TyreSafe is urging motorcyclists to check their tyres before heading out on the roads in time for the later than normal Spring Bank Holiday, which also includes the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations the next day. The weekend overlaps with the Isle of Man TT races, meaning many more bikers will be heading out to watch the action, making pre-journey tyre checks even more important.
There is a serious effort afoot to have the iconic “Firestone Tire Building” in Los Angeles designated as a Historic-Cultural Monument, Tire Review reports. According to a story on la.curbed.com, the Art Deco Society of Los Angeles petitioned the Los Angeles City Council's Planning and Land Use Management committee, which quickly passed a motion approving the designation. The proposal now must go before the entire city council.
Automotive buying group United Aftermarket Network has launched its new website, one of its new initiatives aimed at supporting its distributors’ part-selling businesses. In order to deliver this support, UAN now allows distributors to access instantly its approved supplier agreements online, allowing real time access to supplier data. The new site, described as a complete overhaul of its predecessor, also includes a comprehensive section on its central rebate programme.
Goodyear Dunlop has announced the winner of its 2012 Dunlop Art Car Competition, a contest to find innovative designs for the Dunlop-sponsored JMW Motorsport Ferrari F458 GT2 car. Egidijus Gužauskas from Lithuania provided the winning design, featuring a paint-splash effect. The car will first race in its new livery at the 24 Hours of Le Mans where Dunlop has a long and successful history to its name, having 34 victories at the iconic endurance race.
Pirelli has announced a variety of upgrades to its consumer website, including a new section about tyre labelling. The website, the main information source for Pirelli’s various products on the UK and international markets, boasts a greater degree of interactivity, helping visitors to make more informed tyre choices. Pirelli UK managing director Dominic Sandivasci commented: “We recognise that the new labelling legislation may be confusing to some of our consumers, so we felt it was important to create an interactive platform on our website to help our customers understand more about the changes, and how they can ultimately benefit from the new labelling regulations.”
Michelin has launched a dedicated truck tyre labelling information module on its website. The site aims to present all the information fleet operators need to know about the legislation, including why it is being introduced, what tyres it covers, an overview of the different rating criteria and what benefits it offers fleets. Sharn Samra, Michelin’s head of truck & bus marketing in the UK and Ireland, explains: “The introduction of tyre labelling is a big step for the industry and will act as an important decision-making tool for fleets. Naturally, Michelin is keen to support any initiative which will improve the overall quality of tyres on the market.”
Kings Road Tyres’ group credit control manager, Barry Hill, recently celebrated the achievement of completing 40 years unbroken service with the company. Hill joined KRT at the Southampton location in 1972 and spent 34 years at the centre before a career change saw him appointed as group credit control manager based in Hayes in 2006.
Industry safety body, TyreSafe launched its tyre labelling educational material ahead of the scheme’s 1 July voluntary introduction at its latest briefing on 3 May. The event was called the biggest and most successful industry briefing since the organisation started them last year, with more than 170 delegates attending and participating.
SEMA Show organisers have announced that around 150 wheel manufacturers have already signed on to exhibit at the upcoming 2012 SEMA Show/Global Tire Expo, Tire Review reports. “We’re pleased to see so many wheel companies joining us at the 2012 SEMA Show,” said Peter MacGillivray, SEMA vice president of events and communications. "Wheels are such an integral product in our industry, and the fact that so many exhibitors have confirmed their participation this early in the year is exciting.” The show will be held between 30 October and 2 November at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
At the company’s Annual Stockholders’ Meeting on 15 May, Lanxess CEO Axel C. Heitmann stated that the specialty chemicals firm remains on course for growth in 2012. “We will continue to pursue our successful strategy of focusing on dynamic markets, megatrends, profitable growth and a solid financial basis,” said Heitmann. The company confirmed its forecast for the full-year 2012: EBITDA pre-exceptionals is expected to grow by between five and ten per cent compared with last year.
The Pirelli Grand Prix Challenge, which first went live in the US in 2011, has now been expanded to the UK market. The tyre maker has high expectations for the online Formula One prediction game – last year, the American GP Challenge website received 140,000 unique visits and had over 700,000 page views. Prizes to be won through the challenge include a trip to the 2013 United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.
South Africa’s Competition Tribunal has confirmed a 9.356 million rand (£721,712.31, 899,154 euros, US$7,241,070) penalty handed down to Maxiprest Tyres by the Competition Commission for “price fixing, division and allocation of markets and collusive tendering”, according to local news reports.
Ahead of Pirelli’s latest financial results, rumours are circulating between the press and financial analysts that Pirelli COO Francesco Gori could be about to resign. A report from analysts Morgan Stanley cites an article in the Italian newspaper "Il Corriere della Sera" today (8th May) making this suggestion.
Pirelli itself has reportedly been quite non-committal in its response. Morgan Stanley reports that it has “spoken to the company this morning and this was neither denied or confirmed. The company have signalled before that they are looking to simplify their organisational structure, however unconfirmed rumours in the industry are that there were clashes between the CEO (and owner) Tronchetti on Pirelli’s long term strategy."
Double Coin and the China Manufacturers Alliance have launched a new mobile website aimed at North American customers. The site will complement the existing www.doublecoin-us.com and is designed and formatted for optimal viewing on any web-enabled Smartphone, including iPhone, Android, Blackberry and others. Features accessible through the mobile site include product specifications and warranty information, and visitors can use the dealer locator function to access over 1,000 independent Double Coin tyre dealers across North America. The phone’s GPS automatically redirects to the closest dealer based on the user’s current location.
Art experts take note – the 10 May deadline is approaching for the Dunlop Art Car Competition, in which racing fans and artists have the chance to design the livery for a Ferrari F458 Italia competing in this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans. This is the fourth year that a Dunlop car’s design has been created by competition winners – but Dunlop says this year there is a big difference – designers/artists have a much freer canvas for designing the look of the Dunlop-sponsored Ferrari F458 Italia entered by JMW Motorsport.
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.
