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Kumho Close to US Tyre Plant Decision

(Akron/Tire Review) Kumho Tire Co. is indeed planning to build its first US tyre plant, and hopes to announce its location by the end of this year. Dr. Sae Chul Oh, Kumho’s president, revealed the plans at last week’s SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Company officials said that as many as five locations in Georgia and Alabama are being considered. The South Korean tyremaker is seeking a location that gives it the best access to US auto plants, a skilled labor force, optimum labor costs and ample access for workers and management. The plant will be based on Kumho’s modular Automated Production Unit technology, which it unveiled a few years ago in South Korea.

At the same time, Oh said, the company is also considering a plant for Europe. Oh said that for now only one will be built, and it appears the US is the first choice. A European plant would most likely be located in Eastern Europe.

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  1. Nexen Opens Shanghai Offices, Eyes China Growth
  2. Giti Tire Breaks Ground on New Production Facility
  3. Pirelli Releases 9-Month Figures, Considering Tyre Buyback
  4. Kumho Tires Starts Work on Central R&D Centre

Two Trelleborg Execs Plead Guilty to Price Fixing Charges

Two executives from Trelleborg Industrie S.A.S in France have pleaded guilty to participating in a marine hose price fixing conspiracy. On November 6 a one-count felony charge was filed in the US District Court in Fort Lauderdale, Florida against Christian Caleca, president of Trelleborg’s Industrial Fluid Systems business unit, and Jacques Cognard, the company’s product area manager for oil and marine products.

Plea agreements have been worked out for both men, subject to court approval, and under the terms of these each will serve 14 months in prison – and will provide their full cooperation in the US Department of Justice’s ongoing investigation. Additionally, Caleca has agreed to pay a US$75,000 fine and Cognard a $100,000 fine.

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Toyo Shares Plunge Following Revelation of False Test Data

Share prices for Toyo Tire & Rubber plummeted following revelations that the company falsified data related to the fire resistance tests conducted on some of its building products. Stocks fell 21 per cent to 131 yen (£0.55), wiping out 27.4 billion yen (£104 million) in market value, the greatest single drop in more than three decades.

The company stated on November 5 that it had reported the issue to Japan’s Land, Infrastructure & Transport Ministry, and Toyo will now most likely have to expend about 4 billion yen (£16.8 million), the equivalent of approximately two-thirds of last year’s profit, rectifying shortcomings in wall and roof components.

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Analysts Question Cooper’s Underlying Performance

In an analytical note entitled “When Will Nonrecurring Items Not Recur?” Deutsche Bank market watcher Rod Lache remarked he was disappointed with Cooper’s “underlying performance.” The manufacuturer’s recently published third quarter earnings per share results were, however, in line with estimations.

North American earnings improved $28 million year-on-year. But the analysts suggested that there are still problems with the company’s cost structure. The note stated: “While we believe that the inefficiencies being experienced by Cooper Tire may in fact be temporary, CTB must execute cost reductions, and management needs to specifically identify those improvements, before the market begins to buy into the sustainability of the company’s turnaround plan.”

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Workers Blame Manufacturing Solvent for Hankook Factory Deaths

Korea’s Ministry of Labour is investigating the relationship between the working environment at two of Hankook’s factories and the sudden deaths of 14 plant employees over a 17-month period. The deaths in question occurred between May 2006 and October 2007, and co-workers of the deceased employees, all workers at the company’s South Korean factories in Daejeon and Geumsan, North Chungcheong Province, claim the deaths can be linked to a toxic chemical solvent used during the manufacturing process – a claim Hankook reports it has examined but as yet remains unverified.

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Conti Acquires 51% of Matador Tyre & Rubber Business

Continental AG has acquired a 51 per cent interest in Continental Matador Rubber s.r.o. based in Puchov, Slovakia. The tyre and conveyor belt business, together with the rubber processing equipment business unit, were separated beforehand from the parent company Matador a.s., which now holds a 49 per cent interest in the joint company. “This shareholding enables us to expand our existing joint venture with the Matador Group in the field of truck tyres. At the same time we are significantly strengthening our production and operations base in central and eastern Europe and making lasting investments here,” explained Manfred Wennemer, chairman of Continental’s Executive Board. The newly founded company will remain a legally independent unit with sole responsibility for its business.

Matador Group CEO Dr. Štefan Rosina said “we have been looking for a strategic partnership for our Passenger and Light Truck tyre business very seriously. Therefore, I’m glad that all conditions of this strategic alliance were successfully carried out and I am sure that this joint venture with Continental will give a new future to our tyre business. We will remain in this joint venture company as an important shareholder and this will enables us to strengthen our position in the automotive sector – our new strategic business for the Matador brand.”

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Hankook Signs Deal with ALMS Team

(Akron/Tire Review) Hankook Tire Co. has signed a sponsorship and supply agreement with Corsa Motorsports, which will compete in the 2008 American Le Mans Series (ALMS) in the GT2 Class. “For Hankook, this is about showcasing our technology on the premier stage of road racing,” said Bill Bainbridge, director of brand communication for Hankook Tire America Corp. “We are as devoted to winning on race day as Corsa Motorsports.”

“Our agreement with Hankook puts us back in the game with a partner who is fully committed to putting the most competitive car out there,” said Steve Pruitt, who heads Corsa Motorsports. “We have some of the most technologically advanced cars on the track; we want to transfer that technology to the asphalt to put us in the best position to make it to Le Mans.”

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  1. Michelin To Buy 10 Per Cent Of Hankook
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Toyo Adds 26 Sizes to US Line-Up

(Akron/Tire Review) Toyo Tire (USA) Corp. has added 26 sizes to its line-up of passenger and light truck/SUV tyres. The new sizes cover OE fitments and plus sizes for custom wheel/tyre applications, and most were introduced over the last two months, the company said. The lines and new sizes include:

• Proxes T1R: 265/30ZR20 and 305/25ZR20.

• Proxes R888: 185/60R13, 205/60R13, 205/50ZR15, 225/50ZR15, 235/50ZR15, 205/55ZR16, 225/50ZR16, 215/45ZR17, 205/40ZR17, 225/40ZR18, 235/40ZR18, 265/35ZR18 and 285/30ZR18.

• Versado LX: 235/55R18, 225/50R18 and 255/45R18.

• Toyo Spectrum: 235/65R16, P235/60R16, P215/60R17 and P225/60R17.

• Open Country A20: P245/65R17 and P245/55R19.

• M-55: LT255/85R16 E and LT225/75R16 E.

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High Mileage Not a “Supreme Importance” for Winter Tyres, says Conti

Rating winter tyres according to just one criterion fails to take account of the many demands placed upon them, claim experts working with Continental Tyres. They report, for example, that mileage performance on its own cannot be considered to be of “supreme importance” for a winter tyre. Rather, a high level of grip on both wet and dry roads and in typical winter weather conditions – features that require a softer and therefore faster wearing compound – should be given higher priority.

“What makes a really good winter tyre is having a well-balanced design incorporating a wide range of driving characteristics,” explained Alexander Lührs, press officer at Continental. “And here what counts is not achieving outstanding performance in one or the other discipline, but rather offering a design that is as balanced as possible, so that overall its characteristics meet the highest demands.” Above all, a tyre needs to provide good driving characteristics in typical winter weather conditions, including effective aquaplaning prevention and short braking distances in the wet.

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TIA Tackling Issue of Look Alike Tyres

(Akron/Tire Review/sg) During the SEMA Show the Tire Industry Association (TIA) unveiled a new “policy resolution” about the industry’s growing concern over so-called “look-alike” tyres, products with tread patterns that allegedly mimic or are identical to popular major brand models. According to the TIA, most of the look-alike tyres released in the US are for commercial vehicles, though there have been some passenger and light truck/SUV tyres on the market.

The TIA has pledged to work with the Rubber Manufacturers Association in the sharing of information pertaining to the problem. “We are glad to work with manufacturers on this issue”, said Paul Hyatt, the TIA’s past president. “It only makes sense when you consider the insurance liability issues our members are faced with on a regular basis.” Roy Littlefield, TIA executive vice president, said: “It is apparent that import tyres have raised a whole host of issues in general, and look alike tyres specifically bring serious questions about quality and safety.”

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Marangoni System a ‘Reliable Alternative’ to Delocalisation

After working for over half a century in the tyre sector, the Marangoni group claims the distinction of being one of only a few players in the global tyre industry to be fully active across the spectrum of tyre industry sectors; from the production of new tyres to industrial-scale retreading, from the design to the development of machinery for the production of tyres, from the manufacturing of retreading systems to the distribution of the finished product to end users. These activities, currently carried out by a staff of over 1,800 in 10 production branches in Italy, Germany, North America and Brazil, led in 2006 to a consolidated turnover of 339.8 million euros, a 10 per cent increase compared with the previous year.

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Continental AG in Talks with Potential Buyers of Parts of VDO

(Akron/Tire Review) Continental AG is in talks to spin off Electric Motor Drives, which is part of Siemens AG’s former VDO unit, management board member and human resources head Heinz-Gerhard Wente said. He said there is strong interest in the unit, which has 3,300 employees. Wente added that Continental has started exchanging information with potential buyers but has not entered negotiations.

The European Commission is set to decide on Continental’s 13.5 billion euro VDO acquisition on November 15. Until then, Continental is not allowed to negotiate the spin-off of parts of VDO. Wente said that German automotive parts supplier Brose and an unnamed Japanese company are interested in acquiring Electric Motor Drives, citing sources close to the talks. It said industry sources put the sale price at around 500 million euros.

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Charges Against Apollo Chairman May be Unsustainable

The mismanagement allegations made by Narinder Jeet Kanwar against his elder brother, Apollo Tyres chairman Onkar Singh Kanwar, might not be sustainable in Chennai’s Company Law Board (CLB) as the younger brother is not a company shareholder, report both Apollo Tyres and independent legal experts. A spokesperson from the company has stated “Narinder Jeet Kanwar has no stake in the company.” Therefore, it was added, he is not in a position to bring the issue before the CLB.

India’s Business Standard newspaper has quoted the position of a Chennai based company law expert, M R Venkatesh, regarding the matter. “The petitioner or petitioners as a group must hold at least a 10 per cent stake in the company for the CLB to accept the petition. It is not an easy process, unless this 10 per cent stake is held by a person,” said Venkatesh.

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Continental Warns Against Pirated Reproductions

Only a week after the US Tire Industry Association announced at the SEMA show in Las Vegas its “policy resolution” regarding look alike tyres, Continental has released its own statement on the issue of counterfeit products. The company wishes to extend an emphatic warning against the use of counterfeit Continental products, and has singled out Asia as the predominant site for the production of such items.

“Pirated reproductions do not have the same material and processing quality as genuine products, and can quickly become a safety risk,” emphasises Manfred Wennemer, Continental AG executive board chairman. In light of this, the company declares it is taking “decisive and comprehensive action” against product piracy, and has already had several major successes in its pursuit of Conti counterfeiters. For example, sales of truck tyres produced in China with illegally-copied Continental treads were stopped in Germany, and in Taiwan claims for damages have been asserted against a dealer.

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Prepare for Winter with ATS Euromaster

Nationwide fast-fit network ATS Euromaster is urging drivers across the UK to ensure their cars and vans are prepared for winter by taking advantage of a free vehicle health check. Designed to guard against unnecessary breakdowns, the no-obligation inspections are available at any of ATS Euromaster’s 490 service centres across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, and can be performed without booking beforehand.

According to ATS Euromaster, the vehicle health checks are suitable for any make, model and age of car or van, whether private or company-owned, and each check takes just fifteen minutes. The inspection covers tyre tread depth, tyre condition, tyre pressure and includes a visual inspections of front brakes, battery, exhaust and shock absorbers, with a written report issued to drivers upon completion.

Commenting on the service, Russell Fleetwood, National Car Sales director at ATS Euromaster, said “breakdowns nearly double when the cold weather sets in, but with a little pre-winter preparation drivers can ensure their cars are in tip-top condition. What’s more, spending a few minutes sorting out issues now usually proves cheaper and more convenient than trying to rectify the problem when your car won’t start on a cold winter’s morning.”

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