Truck Tyres
Concept vehicles are an integral part of the motor show circuit, and the North American International Auto Show in Detroit is no exception. Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO), in cooperation with General Motors, has debuted two new fitments on GMC and Cadillac concept vehicles at the show.
Plans to cease tyre production at Michelin’s factory in Ota, Japan were announced on January 15. Upon giving word of the July 2010 end of passenger car and light truck tyres at the Gunma Prefecture site, Michelin explained that, despite taking measures to improve productivity, reduce production costs and, since 2007, refocus on the production of ‘complex products’, production costs at the Ota plant have remained around twice as high as those of other plants serving that tyre segment.
Les Smith Haulage Limited’s decision to switch to Continental from another premium brand is said to be delivering 25 per cent longer life on its front steer tyres. According to the company these tyres are achieving over 100,000 kilometres before being changed. Those on the rear axle are reportedly giving up to 400,000 kilometres of life.
The 18 vehicle fleet is made up entirely of Mercedes-Benz Axor two-axle 18 tonners. These typically cover between 80,000 and 100,000 kilometres a year on work throughout the UK which includes both motorway and A road running. A policy of only ever fitting new tyres, correct tyre selection and careful monitoring of tyre condition lie behind the good performance of the Continentals.
The reaching of a million man-hours without a recorded ‘losttime’ accident has been described as a “major safety milestone” for the Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO) tyre factory in Wilson, North Carolina. The Wilson plant, which produces passenger car and light truck tyres and has a staff of more than 1,800, is the eighth Bridgestone Americas facility to reach this milestone in 2009, making it a record year for the company.
The cost of Michelin products in the US will increase as of February 1. Prices for Michelin and BFGoodrich brand replacement market commercial truck tyres, as well as Michelin Retread Technologies retreads, will increase by up to seven per cent. Increases for Michelin, BFGoodrich, Uniroyal plus private and associate brand passenger car and light truck replacement tyres will vary according to product line. Michelin brand replacement market earthmover tyres will be up to four per cent more expensive.
It is now three years since Warburg Pincus and its partner, former Balkrishna Industries executive director Yogesh Mahansaria, announced an intention to acquire Alliance Tire. In the time since the Mahansaria family and their global private equity backer took possession of Alliance for approximately US$150 million, plans to develop the business have progressed steadily. Not only has the goal of taking advantage of India’s cheaper production costs been realised – the company’s $100 million cross-ply agricultural tyre factory in Tirunelveli has been readied for the start of commercial production – during 2009 acquisitions and further inroads into new markets boosted the Alliance brand’s profile considerably.
Changes are afoot within Goodyear Tire & Rubber’s European agricultural tyre business. Last September, the company signed a non-binding letter of intent with Titan International to sell its European agricultural tyre assets, including the Goodyear Dunlop Tires France Amiens North factory. In December Tyres & Accessories discussed this deal with Alessandro Coggi, managing director Farm and Industrial Tires, Goodyear Dunlop Europe.
In 2009 Bridgestone and Michelin remained relatively stable market leaders in the UK commercial vehicle tyre market. However a real turnaround has taken place in the rest of the top five. According to Tyres & Accessories’ research, the recession has resulted in traditional truck and bus tyre market stalwarts Goodyear Dunlop and Continental being leapfrogged by relative newcomers Hankook, which now resides in third place with a 20 per cent market share.
While Continental didn’t explicitly confirm all the details of T&A/tyrepress.com’s research at its annual market trends briefing in London on 11 December, a spokesperson did concede that the company had slipped to fourth place in 2009 (holding 15 per cent of the market), after its group brands occupied third position in 2008: “We reached third position in 2008, but the challenging economic conditions mean that we are currently fourth in the market with an aim to regain ground in the next three years.”
Whether the attention Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., Asia Pacific gained at Reifen China was a result of the tyres on display or the bus loads of dancers performing on the exhibition stand each hour, you cannot ignore that the company has embarked on a slick and high profile marketing campaign and is increasingly making an impact on the domestic Chinese market in both the passenger car and truck tyre sectors. With this in mind, Tyres & Accessories interviewed vice president and general manager Asia operations, Allen Tsaur, and senior PR manager Jojo Tang.
Cooper’s ongoing region-specific marketing push aims to invest in the future of China’s fast growing automotive business by reaching more consumers and particularly the young driver audience. Car ownership in general has shot up in recent years, but Tang reports that ownership in the 23 – 35 age group has “boomed.” And this explains the “Charlie’s Angels” meets “Kill Bill” styling of the Cooper Angels customer-facing marketing concept.
Tire shipments in the United States through the first half of 2009 posted perhaps their worst performance in history, according to new data from the RMA. OE passenger tyre shipments through the first six months fell an incredible 54.3 per cent versus the same period last year. By comparison, OE shipments for the first half of 2008 were down 10.8 per cent year-over-year. The replacement side wasn’t much better, off 11.9 per cent versus the same period last year. 2008’s first half saw shipments off a meager 0.7 per cent versus the first half of 2007.
Continental Tire North America recently offered truck fleet customers the chance to go inside the complexities of fuel efficiency during the tyremaker’s “Beat the Best” fuel savings workshop at its proving grounds in Uvalde, Texas. Fleet executives from both potential and existing customers learned about all the factors that impact truck tyre fuel efficiency, said Clif Armstrong, CTNA’s director of truck tyre marketing, including tyre-, vehicle- and driver-related aspects.
Alliance Tire Group has successfully fought off Titan International’s bid for key GPX International Tire Corporation assets. On December 2, Titan submitted a US$44 million bit for GPX International’s US and South African business assets to the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Massachusetts, an offer $5.7 million higher than that previously announced by Alliance. However, on December 8 Alliance announced the court approval of its agreement to acquire key GPX International assets, customer relationships, warehouse footprint and engineering capabilities. The agreement will also give Alliance worldwide rights to the Galaxy and Primex brands, the company’s medium radial truck tyre distribution business and South African subsidiary, GPX Tyre South Africa (Pty.). Exact details of Alliance’s final bid are unknown, however it is said to be in excess of $50 million.
Nailing Continental’s colours to the mast, the company’s head of passenger and light truck tyres has spoken of its commitment to technological investment and growing its high performance passenger car range. Nikolai Setzer said, “Technology leadership is a decisive factor for further growth”, concurrently claiming that despite the financial woes of the past 15 months, the high-performance tyres market will continue to grow. Setzer sees new technologies, investment in research and development, and underpinning the sales in the replacement business through success in original equipment as the way to go. In the high-performance tyres sector in particular, he can see attractive opportunities for growth in Europe.
Market share data released by Hankook shows that Michelin remains the undisputed leader in both the car and truck tyre segments. However, the previously exclusive stable of top five tyre manufacturers has gained a new member in 2009. Hankook’s decision to publish its projections of how the land lies, following one of the most tumultuous periods in the market’s history, may only have happened because it was a good year for the South Korean tyre manufacturer, however the fact remains the unusual combination of events experienced in the last 12 months means there are signs that the status quo has been disrupted. Looking forward the question is: will the company be able to sustain this position in the years to come?
Here’s Hankook’s calculation of how the European car tyre market will look at the end of 2009. Michelin remains market leader with a 20 per cent market share, followed by Goodyear Dunlop (18 per cent). Bridgestone are next on the list with a 12 per cent share of the market, followed by Pirelli with 8 per cent. And here’s where things get interesting. Hankook are in sixth place with a 7 per cent market share, snapping at the heels of fifth-placed Pirelli who are only one percentage point ahead with 8 per cent.
Hankook are now the sixth largest tyre manufacturer in Europe, according to company figures. Speaking during a tour of the South Korean-based tyre manufacturer’s Racalmas, Hungary tyre production plant in November, European PR manager, Felix Kinzer, announced that the company now calculates it is the seventh largest tyre maker in the world in terms of units sales; and not far from sixth. Tyres & Accessories' own data, which calculates the rankings based on the value of sales using the euro as the control currency, puts the company in eighth. Algebraical differences aside, the point is that Hankook is gaining ground on its competitors, something that is even clearer when you look at Hankook's take on the current European leaderboard. The company’s calculation puts Hankook in sixth place in the European passenger car tyre market with a 7 per cent market share, snapping at the heels of fifth-placed Pirelli with 8 per cent. Things are even better in the truck and bus tyre business, where the company’s market share has reportedly grown to nine per cent, putting the company in fifth place after Bridgestone (13 per cent), this time ahead of Pirelli (5 per cent). When you consider the rapid growth rates Hankook' sales are currently experiencing, the company's arguably ambitious calculations deserve further attention.
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.
