rubber Archives - Page 331 of 348 - 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.

Tag Archive for: rubber

Goodyear to re-state financial results

Goodyear is to re-state its financial results for the years 1998-2002 and for the first two quarters of this year. This is due to the implementation of a new accounting system in 1999 and errors in inter-company billing systems. The adjustments will not affect Goodyear’s cash position, nor its access to credit facilities. Another effect is that Goodyear is providing estimated 3Q results, rather than a detailed announcement. The estimate is for a loss of between $90-$115 million on sales of $3.9 billion and this figure includes rationalisation charges of $56 million for a factory closure and employment reductions in North America and Europe.

23rd October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Thai rubber price hits record high

The price of rubber in Thailand has risen to a record high of 50 Baht per kilo (1.07 Euro), which is good news for growers and not so god for producers of products such as tyres. Last year Thailand exported 2.35 million tonnes of rubber to 60 countries, with China and Japan each taking just under half a million tonnes. This year China is expected to be the largest customer, taking around 550,000 tonnes, valued at 30 billion Baht (642.6 million Euro).

23rd October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Cooper does well in magazine survey

Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. has been ranked 19th in the list of Most Successful Engineering Companies, compiled for the trade publication The Engineer. The performance of 900 companies with facilities in the UK were rated on such criteria as percentage change in turnover and operating profit and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA). The survey also concluded that the most successful companies view R&D as a function vital to the success of a company rather than an expense off the bottom line.

23rd October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Cooper 3Q figures – sales up, profits down

Cooper Tire & Rubber has published its third quarter figures. Sales totalled $913 million ($839 m in 3Q 2002), with tyre sales a record $526 million – 13 per cent up on the 3Q 2002 figure of $464 million. Operating profit on tyre sales was $34 million ($27 m). Despite these good sales figures, profits were hit as, overall, Cooper’s net income was $18 million, compared with $23 million in 3Q last year. Looking ahead, chairman, president and CEO Thomas A. Dattilo said that the company was “optimistic about improving conditions in the tyre industry. We expect the improving economy and consumer confidence to spur increasing replacement tyre demand.”

17th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

JV between Stamford Tyres and Sumitomo in China

Singapore-based Stamford Tyres is entering into a joint venture with Sumitomo Rubber Industries to produce passenger car radials in a new factory in China, being built by SRI. SRI will hold 60 per cent of the JV. The factory should begin production in the first quarter of next year and will eventually have an annual capacity of three million units, destined for both domestic and export markets.

17th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Hong Kong to introduce tyre tax

The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’s (HKSAR) government is proposing that all new tyres are registered and taxed. A spokesman said that new car buyers will be required to pay an annual tax of HK$100 (11 Euro) for the five tyres on a car. The money will be used to buy and operate machinery to turn scrap tyres into rubber bricks, used to pave roads, and once the capital outlay for the machinery is recouped, the tyre tax will be lifted. The proposal has the backing of the Hong Kong Automobile Association.

10th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Uses for old tyres: How many can you think of?

T&A has looked at the waste tyre issue several times recently. In fact retreading and recycling is hardly ever missed from the magazine. Our focus has largely been on the legislation, the collection, the mass disposal of tyres and the issues surrounding the problem. There is nothing to say that those issues will go away any day soon. Some of the solutions being wholeheartedly supported at present are not universally popular, and may themselves in time become problems. Most solutions only extend the life of a tyre, or its constituent parts, ultimately the waste will either be burned or buried. The key to winning ground in this battle is to extend the life of the product before it is disposed of. Some say, closing the loop.

If you try asking a granulating company what their products get used for, they will usually admit to Equestrian surfaces, or sports surfaces, but little else. Yet we are told that rubber crumb has a multitude of uses, but what are they?

The article in October’s issue looks at some of the wider uses for waste tyres, serious and not so serious.

9th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Hangzhou Zhongce to make tyres for Cooper

Cooper Tire & Rubber has signed an agreement with Hangzhou Zhongce, whereby the Chinese manufacturer will produce 250,000 – 350,000 radial medium truck tyres (RMTs) a year. Moulds and other equipment are being transferred to China from Cooper’s plant at Albany, Georgia, where all of Cooper’s RMTs are currently manufactured. Albany makes 25,000 tyres daily, of which 1,200 are RMTs and the plant employs 1,500 workers. The Chinese-made tyres will be produced under Cooper’s brand names and will be manufactured according to Cooper’s technical specifications.

8th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Cooper to Announce Q3 Results

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company will announce its third quarter financial results before the market opens on Thursday, October 16, 2003. A conference call discussing the financial results will follow at 11:00 a.m. (EDT). Individuals can access a webcasting of the conference call at our investor relations web page at www.coopertire.com

3rd October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear invests 30 million dollars in India

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company will invest 30 million US dollars to ease the debt burden of its Indian arm. The funds would be invested through the external commercial borrowing route in Goodyear India to retire high cost debts in favour of low cost borrowings. “India is an important market for Goodyear. We continue to seek ways to introduce tyre technology,” said Antonio Canallini, chairman and managing director, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, India. The joint venture company Goodyear South Asia Tyres Ltd. has recently augmented production capacity by 25 per cent at its Aurangabad facility.

25th September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear claims to achieve flexibility, cost goals with USWA Pact

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has stated that its new labour contract with the United Steelworkers of America (USWA) meets the operational flexibility and cost-savings goals established prior to the negotiations. “Our goal for these negotiations was to achieve what some thought was impossible: a fair agreement that contributed approximately 1 billion dollars in cost savings and cost avoidance over its three-year term without a work stoppage,” said Robert J. Keegan, Goodyear chairman and chief executive officer.

23rd September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

TIC wins international publicity for tyre campaign

The TIC has gained nationwide publicity for its campaign to have tyres “dated”. A recent press release on the need to dispose of aged tyres has been taken up by the US-based Strategic Safety LLC asking the NHTSA to require tyres to be “expiry marked”
Tire manufacturers responded that the idea may not be realistic since there are so many variables that affect ageing. “It’s not so simple to just slap a date on it,” said Dan Zielinski, a spokesman for the Rubber Manufacturers Association. A statement that flies in the face of the advice given out by the TIC, funded by the tyre industry in the UK, that told consumers “consumers to replace unused tires if they’re older than 6 years and replace all tires older than 10 years.” Zielinski said a discussion of expiration dates would be worthwhile, but said NHTSA shouldn’t act without collecting some solid scientific evidence. Zielinski said tyre manufacturers had concerns that the end users would ignore the “expiry date” or see the move as another rouse to force the consumer to buy more tyres. NHTSA spokesman Rae Tyson said the agency hopes to have a proposal on tyre ageing by June 2005.

23rd September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

All round Dunlop for SUVs and Light Trucks

Dunlop has announced a new, multiple application tyre targeted at the multi-purpose usage engaged by sport-utility vehicles and light trucks. The new Dunlop Rover RVXT is an all-terrain performance tyre carries the Rubber Manufacturers Association’s standard that designates tyres designed for use in severe snow conditions. The Rover RVXT is labelled with the mountain-and-snowflake symbol on the sidewall to distinguish its capability as a winter tyre. A key benefit for Dunlop dealers is the consolidation of two existing product lines – the Dunlop Rover RV and Rover P-Metric – as the new Rover RVXT hits the market. The new line offers 31 sizes, ranging from 15-inch to 17-inch rim diameters. The Rover RVXT’s tread pattern features a rugged, four-rib design to provide excellent on- and off-road performance. The tread has deep lateral grooves that provide extra traction in tough conditions, and circumferential grooves that assist in channelling water away from the tyre’s contact point patch with the road surface.

19th September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone Fire “Will Impact On Earnings”

Although the fire at Bridgestone’s factory in Kuroiso City is now under control, the after-effects are only now becoming apparent. Production has been halted indefinitely until the extent of the damage has been assessed. Spokeswoman Setsuko Ozaki, quoted on the Automotive News website, said “we have no idea when production will resume or how big a blow the fire will have on our earnings, but with an incident this big, there’s bound to be some impact.” Analysts suggest any impact on earnings would be small, but this didn’t prevent Bridgestone shares falling seven per cent on the Tokyo Stock Exchange at one point, against a market that rose two per cent overall. Shares in rival tyre manufacturers Yokohama and Sumitomo Rubber Industries rose by more than five per cent.

10th September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Cooper To Sponsor Formula Ford 2000 Championship

Cooper Tire & Rubber has announced a five-year agreement in the USA with Formula Motorsports Inc to create the Cooper Tire Championship Series, which will be the home of the Formula Ford 2000 Zetec racing programme. There will be three categories, all using Cooper Zeon racing radials. Cooper chairman, president and CEO Thomas A. Dattilo said that the group has a rich racing heritage in Europe with Avon tyres and it wants to expand this expertise more aggressively in other markets.

8th September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors