The technical team that STARCO operates in Europe is joining together with parent company Kenda’s technical team. The aim of integrating the two teams is to leverage synergies within the firms’ global technical structure as well as drive further technological improvements. According to STARCO, it also represents a significant step in both companies’ growth plans for Europe.
Construction work on a project to expand STARCO’s operation in Poland officially commenced last week. STARCO says the addition of new warehouse and fitting facilities at the Mielec site, around 50 miles east of Krakow, will increase floorspace from 2,500 to 5,500 square metres. The new facilities should be operational early next year.
When tourists visit Croatia, they don’t come to Beli Manastir. The sleepy town of around 8,000 inhabitants is about as distant as you can get from Croatia’s bustling beach resorts and still stay within the country’s borders. But Beli Manastir’s lack of package holiday cred doesn’t matter a jot to STARCO – instead of bringing the world to Beli Manastir, it is taking Beli Manastir to the world.
The solid tyre factory established by STARCO in Sri Lanka has been divested to TVS Group company Sun Tyre & Wheel Systems (Sun-TWS) for an undisclosed sum. The STARCO Lanka facility becomes Sun-TWS’ fifth manufacturing plant and, together with expansion programmes at its existing facilities, will help increase overall capacity by 40 per cent – a measure required in order to meet growing global demand.
Ready for the summer season, the STARCO subsidiary in Switzerland has received the first car tyres from Kenda and is ready to begin its new role as the brand’s national distributor. Commenting on the new arrangement, STARCO’s Richard Todd noted that the company was exploring many synergies with Kenda over both the short and long-term.
After six years of manufacturing solid tyres in Sri Lanka, STARCO is looking forward to expanding its distribution of these products globally. Tyres & Accessories recently spoke to Richard Todd, the company’s chief executive officer; he shared that establishing relationships with distributors in Asia and the Middle East was currently a priority for STARCO.
Around €150,000 (£131,000) is being invested in STARCO’s tyre and wheel production facility in Crewe as part of a €2.5 million project to strengthen manufacturing capabilities in Europe. The Danish company’s site in the UK will receive new equipment that will automate the polymer wheel and puncture-proof polyurethane tyre production that takes place there. A STARCO representative told Tyrepress.com the installation of this new machinery will lift capacity and will also facilitate the development of new designs that ensure the plant’s continued competitiveness.
A new chapter in STARCO’s history began on 1 July 2016 when German wholesaler Bohnenkamp took over a number of the Danish firm’s aftermarket operations, including the STARCO Eastern Group and aftermarket businesses in Scandinavia, Germany and, with one or two exceptions, the Benelux countries. The businesses were divested as part of an increased focus on the original equipment sector under the company’s 2020 strategy, and STARCO has now announced the next step in its path to becoming a pure OE player. In the months to 1 April 2017, STARCO will phase out its entire traditional aftermarket activities.
Denmark’s STARCO has called Skovby, near Aarhus, its home since 1993, however its headquarters site for the past 23 years was recently sold to Germany’s Bohnenkamp as part of the divestment of STARCO’s aftermarket activities. Bohnenkamp A/S – the company previously known as STARCO A/S – is now located in the 4,500 square metre office and warehouse facility in Skovby, and STARCO employees have moved to 515 square metres of rented office space in nearby Brabrand.
STARCO says it will one of the 1,300 or so exhibitors present at the GaLaBau trade fair in Nuremberg, Germany next month. The company is bringing experienced experts to the show and plans to display key brands plus its portfolio of in-house developed and manufactured wheels and tyres for industrial, ground care and utility vehicles.
With a flip of the calendar page June became July, and STARCO and Bohnenkamp each began a new chapter in their histories. STARCO reports that the start of the new month found its offices “buzzing heavily with activity,” and the company shares that much progress has been made since the signing of a deal between the two companies in May.
Change of any sort within an organisation can be difficult, says Richard Todd, but sometimes change is necessary in order to find the right area of focus and to grow in this. Upon becoming chief executive officer of STARCO at the start of last year, Todd took over the day-to-day management of a half-century old company on the cusp of starting the sizable task of redefining its focus and long-term direction. He began working on this in close collaboration with company owner, Peer Ejlergaard. Now, some 18 months later, this direction is clearly visible. At Reifen 2016, Richard Todd spoke about the structural reorganisation taking place within STARCO and the steps taken to realise it.
Should the relevant authorities grant their blessing, at the start of July German agricultural tyre wholesaler Bohnenkamp AG will take over several business areas belonging to Starco, while the Danish company will assume responsibility for certain activities currently within the Bohnenkamp portfolio.
A new organisational structure is being rolled out for Starco’s original equipment business in Western and Northern Europe. The company’s national sales entities will adopt a cross-border, segment-driven approach that will focus more strongly upon current customers and new, larger customers. Starco explains that this new structure’s adoption is being driven by market demands for specialised knowledge, strong supplier partnerships and cross-border mobility.
After 25 years at the helm of Starco, CEO and majority shareholder Peer Ejlersgaard has handed over executive responsibility for the Starco Group to Richard Todd and Karsten Petersen, and has become chairman of the board. Ejlersgaard is being joined by a new board of directors in a move that aims to further strengthen both the daily management of the company and its strategic development for the future.
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