JK Tyre has been chosen as a Superbrand for the year 2013-14 and ranked amongst the top ten per cent of all brands, across categories in India. This is the third year in a row that Superbrands India has chosen JK Tyre as a Superbrand, and so far it is the only Indian tyre brand to be chosen as a Superbrand. This year, the company improved its overall net score from 6.8 to 7.6 out of 10.
Continuing our coverage of developments in the UK tyre retail sector, Tyres & Accessories reports on the following 15 companies in its 2014 top 20 leading UK tyre retailers report. After the market leading five, the next five companies in the top 20 are the fastest growing in our ranking, and probably in the market as a whole. Like Micheldever/Protyre, McConechy’s Tyre Service has grown significantly since our last survey, adding seven branches to its number and pushing its total up to 52. This brings the company’s total back to pre-recessionary levels and could be read as another indication of improving conditions in the market.
The China International Tires and Wheels Fair, held from 9-11 April 2014 at the Qingdao International Convention Center, focuses completely on the development of the rubber and tyre industries in China. Established in 2004 exhibits include rubber processing equipment, finished tyre products and tyre related products such as tyre accessories and wheels.
The cars on our roads are getting older, and there are more of them as well. According to the findings of the largest-ever census of UK car ownership carried out by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), the country’s car parc rose by around 436,000 units, or 1.4 per cent, to reach a precise total of 31,917,885 cars in 2013. The ‘Motorparc’ study also identified that the average age of cars in the UK has risen by a year over the past decade; average car age is now 7.7 years old, and in 2013 there were 2.06 million cars over 12 years old on the road, 11.3 per cent more than in 2012.
Mercedes-Benz has signed a deal with Maxxis to supply its MCV3 van tyres as original equipment on the 5.0T and 3.88T variants of the Sprinter.
Sustainable materials company Lehigh Technologies Inc. has strengthened its research and development capabilities by investing in new mixing and analytical equipment for its Application and Development Center (ADC) and through the appointment of Chad Jasiunas as technical manager for functional materials. This expansion enables Lehigh to further promote the adoption of its sustainable micronised rubber powder (MRP) material in green tyre applications.
At its recent annual conference, Maxxis International and UK distribution partner Stapleton’s (Tyre Services) Ltd announced the appointment of Alan Littlewood to the position of Maxxis brand manager. Maxxis International says Littlewood has taken on the role to help strengthen the Maxxis brand throughout the UK and to further develop the partnership between Maxxis, Stapleton’s and the Maxxis Key Dealer network.
Maxxis has announced its support for cancer charity Macmillan at the Autosport International show in January. The tyre manufacturer will host motorsport stars, racing cars and bikes, and its own Maxxis Babes team to pull in attendees at the Birmingham NEC. The company has targeted the figure of £500, which it hopes to exceed through calendar sales on the Saturday of the show.
Maxxis International has announced Priorslee Motor Services in Telford as its 2013 winner of the Maxxis Extra Mile competition. Priorslee Motor Services were chosen as this year’s ‘Wildcard’ winners after hosting a family open day in conjunction with Maxxis and in aid of Severn Hospice, which UK managing director, Derek McMartin described as “a brilliant way of promoting the Maxxis brand.”
New research published by Direct Line for Business reveals that Britain’s builders, plumbers, electricians and other tradespeople are living out of their vans – using them as mobile offices, bedrooms and entertainment centres. While not wanting to be accused of being asleep on the job, Britain’s tradespeople are using their vans as mobile homes with 11 per cent sleeping in their vehicle. Almost a third (31 per cent) of tradespeople use their van as a mobile office to manage their business. Vans are also used as mobile dining rooms, with just under a half (45 per cent) of tradespeople eating their meals in their vehicle.
While many motorsport series take a summer break in August, Yokohama says there was still plenty to keep its tyre engineers busy across Europe and the world last month. The Japanese brand supports more than 35 race series in the UK and Europe with more around the world, including the USA and Asia, including the FIA World Touring Car Championship, the FIA European Rally Championship and the UK BRDC Formula 4 series.
Perhaps more renowned for its car and bike ranges, Maxxis provides a solution for a wide variety of long and medium haul applications, manufactured with a tread compound intended to increase durability and shoulders designed using Virtual Intelligent Prototyping (VIP) technology to reduce wear. Maxxis explains that its VIP technology combines a series of computer-aided analysis programs that lay out a framework for each tyre’s design. The system factors in pressure points at varying inflation levels and contact points to simulate cornering, acceleration, braking and the effects of strain and wear.
The weekly e-bulletin from the Independent Automotive Aftermarket Federation quotes a worldwide cost survey commissioned by This is Money from Looking4Parking.com which says that British motorists are being hit with the world's fourth most expensive diesel prices.
An analysis of 515,248 UK police force records obtained by consumer motoring champion, HonestJohn.co.uk, has revealed that cities in the North of England are the worst affected by car crime, with Manchester topping the league table. Between October 2011 and September 2012, 505 offences per 10,000 registered vehicles were reported in central Manchester. This figure is four times the national average for car crime, which HonestJohn.co.uk calculated as 121 offences per 10,000 vehicles. Even taking into account the higher levels of car crimes in urban areas, in part associated with the greater influx of vehicles entering city centres, the rate of reported offences was still 2.1 times the national 'urban' average of 242 offences per 10,000 vehicles.
Maxxis produces tyres for the range of weather conditions, from the high performance PRO R1 summer tyre to the MAPW performance winter tyre. Despite originating in Taiwan, the company’s research and development department has even created a range of Nordic tyres specifically designed for Scandinavia and its severe weather conditions. These extreme tyres come with advanced tread compounds, high density sipes, and a rectangular shoulder profile that helps expand surface contact and provide extra safety in all conditions, meaning they work differently to other winter tyres due to the severe weather conditions.
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