Tyres can’t function without this critical raw material. Whether its natural or synthetic rubber you are interested in, articles bearing this tag feature this indispensable polymer.
Following the naming of key suppliers for its new 400 million euro butyl rubber plant on Singapore’s Jurong Island, Lanxess states that the facility’s project execution phase, in which the infrastructure necessary for the plant’s construction is being set up, is now in “full swing”. The current construction schedule calls for the plant to be ready in time for production to start in the first quarter of 2013.
Bridgestone will be present at the Assen circuit this weekend, which hosts the 80th Assen TT, and features a slight change to the circuit layout at the Ruskenhoek kink. For 2010, the kink has been smoothed which should allow riders to carry more speed through this section of the circuit. It also serves to slightly reduce the circuit’s lap length, but only by 13 metres. Hiroshi Yamada – manager, Bridgestone Motorsport Department says: “The TT Assen weekend is always good with many fans and great excitement, so I am looking forward to the Grand Prix.
An article on the South African website Business Report reported on the ruling of the High Court in South Africa to set aside the decision, made in 2007 by the Trade and Industry Ministry, to terminate anti-dumping probes against Chinese tyre exporters, bringing "fair competition" to the tyre manufacturing industry.
The first major exhibitors at the first Tyrexpo India in Chennai on 5-7 July 2011 have been announced. Exhibition organiser ECI International states that Balkrishna Tyres (BKT), Elgi Rubber and Omni United have become the first major companies to commit to supporting the inaugural staging of the new tyre and equipment exhibition. ECI says the ground-breaking event reflects India’s fast-growing importance and influence in the global tyre, rubber and equipment market.
The Tees Valley Industrial Programme (TVIP) is a £60 million investment fund that was established to accelerate job opportunities and business development in the Tees Valley region of the UK. A grant of £2 million from TVIP has been earmarked for PYReco; a new company based in Wilton. The grant will help fund the development of a new processing plant to recover carbon black, oil and steel from waste tyres and rubber. It is expected that the finished project will employ 52 staff, plus 240 new construction jobs will be created over the next five years.
Having been praised in many quarters for its policy of providing a greater difference in tyre compounds, leading to an engrossing tactical battle as drivers found the best way to utilise wearing rubber, Bridgestone has announced the compound allocations of Potenza tyres for five more rounds of the 2010 Formula One World Championship will remain at least two steps apart. The German Grand Prix is the anomaly, as it will feature the hard and super soft compounds, meaning the allocated tyres will be three steps apart, perhaps making for a more intense technical challenge for drivers.
Michelin says it has recorded a 6.5 per cent improvement in stability over 385/65R22.5 tyres after measuring the vehicle overturn angle of a 44-tonne tractor unit and trailer combination fitted with X One MaxiTrailer tyres. The trial took place at QinetiQ’s automotive test facility in Chobham, Surrey, using the only tilt-table in the country capable of accommodating a fully loaded 13.6m commercial vehicle.
Goodyear India Ltd. shares remain listed on the Bombay stock exchange following a failed delisting offer from parent company Goodyear Tire & Rubber. The US tyre maker made an offer to acquire close to six million shares in the Indian company, a figure representing 26 per cent of its equity capital. However it only received bids for around 1.136 million shares at a discovered price of Rs 340 (₤4.96) each. According to the Bombay Stock Exchange’s delisting regulations, the delisting offer would have only been considered successful if at least 3.69 million shares had been tended at or below the discovered price.
Shandong Linglong reports that despite import restrictions upon Chinese tyres in a number of markets including the US, Argentina and India, the company has relied upon a “flexible marketing strategy” and introduced new products to counter any resulting downturn. And the company’s approach appears to be working – according to Shandong Linglong, between January and April 2010 the total amount of foreign exchange it earned through exports has grown 56.47 per cent year-on-year. This is, the company states, a sufficient amount to have enabled it to already realise its 2010 export target.
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.
Yokohama Tire Corporation has provided further details of the tyre Team Yokohama will use in its conquest of Pikes Peak in an electric vehicle on June 27. The lithium-ion battery powered vehicle will be fitted with Advan ENV-R2 orange oil infused race tyres, a product that Yokohama says cuts petroleum use in the manufacturing process by 20 per cent by utilising sustainable resources such as orange oil and natural rubber.
Cooper Tire & Rubber has announced that its Global Quality, Operational Excellence and Information Technology vice president Carl Montalbine has been named "Quality Leader of the Year" by the American Society for Quality's Automotive Division. The ASQ Automotive Division Chairman Ha Dao, who nominated Montalbine for the award, commented that “Carl is most deserving of this prestigious recognition.”
On June 11 the President of Finland awarded Kim Gran, the president and CEO of Nokian Tyres, the Finnish honorary title of “Vuorineuvos”. This traditional title is given to leading captains of industry, and comes with no responsibilities or privileges.
Information obtained by Tire Review in the US indicates that Toyo Tire USA is “scrambling to fill truck tyre orders” following its dismissal earlier in the year from the GTY Tire Co. joint venture by partners Continental Tire the Americas and Yokohama Tire Corporation. The tyre maker has taken legal action as a result of this action and, in a lawsuit filed in January, Toyo claims that both Conti and Yokohama are attempting to prevent Toyo from selling any radial truck tyres in the US for five years, and that the partners have declared GTY Tire to be no more. All this, notes Tire Review, may be the indirect result of the “business and capital alliance” partnership struck between Toyo Tire & Rubber and Bridgestone Corporation in May 2008.
Whether your attitude towards caravans could best be described as “enthusiastic” or “Clarksonesque”, one potential problem for the holiday home on wheels has possibly escaped you: the degradation of its tyres during idle Winter months. With one of the brightest start to Summer since records began, UK safety organisation TyreSafe has taken the opportunity to address the problem, suggesting that caravan owners should pay particular attention to the condition of their tyres before heading off on holiday this year. Since caravans often stand unused for much of the off-season, there is a strong potential for tyre related problems to develop – such as cracking caused by the sun’s UV rays – making them unsafe or dangerous to use. To help owners identify such problems, TyreSafe, the UK’s leading tyre safety organisation, has launched a new section on its website at www.tyresafe.org dedicated to caravan tyre safety.
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