rubber Archives - Page 139 of 347 - Tyrepress

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.

Posts

Yokohama Rubber Raises Sales and Earnings Projections

Yokohama Rubber has raised its projections for consolidated net sales and earnings in the fiscal year to March 31, 2010. The company now projects a net income of 9.4 billion yen (£69.2 million), compared with a net loss of 5.7 billion yen in the previous fiscal year. It projects that operating income will rise 49.9 per cent to 19.2 billion yen (£141.3 million), and that net sales will decline 9.1 per cent, to 470.0 billion yen (£3.5 billion). The projection for net income is 34.3 per cent higher than the projection announced on October 30, 2009; the projection for operating income is 12.9 per cent higher; and the projection for net sales is 1.1 per cent higher.

24th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Environment Agencies to Launch REACH Campaign at Brityrex

The Environment Agency (EA), Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) and Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) have chosen October’s Brityrex exhibition as the platform for a new campaign to raise awareness of legislation covering the chemical make-up of tyres and retread rubber. The campaign follows the introduction of European REACH legislation which states that extender oils shall not be placed on the market, or used for the production of tyres or parts of tyres if they contain more than the threshold limits of PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon). The restrictions also apply to the marketing of tyres and treads for retreading.

Both European manufacturers and importers need to comply with the new ruling; distributors found to be selling tyres containing excessive levels of PAH could be faced with enforcement proceedings. One of the problems for retailers and wholesalers will be that there is no visual test to determine the presence of PAH, which means they will need to be absolutely confident that their tyre suppliers are aware of and meeting the tighter standard.

23rd March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Lanxess Rubber Chemical Prices to Rise

The prices of certain Lanxess plastic and rubber chemicals, including some used in the tyre manufacturing process, are increasing at of April 1, 2010. The company’s Rubber Chemicals business unit will raise prices for its Vulkanox, Vulkacit and Renacit products by up to 20 euro cents per kilogram, depending on product and region. Vulkanox is used as an antioxidant, Vulkacit as an accelerator and Renacit as a peptizer, and are used in the production of various rubber products, including tyres, hoses and driving belts.

23rd March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

US Appointments: Toyo Names CFO, New CIO at Goodyear

Tire Review reports the appointment of two new chiefs at Goodyear and Toyo in the US. Toyo Tire North America Manufacturing has promoted Allan Huggins to CFO and senior director of finance and accounting. Huggins joined Toyo in 2005 most recently served as director of finance and purchasing. Meanwhile, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co has promoted Jim McKinnon to vice president and chief information officer.

22nd March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin: Winning Customers Over to Four Lives

If a retreading themed interview began with the sentence “we operate no retreading business”, than the interviewer has either turned up at the wrong appointment entirely – or is speaking with those in charge at Michelin. The focus of the French company’s commitment thus does not centre upon a marketable product or item, but on a concept – specifically, the concept that a Michelin commercial vehicle tyre has “Four Lives”. “Our concept is the most economic and most environmental on the market,” Jean-Marc Lechêne told Tyres & Accessories. The executive vice-president and chief operating officer (COO) for truck tyres in Europe is convinced that the ongoing professionalisation of truck fleets in Europe will further increase the establishment of professional (service) arrangements.

22nd March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Jury Faults Cooper, Awards $33 Million to Plaintiffs

Tire Review reports that an Iowa jury awarded seven passengers in a deadly 2007 rollover accident some $33 million, finding Cooper Tire & Rubber Co at fault. Seven passengers involved in a deadly van rollover crash near Bondurant won a $33 million verdict Friday from a Polk County jury that blamed a US tyre-maker for the accident.

22nd March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone Issues ‘Amberstone’ Suit Statement

Bridgestone Americas has issued a statement regarding its decision to file a trademark infringement suit against Commerce Max Inc over its use of the ‘Amberstone’ tyre brand name, reports Tire Review. "We filed a lawsuit in US District Court in Nashville on 12 March, against San Benito, Texas-based Commerce Max Inc for trademark infringement, trademark dilution and unfair competition.

22nd March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Avon’s Motorsport Season Opens at Easter with British GT Championship

Avon is looking forward to another season of motorsport, opening on Easter weekend as the title sponsor of the British GT Championship. The brand is the title sponsor and sole tyre supplier of the prestigious Championship for the fifth consecutive season, with cars built by manufacturers such as Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lotus and Porsche set to line up on the grid this year.

22nd March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop’s SportSmart: “Reinventing” the Sports Motorcycle Tyre

A motorcycle tyre that combines race-quality grip in the dry, total confidence in the wet and wear rates that never compromise sporting satisfaction is said to have been an elusive wish for street and occasional track day riders. That is, according to Dunlop, until now. The company claims to have realised these qualities in its new SportSmart, a tyre it describes as creating a “new benchmark of handling and confidence, irrespective of road conditions – dry racetrack or wet country lane.” Dunlop adds the SportSmart is designed to deliver its highest levels of performance while putting in the hard touring miles and riders can thus expect to achieve noticeably more mileage from SportsSmart than they would with other hypersport tyres; indeed, during testing performed by Dekra in January 2010, using a 2009 model Suzuki GSX-R 1000 fitted with 120/70ZR17 and 190/50ZR17 tyres, the SportSmart reportedly delivered 20 per cent better mileage compared to Michelin’s Power Pure, 30 per cent better mileage than the Pirelli Diablo Rosso and 40 per cent better mileage than Bridgestone’s Battlax BT-016.

19th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Announces Industrial Tyre Price Rises

As of April 1, 2010, prices for aftermarket Continental industrial tyres will increase by up to eight per cent in Europe. The company says this measure has been taken in response to “extremely sharp rises” in the cost of raw materials, especially natural rubber, and pronounced increases in freight costs, dating back to the second half of 2009. The company comments it had previously managed to keep prices for industrial tyres in the aftermarket business stable since April 2009.

18th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Green X Challenge Starts Second ALMS Season

The Michelin Green X Challenge is described by the tyre maker as a ‘race within the race’ at motorsports events such as the American Le Mans Series (ALMS). The idea behind the challenge is summed by Michelin as “if fast is good, then faster and cleaner is even better,” and the company notes that this approach paid off for 12 of the 20 ALMS Michelin green X Challenge winners last year, as they also won their respective class on track. The 2010 US based round of this environmental motorsport awards programme gets underway at the Twelve Hours of Sebring on March 20.

18th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Lanxess ‘Confident’ About 2010 Following Strong Q4

After finishing the 2009 financial year on a high note in the last quarter, specialty chemicals group Lanxess has expressed confidence for the 2010 year. This sense of optimism, it says, is supported by the company’s development within the Asia/Pacific and further boosted by savings generated from its “Challenge09-12” package of measures. “We therefore expect a significant year-on-year improvement in earnings, even if there is currently no sign of a self-sustaining upswing,” said Axel C. Heitmann, chairman of the Lanxess AG Board of Management.

17th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Continental to Raise CV Tyre Prices

On May 1 the cost of Continental’s replacement market commercial vehicle tyres will increase by an average of 5.5 per cent in Europe. Upon making this announcement, Continental stated that by raising prices it is “thus reacting to the massive rise in raw material prices, above all for oil and natural rubber, since the second half of 2009.”

17th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

Dealers Get Early Look at New Hakka 7

Last week, North American tyre dealers got the opportunity to preview Nokian Tyres’ new winter tyre, the Hakkapeliitta 7, reports Tire Review. Touted as the most technologically advanced Hakka yet, the tyre is currently available in Europe, but won’t be widely available in North America until 2011, in time for the 2011-12 winter season.

15th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors

New Tyre Regulations Make Racing “Difficult” at Bahrain Grand Prix

Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa made the Bahrain Grand Prix the first in what looks likely to be a series of Ferrari one-two finishes on Sunday, while former champions Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton bemoaned the difficulties imposed by new tyre and fuel regulations. Schumacher said he “struggled with the new tyre rules,” and that, combined with the refuelling ban, “overtaking is basically impossible with the new regulations.” Hamilton stated: “It’s very difficult to follow [in Bahrain], while looking after the tyres.” Tyre supplier Bridgestone’s director of Motorsport Tyre Development, Hirohide Hamashima made the point that “tyre management, as expected, was very important in this first race with no refuelling. The cars and drivers which were more forgiving to their tyres were rewarded with more durable performance.” Hamilton conceded that the most interesting aspect of the 2010 season looks likely to be in “understanding the tyres and conserving fuel load; knowing when to attack and when not to attack.”

15th March 2010/by Tyrepress Editors