USA Archives - Page 238 of 268 - Tyrepress

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.

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Small is dangerous – according to US research

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration analysed statistics from every major type of crash between 1991 and 1999 and found that occupants of lighter cars would suffer the most if the nation’s cars and trucks were to become lighter. NHTSA estimated that reducing weight per vehicle by an average 100 pounds would result in 597 more small-car deaths annually, 216 more large car deaths and 305 more light truck deaths. “It doesn’t mean we would rule out weight reductions,” said NHTSA spokesman Rae Tyson. “We don’t design vehicles. But it does mean the people who design vehicles will have to be careful about how they make weight reductions so they don’t compromise safety.” This continues a long tradition of defending the typically large US vehicle. If we all drive smaller cars then small cars are safe, otherwise the laws of physics apply.

15th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Continental strengthens Asian presence

Continental has increased its holding in Malaysian tyre manufacturer Sime Darby from the initial 30 per cent (an investment of 52.6 million US$) to 51 per cent. Sime Darby group’s two tyre companies will now be known as SDC Tyre Sdn Bhd. As well as a manufacturing base, the move gives Continental access to Sime Darby’s Malaysian dealer network of more than 1,000 outlets.

14th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

SmarTire targets recreational vehicles

SmarTire has launched tyre pressure monitoring systems specifically aimed at the recreational vehicle, towed vehicle and trailer markets. The RV market is worth $12.3 billion in the USA and is growing. A recent study showed that 80 per cent of RVs had at least one tyre that was under-inflated and a third of these were dangerously under-inflated to the point of being at risk of failure.

9th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

US tests vehicles for rollover risk

the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has introduced tests to measure the risk of vehicle rollovers. The tests were ordered after the Ford Explorer/Firestone tyre saga and their implementation is a year behind schedule. There are 22 million SUVs in the USA and rollover fatalities last year were up 14 per cent to 2,400. No details of the method of testing have been revealed, but vehicle manufacturers are dubious about the validity of any tests, saying that a number of different factors can affect rollover, including road conditions, vehicle stability detection systems and tyre pressures.

7th October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Extended steam agreement with Dayton Tire

Smith Cogeneration, of Oklahoma City has signed an agreement with Dayton Tire Company. The accord provides a seven-year extension of their agreement to provide low-cost steam as a byproduct of their electric power, cogeneration plant. The PowerSmith cogeneration power plant began service in 1989 supplying
low-cost steam to Bridgestone at a time when the tire plant was scheduled to be shutdown due to high costs. After the closure announcement, PowerSmith offered to provide low-cost steam by building a cogeneration
plant adjacent to the tyre plant. The plant would generate 110 MW of electric power and produce 80,000 lbs of steam per hour to be used in Firestone’s tyre making facility. Today the plant produces some 44,000 tyres per day and is one of the most efficient in the US.

3rd October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

US Patent Office Allows Patent Application for Run Flat Tire

Amerityre Corporation has received notice from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that its patent application for its “Run Flat Tire with an Elastomeric Inner Support” has been allowed with 11 claims. “The allowance of the application is signification because most of the tyre companies today are trying to establish a ‘run flat’ system,” said Richard Steinke, Amerityre’s CEO. “This design will carry the load well beyond the 50 miles currently targeted by the industry,” he added.Mr. Steinke further stated, “Two years ago we developed ‘air-no air’ automobile tyres that we drove for over 500 miles with zero air pressure and several holes in them. We have been building on that technology to create both a ‘run flat’ system that operates with existing pneumatic tyres as well as developing an ‘air-no air’ tyre without mechanical assistance.

3rd October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Metro Tyres Predicts Turnover Growth

Indian two-wheeler tyre producer Metro Tyres predicts a 10 per cent growth in turnover this fiscal year to 3.3 billion Rupees (US$72 million) and five billion Rupees ($109.9 m) in the next three years, on the back of its technical alliance with Continental AG. Metro will also invest 200 million Rupees (44.4 m) to double production at its factory in Ludhiana to a monthly capacity of 100,000 tyres and tubes. The Indian domestic two-wheeler tyre market is estimated to be worth 10 billion Rupees ($219.5 million) annually.

2nd October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Carlisle freezes in Caribbean

Implement and ATV manufacturer Carlisle Tire has had its assets frozen in Trinidad. The company dismissed 400 employees from its Point Fortin plant which was closed two weeks ago after workers began protesting about what they claimed were unsafe working conditions, including exposure to harmful chemicals. Carlisle said it dismissed the workers because they had abandoned their jobs. Workers were not given severance packages. The court’s ruling allows Carlisle to spend only 4,200 US dollars in monthly operating expenses at the plant. The plant, located in a free-trade zone, manufactured 3,000 to 4,000 tires a day for export, according to court documents.

2nd October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Car Makers To Slash Jobs

Only days after signing new master labour agreements with unions in the USA, Ford and DaimlerChrysler have announced comprehensive job-cutting plans. Ford will lose 12,000 jobs worldwide (1,700 in Europe), while DCX will offer early retirement packages to “thousands of US workers” according to reports. One unconfirmed press story suggests that DCX could close up to nine US factories as the car makers face a downturn described as “the most severe that the industry has suffered.”

1st October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Goodyear Eagle F1 Is “Best Buy”

In the US, the publication “Consumers Digest Magazine” has named the Goodyear Eagle F1 tyre as the “Best Buy” in the performance tyre category – an accolade that CDM awards to fewer than three per cent of the products it reviews. The tyre was also rated as the “Premium Selection” – a designation that means the product is “the best at any price” according to CDM.

1st October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

TPMS creates 200 jobs in Antrim

Tyre technology firm Schrader Electronics has announced that it is to build a new factory at Carrickfergus in Antrim (Northern Ireland), which will create 200 jobs.

1st October 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Kumho Moves Up A Place In World Rankings

Kumho Tire has moved up from tenth to ninth position in the list of world tyre manufacturers, published by US magazine Tire Business. With sales of over $1.44 billion last year – a double-digit increase – Kumho overtook Toyo in the world rankings. Tire Business estimates that the top three tyre manufacturers control 60 per cent of the world tyre market, and the top ten account for 80 per cent.

30th September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

Continental To Cut Jobs In USA

Continental Tire North America is to cut production at its plant in Mayfield, Kentucky, by 22 per cent, resulting in the loss of 200 jobs; around 15 per cent of the total workforce. Rising costs, especially so-called “legacy” costs were blamed for the move.

30th September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

TIC wins international publicity for tyre campaign

The TIC has gained nationwide publicity for its campaign to have tyres “dated”. A recent press release on the need to dispose of aged tyres has been taken up by the US-based Strategic Safety LLC asking the NHTSA to require tyres to be “expiry marked”
Tire manufacturers responded that the idea may not be realistic since there are so many variables that affect ageing. “It’s not so simple to just slap a date on it,” said Dan Zielinski, a spokesman for the Rubber Manufacturers Association. A statement that flies in the face of the advice given out by the TIC, funded by the tyre industry in the UK, that told consumers “consumers to replace unused tires if they’re older than 6 years and replace all tires older than 10 years.” Zielinski said a discussion of expiration dates would be worthwhile, but said NHTSA shouldn’t act without collecting some solid scientific evidence. Zielinski said tyre manufacturers had concerns that the end users would ignore the “expiry date” or see the move as another rouse to force the consumer to buy more tyres. NHTSA spokesman Rae Tyson said the agency hopes to have a proposal on tyre ageing by June 2005.

23rd September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors

New Pirelli Plant in Brazil

Pirelli has opened its new Feira de Santana factory in Bahia, Brazil. With a primary investment that amounts to about 120 million US dollars, the plant has 32,000 square metres of constructed area. The initial daily production is of to 2,500 high performance radial tyres, which will be destined to the domestic and Latin-American markets, as well as the American and European ones. In 2005, when the factory will be at full operating capacity, approximately 7,500 tyres will be manufactured a day. On a second phase, investments of more than 80 million US dollars are already proposed, which will allow the increase of the capacity of production to 13 thousand tyres a day.

23rd September 2003/by Tyrepress Editors