A tentative agreement has been reached between Alcoa and United Auto Workers Local 1050, subject to a membership vote, to return to work at Alcoa’s Cleveland wheel manufacturing plant on January 2nd under the terms of the company’s 2001 labour agreement. Negotiations between the company and union are ongoing, with more meeting scheduled. Both parties aim to reach a new collective bargaining agreement
This is our final news for the year, so the team here at Tyres & Accessories would like to thank you for making our newsletter a success during 2006. Have a wonderful Christmas and we wish you every success in 2007. See you next year!
Bridgestone Corporation has announced its intention to construct a facility in Japan for producing large and ultralarge radial tyres for fitting to mining and construction vehicles. This decision comes in response to increasing worldwide demand for such tyres, fuelled by escalating global mineral resource production.
The new facility will be built in the southern city of Kitakyushu, on a 20 hectare site within the Hibikinada Industrial Area. Requests for building permits have already been made, and following negotiations with city officials Bridgestone hopes to conclude an agreement during the first half of 2007.
American tyre purchasers have just become even more spoiled for choice following the announcement that a new online retailer – Discountwheeloutlet.com – has opened its virtual doors to the public. Discountwheeloutlet.com, who claim to sell to the public at wholesale prices, stock more than 10,000 custom wheels for cars, trucks and SUV vehicles.
Due to their large stock levels, the company is able to offer their customers same day shipping, and can even offer customers wheel, tyre and accessory packages including free mounting and balancing.
According to the company, Discountwheeloutlet.com is the largest single warehouse distributor in the Pacific Northwest area of the US.
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Based near Modena, Italy, Butler Engineering & Marketing originated in 1988. It started as an entrepreneurial venture by a few people with a common vision to change the way tyres were fitted, bringing into line the technical developments of the tyre, wheel and automotive industries. Now almost nineteen years later, Butler is doubling the size of its facilities. By the end of 2007 Butler plans to have expanded from its current 9000 square metres to a site covering approximately 20,000 square metres.
In the US a 33-member task force comprised of tyre manufacturers, automotive industry officials, independent experts and government have given their endorsement to a proposal to test the durability of aging tyres. This test, which the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) hopes to implement in 2007, will most likely involve placing tyres in a high oxygen environment and subjecting them to temperatures of up to 66° Celsius (150 degrees Fahrenheit) for periods of 8 or 10 weeks.
With very little real information coming out of the negotiations between Goodyear and the USW, word of both positive and negative progress has filtered through the ranks of both parties’ supporters.
USW union leaders have reportedly commented that, despite the latest round of talks, Goodyear and the USW still have little common ground on the key issues behind the ongoing strike at Goodyear’s North American plants. A union spokesperson said that talks will continue, but added that when it comes to the future of the Tyler plant, the company has not deviated much from it’s original stance.
Italy’s Marangoni has launched a campaign to enlighten UK drivers on the benefits of thinking Marangoni when selecting new tyres. Following on from its successful “Intelligent Professionals” series, the new campaign links Marangoni’s position as a premium brand with the company’s Lifetime Tyre Warranty, a strong selling point.
Derek Carruthers, Global Sales & Marketing Director for Marangoni’s car tyre division, said “Communicating the Marangoni message to potential customers before they have made a decision on replacement tyres is fundamental.” He added that the company was attempting not only to build brand awareness but to also demonstrate that buying Marangoni tyres is a win/win situation for the customer in that they will receive both European quality and the peace of mind afforded by their Lifetime Tyre Warranty.
Marangoni Meccanica, the division of the Marangoni Group responsible for designing and developing new tyre technology, has recently inaugurated a new facility in Roverto, Italy. The new 11,000 m² facility will house approximately 80 employees involved in large research projects related to developing new hardware and ideas.
Michelin’s Stop Thirsty Tyres campaign, aimed at helping hauliers reduce their fuel bills through better tyre management, has beat strong competition to win the ‘Best use of creative’ award at this year’s B2B Marketing Awards. The Stop Thirsty Tyres campaign was launched in May 2005 and has been promoted industry wide through a variety of mediums.
The world’s first and only tyremaker exclusively dedicated to the production of racing tyres, Hoosier Racing Tire, has announced its development of a new sprint car tyre. The tyre in question is a 105/18-15 tyre for fitting to the sprint car’s right rear side, and features a stiffer construction than open competition tyres. It will be available in three compounds, and the company believes that by keeping the number of compounds on offer to a minimum they can significantly reduce overall tyre expenses.
The tyres will be made available through Hoosier dealers from Spring 2007 onwards.
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BMW has chosen the German company Beru AG as its supplier of tyre pressure control systems for BMW vehicles destined for the US market. Beru AG manufactures the Beru Tire Safety System (TSS), a unit that directly records tyre pressure when a vehicle is either stationary or moving.
The US Tread Act compels all vehicles approved for sale in the US from September 2007 model year onwards to be fitted with a tyre pressure control system. Such a system must be capable of independently monitoring pressure in all four tyres simultaneously, a task that requires the use of a direct recording tyre pressure system such as the Beru TSS.
Gelu Tofan, one of Romania’s most prominent businessmen during the last decade, and the tyre manufacturer he controls, Danubiana, are facing significant financial problems. The tyremaker’s lack of funds has reached such a serious level that it has had to cease all activity, endangering the company’s distribution activity and the security of its employees.
A New Zealand man is today some £7,500 worse off but hopefully on his way to better understanding the meaning of the word recycling after being fined for illegally stockpiling tyres in a disused quarry. Owen McDonald Douglas, sole shareholder and business manager of the Tauranga based company Tyre Disposal Ltd, had been granted resource consent for using the site in 2004, on the provision that the tyres brought into the quarry were to be scrapped and incinerated as industrial fuel. Tyre Disposal Ltd had built up a sizable client base in the local area, and regularly collected used tyres from customers that included Dunlop and national tyre chain Beaurepaires.
Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. have announced their appointment of Roy V. Armes as company president, chief executive and a member of Cooper’s board of directors. Armes, 54, steps into his new role on January 1, replacing Byron O. Pond, who has served as Cooper’s interim CEO since August.
Pond has voiced his support for Armes, saying “We are extremely pleased to have Roy taking the lead at Cooper at this critical time, He has all the qualities we were searching for and the leadership capabilities to continue and successfully execute the company’s plans for profitability. He has the complete confidence of the board and will fit in well with our management team.”
