Wheels
Bridgestone Corporation has announced that it has succeeded with the practical application of Bridgestone Support Ring run-flat system. The support ring will be delivered to Toyota Motor Corporation for use in its new RAV4 for the European market. This system has been in development since 2002 based on technical collaboration with Germany’s Continental AG and The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd.
Accuride Corporation has appointed Dr Omar Fakhoury as vice president / general manager of Gunite Corporation. Gunite, a subsidiary of Accuride Corporation, supplied wheel-end systems and components for the heavy and medium-duty truck market.
Health and safety regulations apply to all businesses. But there are some matters that need to be given special consideration by employers. The government has earmarked ‘Lifting and Handling’ in the workplace as one of these key areas. In As far as tyres are concerned this has particular significance with regards to tyre bays, where fitters manually handle heavy tyres and wheels during the tyre changing process.
According to the HSE (Health and Safety Executive) more than a third of all ‘over-three-day’ injuries reported each year are caused by manual handling – ‘the transporting or supporting of loads by hand or by bodily force’.
Alcoa has announced that it has offered to purchase the remaining 18 per cent of the Belaya Kalitva (BKMPO) fabricated aluminium plant in Russia still held by shareholders following its acquisition from Rusal in January 2005.
Beru AG claims its technology is good for drivers’ wallets in addition to ensuring increasing levels of safety. According to the pressure monitoring equipment manufacturer, experts have calculated that roughly a third of all drivers are on the road with 0.2 to 0.7 bar negative pressure. And this means that they are also paying more than they should in fuel consumption. For example, if the tyres have 0.6 bar too little pressure, the fuel consumption rises by around four per cent.
(Akron/Tire Review) Cooper Tire & Rubber Co has made three appointments to its North American tyre-marketing group. James Keller was vice president of marketing for North America, Philip Kortokrax was appointed general manager for Cooper’s Mickey Thompson Performance Tires and Wheels unit, and Christopher Pantani was named director of UHP marketing and business development.
As a result of increasing internationalisation and the expansion of business, the Rial group has decided to bring all of its business that are not pure marketing companies under the one unified name. The new group will be called “Uniwheels United Wheels Group,” the company has reported. As a result Rial’s Polish production unit, Rial Aluguss, will immediately be renamed “Uniwheels Production (Poland) Sp.zo.o.” However the firm’s existing distribution companies (Rial Leichtmetalfelgen GmbH, Alutec Leichtmetalfelgen GmbH and ARC Alurad GmbH/Wheels24.com) will keep their existing names.
A sense of adventure, a crash helmet, and a certain level of balancing skills are ‘must-haves’ when taking a quad bike off-road. But with Goodyear run-on-flat ATV tyres fitted to your Kawasaki KLF400 you can leave the latter requirement behind, as amongst other characteristics, stability is one of their key features, even in extreme terrain. The tyres also afford freedom from worry and they put an end to solving stupefying situations such as how to recover an ATV vehicle with flat tyres that’s stranded in the middle of a muddy quagmire.
Despite its tyres’ advantages Goodyear is rarely talked about when it comes to ATV tyres; a market dominated by imported brands. Hence the manufacturer is keen to get a firm hold on the serious side of the ATV scene through the industry’s first run-flat ATV tyre. So serious in fact, that it invited Tyres & Accessories to compare, contrast and talk new tyre technology, during a day of quad biking.
Goodyear has been progressing the concept of an ATV run-flat since the 90s, a time when both ATV tyre sales and run-flat technology were increasing in importance. Its aim has always been to develop tyres for use on serious farm machinery, explained Goodyear Dunlop farm tyre specialist Mark Turner, and the run-flat version of the ATV tyre is a further extension of that aim.
There are two run-on-flat tyres available from the US manufacturer, the Tracker EMT, available for OE and replacement fitment and the Mud Runner EMT, designed exclusively for the replacement market. The Tracker EMT is available in 14 sizes, whilst the Mud Runner EMT is available in 10 sizes in 25-27 inches.
Like the more familiar passenger car run-flat, the ATV-EMT has a 50 mile run-on-flat capability, but only at speeds of 25mph. The sidewall reinforced tyre also mounts on standard ATV OE wheels which is key for the replacement market. In addition it offers the accustomed run-flat features such as reduction in damage to wheel and brakes as well as improved vehicle stability and manoeuvrability. With the low speeds that utility ATVs operate at there is no safety requirement for an accompanying TPMS as in the case of the car. Instead the insert contour of the tyre is designed so that the rider can feel the flat tyre whilst still benefiting from the run-flat performance.
As far as the ATV-EMT concept is concerned it appears to be a logical next step from passenger car run-flat developments. “Awareness of run-flat technology in general is increasing, they’re OE fitments are increasing on cars, and that helps sell the idea on an ATV, it’s simply a natural extension of passenger car tyre technology,” comments Mark Turner. The technology can prevent a disabling flat tyre, downtime due to repair and the need to carry repair kits. The ATV-EMT uses run-flat technology developed for the Goodyear high performance passenger car EMT tyre. It has a wide, flat bead for improved tyre/wheel retention with apex used to stiffen the sidewall and insure the correct bead shape.
The tyre was first shown at last year’s Cereals show where Goodyear provided a practical demonstration for visitors. However it has been available in the US since 1998, and was picked up by the ATV press in 2002 when a series of tests conducted by ATV Magazine declared the Mud Runner EMT as the “smoothest ride.”
Thanks to the higher margins the run-on-flats present a lucrative opportunity for dealers. Goodyear distributes its ATV tyres through national wholesalers and 10 dealers from its Farm Tyre Specialist Network. The British Rubber Company is the leading independent farm tyre specialist belonging to that network and according to Jason Reynolds the business is very successful with Goodyear ATV tyre sales. Mr Reynolds has in fact got Goodyear ATV run-on-flats fitted to his own quad bike and describes them as “marvellous” claiming that they have “transformed” the handling of his bike. “Because of the sidewall strength the tyres are a lot more rigid and stability is improved. You also have the added security that they will get you home if you get a puncture, I’ve had three punctures and each time the tyres have got me safely home,” commented Mr Reynolds.
The tyres seem to have the endorsement of the dealer but at a 20-25 per cent price mark up, is there a market out there amongst strapped-for-cash UK farmers? Jason Reynolds believes so: “Once somebody has tried the tyres and seen the difference in performance the cost isn’t really an issue. There is a market out there for them, especially with hill farmers who work 10-15 miles away from the farm, and use their ATV as a second tractor. I recently spoke to one of my customers about the tyres and they said that they’d never known a tyre last as well.”
Mark Turner also claims that the tyres are starting to sell well in the UK market, even though the manufacturer has yet to start its marketing campaign. Goodyear explains that it is now in a position where it has the stock available and can begin to push sales; needless to say ATV run-on-flats will soon be brought to the consumers attention. Goodyear’s farm tyre specialist is positive that the run-on-flats will share a similar success in the UK as they have in the US, adding that both ATV tyre and vehicle sales are growing in farming as well as in the recreational sector of the market. Goodyear’s current ATV line up may suit its farm business, but with all its tyres marked NHS (Not for Highway Service) it will not catch a glimpse of the increasing on-road sector in the near future, perhaps that will be its next move.
Tiger Wheels has reinforced its position in the North American market with the acquisition of a large-diameter wheel plant in Kentucky. The company reports that the plant is dedicated to supplying Ford motor manufacturing plants in Detroit, Louisville and elsewhere and cost $24 million.
The acquisition, which was made by Tiger’s 74 per cent owned German-based wheel manufacturing business, ATS Beteiligungs GmbH, looks a good purchase when the assets’ book value ($45 million) is taken into account. ATS Beteiligungs bought the facility from the Australian ION Group, which is currently in administration.
STS has appointed Keith Smith as its new centre manager at its Rainham based fast fit outlet. The new recruit joins STS Man on Wheels from his previous position at Hi-Q Tyre Service, where he was a technician for six years.
Mr Smith will be reporting to Stapleton’s regional manager Guy Wheeler, and will also manage 13 other members of staff.
According to Cooper Tires 4×4 tyre sales have increased by a staggering 151 per cent in the last five years. In 2004, there were 1.25 million 4×4 tyres sold throughout the UK, a jump from 825,000 in 2000.
Factors such as 4×4 fashions and the increasing number of “Chelsea tractors” in town and city centers are thought to have influenced this growth. Other trends such as the replacement of standard manufacturer fitted wheels and tyres with larger sizes are also affecting the market.
Marangoni Tyre has recently revised and updated its range of winter tyres. In the March issue of Tyres & Accessories, an article featured the company’s latest offering, the Meteo HP; a T-, H- and V-rated winter tyre for rims up to 18” and aspect ratios as low as 40 series. The Meteo HP is designed to cater for the growing demand for high performance tyres that work well in winter conditions.
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The very latest device in the battle against the car thieves has been launched by security specialists, Autolok. Developed from the Autolok 2000, the new Autolok 2000 Plus incorporates the latest security technology and new user friendly features.
Dexel Tyres is something of a rarity in today’s tyre business – a family-owned business that has been trading for over 40 years and which is still expanding.
The business was founded in 1961 by Harry France and, over the next 25 years, was steadily expanded by his son, Peter. It was Peter who purchased the premises in Staniforth Road, Sheffield in the 1960s that today are the group’s head office. Nowadays the business is under the control of Peter’s son Paul as managing director, assisted by his sister Julie as group credit controller.
The policy of expansion has continued and the company has doubled in size over the past decade, today claiming to be one of the UK’s largest independent tyre companies, with an annual turnover of more than £13 million and sales of over 100,000 tyres a year.
The pattern of expansion has been steady, rather than dramatic, and concentrated on the East Midlands area of Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire, opening depots in Worksop, Gainsborough, Horncastle, Market Rasen and two in the city of Lincoln.
Accuride Corp. (Evansville/Indiana) has appointed Robert (Bob) Nida to Senior Vice President/Operations for steel and aluminium wheels, Gunite Corporation and Brillion Iron Works. The company also appointed Craig Kessler to serve as Accuride’s Corporate Vice President/Forward Process Engineering and Quality Systems.
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