the market has moved away from Northwest Europe. Botlek’s great performance is, unfortunately, not enough to overcome the logistical disadvantage", said Jack Clem, Evonik’s head of Carbon Black.
According to the company, the guiding principle behind the realignment of Evonik's European carbon black production capacities is “closer to the customer.” Their view is that, with the carbon black market in Western Europe is increasingly shifting towards Central Europe and that the main drivers of this change are the major tyre manufacturers and producers of mechanical rubber goods.
Prices of certain brand products sold by Bridgestone Bandag Tire Solutions in the US have gone up by as much as six per cent. The increases, effective as of July 1, apply to Bridgestone brand truck and bus radial tyres sold by the operation.
Singaporean tyre and wheel distributor Stamford Tyres has announced a net profit of S$9.4 million (£4.5 million) for the end of financial year 2010, which ended on 30 April, over eight times the net profit of S$1.0 million in FY2009. The company’s president and CEO, Wee Kok Wah said: “Over the past year, we have worked hard to lay the foundations for the Group’s future growth… In accordance with the much improved set of results the Board of Directors has recommended a final dividend of 1.0 Singapore cents to reward our loyal shareholders.” The company reduced its operating expenses by 16.3 per cent, from S$64.5 million in FY2009 to S$54.0 million in FY2010, while Stamford experienced the slightest of declines in gross profit – down 1.5 per cent to S$66.5 million – and its gross profit margin, which was at 21.4 per cent as opposed to 22.7 per cent the previous year. Higher tyre purchase prices worldwide and lower sales from the Group’s Thai wheel plant were the main causes.
Bloomberg reports that natural rubber prices continued rising for the third straight day on fears that heavy rains will hurt output in Thailand. Tokyo rubber futures jumped 1.5 per cent on Thursday after a 3.8 per cent rise earlier in the week. A monsoon is dumping heavy rains on many parts of Thailand, the world’s largest natural rubber producer, and are not expected to dissipate soon.
The Technical Rubber Products (TRP) business unit of specialty chemicals group Lanxess AG has increased its prices effective for NBR (nitrile-butadiene rubber) in Europe. Effective June 15, price per tonne has rises to 210 euros. Lanxess claims the increase is “unavoidable” as costs for raw materials have risen significantly.
Samworth Brothers are, as Tyres & Accessories reported in February 2008, well acquainted with receiving high mileage from their Michelin tyres. Now the tyre maker reports that the chilled consolidator has clocked up more than 723,000 km on a set of Michelin XDE2+ drive axle tyres which were fitted as original equipment on a MAN TGA 26.440 6×2 tractor unit it operates. The tyres were removed at 723,417 km, with 4mm of tread remaining, and regrooved for a second life. It is expected that the regrooved tyres will cover up to an additional 180,000 km before being returned to Michelin for remoulding into Remix tyres.
PT Cabot Indonesia is investing US$10 million to increase the capacity of its plant in Merak, Banten, by 20 per cent. According to Dave Miller, executive vice president and general manager of Core Segment at Cabot, the expansion should be completed by the middle of next year and give the plant an annual capacity of 160,000 tons – a quantity needed should the plant continue to meet growing demand from the Indonesian tyre industry. Miller believes carbon black demand in Indonesia will reach 200,000 tons next year.
Korea’s OCI Company Ltd. has announced plans invest 75 billion won in expanding its carbon black manufacturing facilities. A third plant will be built in Gunsan, where the company’s polysilicon manufacturing facilities are located. Construction will begin in the second half of this year and when the plant enters operation late in 2011 it is projected to have a 70,000 tonne capacity. This will be increased to 100,000 tonnes by the end of 2014. When full capacity is reached the combined capacity of the Gunsan site and OCI’s existing carbon black production facilities in Pohang and Gwangyang will be 310,000 tonnes per annum – a quantity sufficient to make OCI Korea’s leading carbon black manufacturer.
Americas International Inc. has joined the International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers (IISRP). Akron, Ohio-based Americas International is a distributor of synthetic rubber. Wayne Stair, president of the company, will reportedly serve as liaison to the IISRP, and his alternate will be Ted Romans.
It is just over a year since Dutch manufacturer Vredestein was acquired by Apollo Tyres and adopted a greater focus towards high performance tyres and products for top-end vehicles, and at the Reifen 2010 exhibition in Essen, Germany the company presented the first major addition its product portfolio since these significant events took place. Known as the Wintrac Nextreme, the high performance cold weather tyre is the second winter tyre ever to be developed in collaboration with Italian design house Giugiaro, whom Vredestein has worked together with for more than a decade.
Diversified Century Textiles & Industries Ltd has reportedly suspended production of tyre yarn at its Century Rayon plant in Kalyan, a Mumbai suburb. According to a Reuters report, the firm is halting production of viscose filament yarn and tyre yarn “due to adverse market scenario and demand slowdown.” Century Rayon, which makes rayon, tyre cord and chemicals, has an annual production of 25,000 tonnes of textile and tyre yarn.
For the past forty years the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) has served as an organisation acting in the interests of governments of natural rubber producing nations. As of 30 November 2009 the organisation contained ten members – the governments of Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam – and (according to 2008 figures) represented the producers of 94 per cent of global natural rubber production. The organisation has now grown to include the Republic of the Philippines.
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