truck tyres Archives - Page 171 of 209 - Tyrepress

Truck Tyres

Tag Archive for: truck tyres

Apollo Planning European Factory & Distribution Chain

Apollo Tyres’ plans to double its turnover to US$2 billion by 2010 involve expansion in Europe, and Neeraj Kanwar, the company’s joint managing director and COO, has revealed further details of Apollo’s intentions to this end. Comments made by the senior Apollo executive have been printed in the Indian business newspaper, Mint.

The tyremaker is aware of Europe’s value as a market, and is planning its entry into the market carefully. Neeraj Kanwar said that Apollo views Europe “eventually as a domestic market.” Therefore, the company’s involvement in the region is “taking time because we want to get the service infrastructure and the back-end (operations) ready.” A previous attempt at European distribution, in cooperation with Netherlands based wholesaler Euro-Tyre BV, saw only a limited quantity of Apollo Tyres products sold in Europe, and this working relationship has now ended.

21st November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Semperit Launches Winter T&B Tyres

Semperit has launched a range of dedicated tyres for winter applications following the introduction of new legislation regarding the fitment of winter tyres on trucks and coaches in specific European countries.

For steer axles Semperit now offers the M440 Snow Front in 295/80R22.5 and 315/80R22.5 sizes. This tyre features numerous transverse edges ensuring safe steering and improved braking performance on roads in winter and has deep sipes which provide traction on packed snow and icy roads. Its wide open grooves and angled edges in the tyre shoulder are designed to enhance the self-cleaning characteristics of the tread pattern.

20th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Vietnam to Export Tyres to EU in 2008

Vietnam’s Southern Rubber Industry Company (Casumina) has signed an European export deal with Continental AG at the company’s Asian office in Malaysia on November 7. Casumina will export the first batch of motorbike and truck tyres that result from the five-year agreement in 2008, according to various Vietnamese news agency reports.

Under the contract, Continental AG will import at least 170,000 truck tyres and 600,000 motorbike tyres made by Casumina at a total value of US$12.9 million worth of e-marked tyres a year. Casumina exports to 36 countries worldwide.

20th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

More than ‘Just’ Tyres

The name of the Chinese tyre manufacturer Aufine is derived from the English words ‘all fine’, and according to the company’s general manager, David Sun, business these days is more than just all fine at Aufine. When Tyres & Accessories spoke to Mr. Sun at September’s CITExpo exhibition in Shanghai he was brimming with confidence about the company’s future, in particular with regards to export sales of its products and, more specifically, exports to European markets.

“For many people from overseas that we’ve met here at CITExpo, Aufine is a new brand,” observed David Sun. “Although we’ve been manufacturing tyres in China for 20 years, Aufine has only been exporting for one.” Therefore the new exporter of tyres from China viewed CITExpo as an opportunity to make new friends, so to speak, and Mr. Sun confirmed that the company’s main reason for attending the exhibition in Shanghai, along with promoting the Aufine brand, was to seek new agents in strategic export markets. To this end the general manager was able to confirm without hesitation that Aufine had been very successful in its quest.

14th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyre Technology – What’s Next?

(Douglasdale, South Africa/SA Treads) People often ask me what drew me to the tyre business. Why, the dynamism, creativity and sophistication of the industry, I promptly reply. At that, I’m usually met by blank stares and looks of incredulity, as if the notion of designing and making a tyre is akin to watching grass grow. But they can be forgiven for their misplaced scepticism as they’re likely unaware of the research, development and design genius that takes place long before a tyre leaves the production line. Modern tyre technology is not only sophisticated, it’s setting new, previously inconceivable benchmarks. So where is tyre technology headed and what will the tyre of the future look like? We ask those in the know.

When it comes to strategic focus and future developments, every global tyre maker has its own agenda, but our investigations revealed a number of common buzz words around this issue, primarily, interactive, green and fuel-efficient. Evidently, these are the main trends driving tyre technology today.

12th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Weller Truck Drives 400,000km on Michelin

A Mercedes-Benz Atego 1828 is operating on the same Michelin tyres fitted as original equipment when it rolled off the production line in November 2001, despite having covered over 440,000 km. The 18 tonner is owned by Staffordshire-based Weller Packaging and is fitted with Michelin 295/80 R22.5 XZE2 and XDE2 tyres. It is in operation five days a week transporting packaging materials from Shenstone (near Lichfield) to customers nationwide, with the vehicle starting each two-day distribution run with a maximum 9.2 tonne payload.

Nigel Hastilow, a driver and Transport Manager for Weller Packaging, explains: “Getting the best performance out of a set of tyres is all down to attention to detail. We carry out weekly tyre inspections, including pressure checks, which ensure our tyres are always in prime operating condition.

8th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Acquires 51% of Matador Tyre & Rubber Business

Continental AG has acquired a 51 per cent interest in Continental Matador Rubber s.r.o. based in Puchov, Slovakia. The tyre and conveyor belt business, together with the rubber processing equipment business unit, were separated beforehand from the parent company Matador a.s., which now holds a 49 per cent interest in the joint company. “This shareholding enables us to expand our existing joint venture with the Matador Group in the field of truck tyres. At the same time we are significantly strengthening our production and operations base in central and eastern Europe and making lasting investments here,” explained Manfred Wennemer, chairman of Continental’s Executive Board. The newly founded company will remain a legally independent unit with sole responsibility for its business.

Matador Group CEO Dr. Štefan Rosina said “we have been looking for a strategic partnership for our Passenger and Light Truck tyre business very seriously. Therefore, I’m glad that all conditions of this strategic alliance were successfully carried out and I am sure that this joint venture with Continental will give a new future to our tyre business. We will remain in this joint venture company as an important shareholder and this will enables us to strengthen our position in the automotive sector – our new strategic business for the Matador brand.”

8th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone Americas Officially Opens New Manufacturing Facility

November 7 marks the official grand opening of the first tyre manufacturing facility outside of Japan to utilise Bridgestone’s “BIRD” technology. National, state and regional officials from the Republic of Mexico will join representatives from Bridgestone Corporation, Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire and Bridgestone Neumáticos de Monterrey (BSMR) at the company’s new plant in Monterrey, in the Mexican state of Nuevo Leon, to commemorate the occasion.

With a production capacity of about 8,000 tyres a day, the Monterrey plant has generated more than US$200 million in investment to date. As previously mentioned, the facility employs Bridgestone’s new BIRD tyre production system, which stands for “Bridgestone Innovative and Rational Development.” According to Bridgestone, BIRD is the world’s first production system for tyres that completely automates all stages of tyre manufacturing, from the initial processing of materials to final inspection of the finished product. Additionally, the manufacturer reports that the BIRD system allows for greater flexibility and responsiveness to customer needs because of its capacity to make several different types and sizes of tyre simultaneously.

7th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Continental Warns Against Pirated Reproductions

Only a week after the US Tire Industry Association announced at the SEMA show in Las Vegas its “policy resolution” regarding look alike tyres, Continental has released its own statement on the issue of counterfeit products. The company wishes to extend an emphatic warning against the use of counterfeit Continental products, and has singled out Asia as the predominant site for the production of such items.

“Pirated reproductions do not have the same material and processing quality as genuine products, and can quickly become a safety risk,” emphasises Manfred Wennemer, Continental AG executive board chairman. In light of this, the company declares it is taking “decisive and comprehensive action” against product piracy, and has already had several major successes in its pursuit of Conti counterfeiters. For example, sales of truck tyres produced in China with illegally-copied Continental treads were stopped in Germany, and in Taiwan claims for damages have been asserted against a dealer.

7th November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Nokian Reports Strong Q3 Sales Growth

Nokian Tyres has reported a 27.9 per cent increase in third quarter net sales, having earned a total of 236 million euros during the three-month period. This gives the company a year to date net sales increase of 25.2 per cent, up from 533.9 million to 668.9 million euros. Operating profit for the quarter was 51.6 million euros, a 39.5 per cent increase on the same period last year. For the nine months of 2007 operating profit is recorded as 140.8 million euros, a sizeable 64.5 per cent rise from last year’s January to September operating profit of 85.6 million euros. Quarterly net profit was 37.4 million euros, a 36 per cent increase on the July-September 2006 profit of 27.5 million euros, and net profit for the nine-month period stands at 107.5 million euros, 81.2 per cent higher than during the same period last year.

Nokian Tyres’ president and CEO Kim Gran commented “the third quarter, in line with the earlier part of the year, was a success for Nokian Tyres. Net sales grew in all profit centres, and the operating profit improved from the previous year both during the third quarter and the period January-September. Sales grew in all key markets, particularly in Russia.

2nd November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Stamford Keeps Moving With Wheel Production

For the Stamford group Tyrexpo Asia has been a fixed event from the start, with both the company and exhibition being based in Singapore. Stamford, which is also listed on the Singapore stock exchange, is not only known within the tyre industry for its global wholesaling business; during the last three years it has also become very well known through its own wheel production activities. In 2004 Stamford Tyres began operating its Thai subsidiary Stamford Sport Wheels (SSW), which produces light alloy wheels in a low-pressure casting process. But because the new factory is already operating up to its capacity limits, the company is currently investing another 20 million US dollars in order to establish a second wheel factory on the same site near Thailand’s capital Bangkok, says Roger Chang, CEO of Stamford Sport Wheels Co. Ltd.

The initial plans to build its own factory arose when demand for Stamford’s private brand was growing ever stronger at a time when suitable offtake partners possessing additional capacities in the region were becoming more and more difficult to find. This led to the decision to trust in its own capabilities to install and operate a wheel factory rather than continuously exist in a state of uncertainty with regards to the supply situation, the CEO told Tyres & Accessories during an interview at Tyrexpo Asia in Singapore: “The supply situation with light alloy wheels had become an issue.” Consequently, the wholesaler and retailer decided to also become a manufacturer. Thus, since the beginning of 2004 Stamford has operated its SSW factory in Thailand and maintains about 300 employees there. These staff produce about 400,000 light alloy wheels in sizes up to 24 inches per year.

1st November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone Reports Improved Third Quarter Sales & Net Income

Bridgestone announced its third quarter results on November 1, along with combined results for the first three quarters of the year. These figures revealed a 303.7 billion (£1.28 billion) or 14 per cent increase in net sales for the first nine months of the year, with sales for Q1 to Q3 2007 recorded as 2,466.7 billion yen (£10.36 billion). Operating income increased 32 per cent during the same period, rising to 162.8 billion yen (£683 million), with net income jumping 64 per cent to 82.3 billion yen (£345.6 million).

The company received 1,993 billion yen (£8.37 billion) through the sale of tyres during the first nine months of the year, 16 per cent more than for the same period of 2006. Operating income for Bridgestone’s tyre operation was 123.1 billion yen (£516.9 million), an increase of 44 per cent over 2006. Bridgestone reports that it worked to “maximise sales momentum by introducing appealing new products worldwide, while at the same time improving and expanding strategic production sites around the world in support of those products that have been identified as strategic and important to the company’s future growth.”

1st November 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Samson Machinery – Designed to Last

Taiwan’s Samson Machinery Inc., has enjoyed steady growth since its establishment in 1975 by Mr. Lin Kun-Te. During this time the company has acquired a high level of knowledge in the area of tyre manufacturing equipment. This knowledge, along with the experience gained through 32 years in the business, has been instrumental in facilitating the company’s expansion, especially during the last few years. In order to keep pace with customer demand Samson moved into a newer and larger premises in September 2006, and from this new location it continues to provide equipment to customers worldwide.

Today Samson supplies a full range of tyre building machinery suitable for large or small tyre manufacturers engaged in a range of market segments. The company’s main products include: Tyre building machines, band building machines, ply servicers, building drums & related accessories, tyre trimming machinery, green tyre splicing machines, curing presses, and horizontal ply auto cutting & splicing machines. Machinery that is suited to the production of most tyres, including bicycle, scooter, motorcycle, passenger car radial, light truck radial, SUV, truck & bus, industrial and OTR, even aircraft tyres and radial truck tyres can be ordered. Customers can order machinery for bias and radial, semi-steel or all-steel, small and large sizes.

31st October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Starco Group Bound for Growth in Asia

Known in Europe as the market leader for small tyres, Denmark’s Starco group is currently taking steps to also secure a foothold in Asia. One such step, for example, is Starco’s first time presence at this year’s Tyrexpo Asia, explained Brian Lorentzen. Evidence that the Danish company is pursuing a strong growth strategy can be seen from even a brief look at the company’s annual reports and the development of Starco’s turnover. For example, last year Starco generated a turnover of US$100 million, this year the figure will very likely be 100 million euros. This means that the leading company in the European market for small tyres will experience about 30 per cent growth within just 12 months. Over the last ten years the Starco group has even achieved an increase in its annual turnover by a factor of ten.

31st October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Makes Energy Saving Big News

Michelin wants the world to know that its energy saving tyres reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions – and on October 30 the French tyre major launched a novel new method of getting its message across. Every evening at 7pm the company will project “Green” meters onto prominent landmarks in four major world cities. These meters will display the estimated fuel savings and reductions in CO2 emissions achieved since 1992, the year Michelin first released low rolling resistance tyres with silica used in part as a substitute for carbon black.

Featuring Bibendum, the iconic Michelin Man, the meters will be projected onto the façade of the Park Inn Hotel in Berlin, the NASDAQ and Reuters boards in New York’s Times Square, the Port de Suffren at the foot of the Eiffel Tower, and on the City Group Mansion tower, across from the Bund, in Shanghai – four cities, says Michelin, whose growth has been driven by the mobility of the goods and people who come and go every day.

31st October 2007/by Tyrepress Editors