Truck Tyres
Russia’s leading tyre and rubber industry companies have met as part of a subcommittee organised by the Russian Federation’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The meeting, conducted by subcommittee chairman, Sibur-Russian Tyres’ Igor Karavaev, was held to discuss varying issues including import duties, the regulatory use of winter tyres in the Russian Federation and the issue of end of life tyre recycling.
Worsening economic conditions in the US are continuing to affect tyre manufacturers. Goodyear has announced yet another one-week partial shutdown of its Topeka, Kansas factory. Truck radial production will be halted for the week beginning October 13, leaving around 500 workers idled without pay. A spokesperson for the employees’ union, the United Steelworkers, said the shutdown is taking place due to an overabundance of unsold truck tyres in Goodyear’s inventory.
The popular Michelin range X Terminal-T tyres is being expanded through the addition of a 310/80R22.5 fitment to the already available line-up of specialist tyres designed primarily for fitment to tractor units, tugs and trailers used for short-distance movements in ports and freight terminals.
Suitable for fitment in any axle position, Michelin reports that its new 310/80R22.5 X Terminal-T tyre incorporates an advanced industrial casing design and features a unique blend of materials, which deliver even tread wear and low operating costs, along with good machine and payload protection from shock and vibration. This new size can easily be fitted in place of 11R22.5 and 295/80R22.5 sizes in particular, as their rolling circumferences are very similar and the rim widths are identical at 8.25 or 9.00 inches.
Yokohama Tire admits that an OTR division is typically not the highest profile area in a tyre company’s hierarchy – yet it’s one of the most profitable. While they produce and sell the world’s largest and heaviest tyres, it is the consumer and, to a lesser extent, commercial divisions that receive most of the limelight. To set the record straight, Yokohama Tire USA has interviewed two key members of its OTR division, director of OTR sales Gary Nash and national sales manager Nelson Richards. The two men discuss the inner workings of Yokohama’s OTR department, the marketplace and the future of OTR.
For the highly competitive truck market, International Tyres & Trading acts as the sole UK distributors for the Sumo Firenza range which continues to gain ground as a mid-range option, particularly for small to medium sized haulage fleets who consider tyre costs per mile to be very important. Sumo Firenza tyres are manufactured in the Far East, incorporating Japanese technology, and have six pattern ranges for a number of specific applications.
The Firenza SSR05A pattern is for steering and trailer usage courtesy of the tyre’s wider tread and flatter profile for excellent mileage return and smooth drive handling. For the Super Single sector, the Firenza SSR055A pattern is available in size 385/65R22.5. Other patterns in the Firenza range include the SSD08, SSM07 and SST07, which are all designed for various driving positions as well as all-positional use, offering a tread pattern designed for impressive traction on all types of road conditions. All Firenza truck tyres incorporate a solid shoulder construction with zero angle steel band ply to protect against irregular wear.
Toyo Tire & Rubber has expressed its satisfaction in again being named the leading overall brand for medium truck tyres in Tire Review Magazine’s annual Tire Brand Study of North American tyre dealers. This honour has fallen to Toyo in five of the past seven years.
Conducted by Babcox Research for Tire Review, the survey measured tyre dealer opinions and perceptions about the brands they carry and sell. As a part of the tyre survey, dealers were asked to rate each brand of tyres they stock on a one to ten scale on a series of categories. Toyo reports that it scored number one in five of the nine survey categories – overall brand, retreadability, application coverage, fill-rate and adjustment policy.
Goodyear Dunlop has appointed Robin Sharpe as its director of sales capability management EU – a newly created role based in Brussels. He will work closely with Hans Vrijsen, sales director consumer tires EU, and Jan-Piet Huylebroeck, director sales truck tires EU, as well as with country sales management teams.
Sharpe joined Goodyear Dunlop Tyres UK in 2006 as sales and marketing director truck tyres after a 22-year career with Procter & Gamble in a variety of sales and operational roles. At Goodyear Dunlop he led the team which embarked on the restructuring of the UK truck organisation and in recent months he has acted as interim retail director for the HiQ fast fit centre network.
Continental Truck Tyres is presenting its new HSU 1 M+S steering-axle tyre for city driving at the IAA Commercial Vehicle Show in Hanover, Germany. The new tyre is available in size 275/75 R 22.5 148/ 145 J (152/ 148 E), and Conti reports the HSU 1 M+S complements its already introduced HSU 1 and the HSW Scandinavia tyres, and provides enhanced braking and steering safety.
The introduction of the HSU 1 M+S tyre completes Continental’s city driving tyre line-up. Joining the HSU 1, an all-season tyre for varying weather conditions and the HSW Scandinavia for extremely adverse wintry road conditions, the new tyre provides excellent traction on muddy, snow-covered roads. The newly developed tread pattern provides a wider margin of steering and braking safety than an all-season tyre tread, reports Continental.
Liverpool based Kirkby Tyres & Wheels, the exclusive distributor of Double Coin tyres in the UK and Ireland, reports that the company’s crane tyres are becoming an increasingly popular item. This popularity can be seen by the decision made by Davies Crane Hire Limited to fit Double Coin brand tyres as its preferred brand, effective immediately.
Kirby’s national accounts director, Simon Michael, believes this decision in favour of Double Coin to be a significant step forward for the brand in the highly competitive crane industry, and reports that the South Wales crane hire firm will be supplied and services by Carmarthenshire Tyre Services Limited.
Sailun Tyre is a company that epitomises the rapid technological advances made by Chinese industry in recent years. Although it was only established six years ago, Sailun has plans to expand significantly.
The company is situated in the National Economic and Technological Development Zone in Qingdao and manufactures all-steel radial truck tyres. However, its ambition is to build three modern factories to manufacture a range of medium truck radials and bias and radial special tyres, as well as the existing range. These plans also include a dedicated test track to be used in the development and evaluation of new products.
Sailun has already invested heavily in R&D, utilising CAD software to build mathematical models for finite element analysis, refining the design of a tyre and predicting its behaviour and performance while still on the screen. The company boasts a very short development time for new products and has established long-term co-operation in science and research with institutions such as the National university of Defence Technology and the Qindao University of Science and Technology.
Sumitomo Rubber Industries is establishing a company to handle the sale of tyres in the Middle East region. The Dubai based company, called Sumitomo Rubber Middle East FZE, will start operations of January 1, 2009, and will focus upon expanding sales of replacement tyres in the region, an area where Sumitomo has identified growth. The key products handled by the new company will be passenger car, light commercial and truck tyres.
The company, 100 per cent owned by Sumitomo Rubber Industries, will be headed by Masaru Tabata. The operations will employ approximately 15 persons.
Bridgestone has completed a seven-year investment plan in its Brazilian subsidiary, Bridgestone Firestone do Brasil Indústria e Comércio Ltda. The investment plan is said to have been worth in the area of US$460 million.
This news comes as the company celebrates the production of tyre number three million at its facility in Camaçari. This milestone was reached nineteen months after the factory’s inauguration. The factory, located on a seven-hectare site in the state of Bahia, currently has a capacity in excess of 8,000 passenger car and light truck tyres per day.
Continental AG has made a number of personnel changes in its Passenger and Light Truck Tires division. On September 1, Nikolai Setzer took over management of the replacement passenger and light truck tyre market for Europe and Africa. He is also responsible for worldwide marketing of the Passenger and Light Truck Tire division. Setzer had been in charge of the worldwide original equipment business for passenger and light truck tyres. In his new position he will report to Continental AG’s vice chairman of the Executive Board, Dr Alan Hippe, who is also responsible for the Passenger and Light Truck Tire division.
Fresh from the launch of its new website, Marshal is keen to ramp up its truck tyre operation, using a variety of customer-friendly measures.
To make selection easier for customers and end users, a clear naming system has been adopted for all new tyres in the range. This includes an indication of the application, for example L for long haul, R for regional, M for mixed service etc. The position is also given by a letter such as S for steer, T for trailer and A for all-position. Finally a two digit number (01, 02 and so on) shows the series.
In addition to the improvements to retail operations, Marshal is confident that its range can cater to the needs of a wide range of customers. To meet the demands of long-distance highway use at constant high speed, Marshal’s long haul range delivers good stability and handling and long original tread life, while offering a smooth ride and minimising uneven wear. The regional range combines excellent handling and ride comfort with the need for good traction and long tread life.
Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire is recalling 184 Firestone brand FS400 medium truck tyres in size 315/80R22.5 Load Range L.
The recalled tyres were produced between June 15 and June 28, 2008, and are being recalled because the tyres were not branded with the maximum speed limit rating required by FMVSS 119 standards. BFNAT is to notify owners of the safety campaign, and will replace the tyres free of charge. (Tire Review/Akron)
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