Across the Atlantic they are called tires, while over here we use a “Y” and say tyres. This tag provides the latest tyre business news emanating from the United States of America (USA), whichever way you spell it.
(Akron/Tire Review) Continental Tire North America (CTNA) launched what it called “the first online financial claims management system” for dealers in the North American tyre industry. The online effort is “designed to streamline the processing of financial claims for CTNA’s business partners and to eliminate a majority of the documentation which was previously submitted in hard copy format,” the company said.
Yokohama Tire Corp has resolved the last phase of its patent and trade dress infringement suit relating to Wanli S-1099 tyres sold in the US. It is not clear whether or not the case will have any bearing on the European tyre business and Belgian wholesaler Deldo, the exclusive European distributor of Wanli tyres, still lists the S-1099 in its catalogue. Speaking on behalf of the company, Phillip Delcroix told Tyres & Accessories he was “not aware of any problem.”
(Akron/Tire Review) Kumho Tire USA Inc will be relocating its US headquarters and its California warehouse from Fontana to Rancho Cucamonga, California, during the weekend of 10-11 December, and plans to be up and fully operational on Monday 12 December. Kumho said the new 830,300-square-foot building, named the Haven Distribution Center, is more than three times the space of its previous home. The facility features 136 truck docks and 144 trailer stalls.
Chester-based Allan Morris Transport, established in 1893 and one of the oldest transport companies in the UK, has switched to Bridgestone and its independent Truck Point dealer network for its tyres and tyre management services.
Continental AG CEO Manfred Wennemer has said he could well imagine the company making acquisitions in the US and Asia in the future. In an interview with Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, Wennemer also said there are plans to strengthen the tyre-making business in China.
According to a recent survey sponsored by the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, almost two-thirds of drivers in the USA admit to fear of an accident while driving in bad weather conditions.
As a way of communicating the effectiveness of their Assurance and Fortera tyres with TripleTred Technology, consumer marketers at Goodyear were interested in finding out how people approach changing weather conditions, and the driving challenges that arise.
In the survey, more than half (53 per cent) of respondents said inclement weather has negatively affected their overall trip experience.
(Akron/Tire Review) Toyo Tire (USA) Corp. said it would increase prices on all of its passenger and light truck/SUV tyres by up to 8 per cent, effective Jan. 1, 2006. No pricing announcement was made regarding Toyo’s commercial tyres.
(Akron/Tire Review) Retreading material manufacturer Bandag Inc has increased prices by 7 per cent on some of its tread stock and tyre repair products sold in the US. The 1 November increase does not impact other markets.
London-based International Rubber Study Group (IRSG) expects the price of natural rubber to remain strong in the next 10 to 15 years, increasing by about 25 to 30 US cents per kilo annually. Secretary-general Dr Hidde Smit told the Malaysia Star that the IRSG’s price forecast for NR this year was about $1.45 per kilogram, slightly higher than US$1.40 per kilo projected for 2004.
“There is an upward pressure for NR prices to be traded higher, buoyed by the increasing rubber consumption in the tyre sector, particularly in China, as well as the switch to NR from higher cost synthetic rubber due to higher crude oil prices,” he said.
The shareholders of US wholesaler, TBC Corp, have approved the company’s purchase by Sumitomo Corp of America. Sumitomo America, a subsidiary of Japan’s Sumitomo Corp will pay $35 in cash per TBC share. Including debt, the total acquisition value is about $1.1 billion. The transaction is expected to close later this week, the company said in a statement
Maxxis and Yamaha engineers have partnered to produce OE tyres for all four models of Yamaha’s “cutting edge ATV.” Maxxis will supply the M951 and the M952 tyre for use with the ATV the company calls Rhino. “We’re very pleased with the outcome of this project. The Rhino is on the forefront of the ATV market, and collaborating with Yamaha has allowed us to create a tire perfectly suited for the demands of this special machine,” said Scott Griffin, specialty tyre manager at Maxxis.
Maxxis is planning to complete construction of three new technical centres in Asia and the US in the next eight months. Construction is complete on the first new centre, near Shanghai, China.
Here workers are reportedly putting the finishing touches on the six-story, 143,182-square-foot facility, which will employ 200 engineers. Plans are also underway for construction of a proving ground, expected to open in 2008.
After a competitive tender process, WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme) has chosen US-based EER Limited, an international consulting firm specialising in waste tyre reuse, recycling and recovery, to carry out a comprehensive study of international ‘Best Practices’ for recycling scrap tyres into marketable products. “EER Limited’s wide-ranging international experience was important in the decision making process,” said Steve Waite, WRAP’s Tyre programme manager.
(Akron/Tire Review) Toyo Tire (USA) Corp. is introducing two 24-inch sizes of its Proxes 4 ultra-high performance tyre. The new sizes – 255/30R24 and 275/30R24 – are made with Toyo’s “Generation S” silica-reinforced tread compound and the tyremaker’s T-Mode design technology and are “ideal for even or stagger fitments,” Toyo said.
The Proxes 4 tyre features a unidirectional “w-shaped” tread design, curved centre rib for water evacuation and a five-variable pitch tread design for reduced noise, said Toyo.
(Akron/Tire Review) Hankook Tire Co saw profits increase 16 per cent in the third quarter, reaching $51 million against sales that rose 7 per cent to about $450 million. The South Korean tyremaker said the results were due to increased sales to automakers and price increases.
“Sales rose as Hankook raised prices of tyres in the US two times this year and once in Europe,” said Suh Min Chul, assistant manager of Hankook’s investor relations department. Hankook Tire, he noted, paid 11 per cent to 15 per cent more for raw materials compared to previous periods.
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