Eastern light vehicle markets set to grow, says Frost & Sullivan
A new study from Frost & Sullivan says that Eastern Europe and Central Asia offer very interesting opportunities for the light vehicles sector which includes passenger cars and light commercial vehicles. The study analyses this market in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan, and finds that by 2021 the annual light vehicle sales volume in these eight countries is expected to reach nearly one million.
Continue ReadingBridgestone reaches 300 retail outlets in Australia
Three hundred and not out – Bridgestone Australia reports its retail network recently scored its third century, with 300 franchise and license stores now operating in the country under the Bridgestone name. The company’s franchise business began in Australia with Bridgestone Tyre Centres in 1986 and expanded in 2006 with the launch of Bridgestone Select franchised stores and licensed Bridgestone Service Centres.
Continue ReadingFootball & tyres: Linglong Tire partnering with VfL Wolfsburg
As of 1 January 2015, Shandong Linglong Tire will become an international partner to German Bundesliga and Europa League football club VfL Wolfsburg. The multi-year deal sees the tyre maker become a sponsorship partner to the Wolfsburg men’s team in markets outside of Germany. The partnership includes a commitment with Wolfsburg United, the international sporting project from VfL Wolfsburg, and will subsequently support respective Unicef projects and the VfL football school.
Continue ReadingCeat lays foundation stone for new tyre factory
On 11 December 2014, Indian tyre maker Ceat Ltd laid the foundation stone for its new manufacturing facility in Buti Bori near Nagpur, Maharashtra state. The stone laying follows the 30 October approval by Ceat’s Board of Directors to invest Rs 4.2 billion (£42.4 million) to set up a plant producing tyres for two and three-wheeled vehicles. The facility’s planned capacity is 120 tonnes per day.
Continue ReadingBridgestone tyre factory gains two Wildlife Habitat Council certifications
The Wildlife Habitat Council (WHC) has granted Bridgestone Americas’ Monterrey tyre factory in Mexico Corporate Lands for Learning and Wildlife at Work certification. The passenger car and light truck tyre manufacturing facility thus becomes the first Bridgestone plant outside the US to receive these two certifications. In addition, the Monterrey plant was a runner-up for the Corporate Lands for Learning 2014 Rookie of the Year award.
Continue ReadingPort congestion sees shipping rates increase – MCS
Increases in freight rates during the last quarter of the year happened earlier than expected, according to Maritime Cargo Services’ Rob Shelley. The freight forwarding company said that the market, led by supply and demand, had seen rates harden due to increased demand for shipping space “earlier than expected”. This ahead of schedule peak season combined with “higher than forecast import volumes” to increase both rates – “in some cases by 150 per cent” – and dockside waiting times.
Continue ReadingThai government propping up rubber prices with US$183 milion of support
The Thai government is buying rubber from the market via a 6 billion baht (US$183 million) buffer fund to support prices. According to a Reuters report, a private fund has also been set up to support domestic rubber futures.
Continue ReadingNew owner for insolvent Reifen Ihle’s retreading operation
The retreading business belonging to insolvent German tyre company the Reifen Ihle Group now has a new owner. The sales contract was signed late last Friday, and follows the divestment of the firm’s 12 Point S tyre retail centres to regional retailer Reifen Müller at the end of October. R-I-G Technische Produkte GmbH has been acquired by Frankfurt am Main-based holding company Prolimity Capital Partners and will now be operated under a new entity, Rigdon GmbH.
Continue ReadingTyres & Basketball: Continental’s latest sponsorship engagement
A new multi-year deal signed by Continental in the US will give it a brand presence at a total of 381 college basketball games per season. Continental Tire the Americas has entered into a partnership with International Management Group (IMG) property schools and Learfield property schools, and becomes the ‘Official Partner of Basketball’ for schools in six high-profile conferences. The tyre maker will be visible both courtside and during televised games.
Continue ReadingRMA proposes tyre registration, TIA ‘disappointed’ in legislative solution
Tire Industry Association has promised to fight a proposal by the US Rubber Manufacturers Association to reinstate a mandatory tyre registration programme, US journal Tire Review reports. During a panel on tyre registration and recalls at the Passenger Vehicle Tire Safety Symposium held by the National Transportation Safety Board, the RMA cited low registration rates of tyres sold by independent retailers as the reason behind the proposal. RMA reported that overall fewer than 20 per cent of all tyres are registered.
Continue Reading103,000km on a single set of General Grabbers
One Cape Town driver is reporting an astonishing 103,000 km on a single set of Grabber 4x4 tyres. Lodi van Deventer from Brackenfell, Cape Town, reached this milestone after three years with the General Grabber AW 265/70 R16 tyres fitted on his Toyota Fortuner. Most people find it hard to believe that I have covered over 100,000 km on the General Grabbers, Van Deventer says. The majority of the driving was on tar in both urban and rural environments, but I also did quite a bit of gravel driving in the Stilbaai area during holidays.
Continue ReadingKumho injecting new blood into US range
Seven all-new tyre lines are set to enter the Kumho Tire USA portfolio in 2015, and the company says from now on it will refresh its North American range every year.
Continue ReadingSumitomo establishes Australian tyre sales company
Sumitomo Rubber Industries is saying g’day to Australia through a joint venture with Sumitomo Corporation to establish a tyre sales corporation in the country. Sumitomo Rubber Australia Pty. Ltd. is expected to begin operating in March 2015 and strengthen Sumitomo Rubber Industries’ replacement market consumer tyre sales in Australia. The Sydney-based office is being set up with a capital investment of AU$20 million (£10.6 million), with Sumitomo Rubber Industries and Sumitomo Corporation respectively holding a 75 per cent and 25 per cent share in the operation. Representative Kenichi Furuhama will manage approximately 60 Sumitomo Rubber Australia employees.
Continue ReadingTatneft’s Kazakhstan tyre logistics centre
You might not think of Kazakhstan as a centre of the international tyre industry and – on a global scale – it isn’t. However, in light of renewed reports of factory investment from Indonesian-based Multistrada as well as the historical context of Nokian’s ill-fated joint-venture there it is worth reporting a little of what else is going on in the country.
Continue ReadingAtlas Copco boost Bloodhound Project
The Bloodhound Project, an ambitious British bid to set a new world land speed record in a supersonic car, has received a power boost from Atlas Copco UK. The company has supplied a range of workshop compressors and air tools to the Bloodhound Technical Centre in Bristol and its associated test facility at Newquay Aerohub. The equipment will play a pivotal role in the development of the Bloodhound Supersonic Car, the jet engine and rocket powered racing car, as the team prepares for an attempt to set a new 1,000mph world land speed record in 2016.
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