Website suggests £2.68 million per day cost of UK potholes
A report from road maintenance campaign website Potholes.co.uk suggests that the UK’s ongoing pothole epidemic, caused jointly by harsh seasonal weather and government spending cuts, could result in a £2.68 million per day cost to the country’s motorists. The website describes the condition of Britain’s roads as approaching “Third World” standard as a consequence of allowing them to fall into disrepair.
Continue ReadingDunlop Aircraft Tyres appointment to “strengthen Americas growth”
The world’s only specialist sircraft tyre manufacturer, Birmingham-based Dunlop Aircraft Tyres has stated that the appointment of Ken Hutchins as technical sales manager will help to strengthen the company’s reach into North and South America. Hutchins has a wealth of experience in the aviation industry, having previously worked for aircraft wheels and brakes companies Goodrich and Messier-Bugatti. Based in Houston, Texas, and reporting to Dunlop Aircraft Tyres’ sales and marketing director David Skepper, Hutchins will drive sales of the company’s products throughout North America and the fast-expanding South American markets.
Continue ReadingLanxess boosts investment in renewable chemicals firm
Isobutene is a key raw material needed in the manufacture of butyl rubber, and traditionally this substance has been produced from fossil fuel sources. Yet Lanxess, the world’s largest purchaser of isobutene, believes that – in the words of its Board of Management chairman Axel Heitmann – it is “only prudent” to seek alternative supply options from renewable sources. For this reason the German specialty chemicals manufacturer recently increased its minority shareholding in US based renewable chemicals company Gevo Inc. Following a US$10 million private placement investment made in May 2010, Lanxess has now invested $17 million in Gevo’s initial public offering, giving it a 9.1 per cent shareholding.
Continue ReadingGiti reassures consumers on Reach compliance
While the European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers’ Association’s study into the presence of ‘high PAH’ oils in tyres sold within Europe revealed all that all non-complying tyres were manufactured in China, the ETRMA made it clear that Chinese manufacture was in no way synonymous with Reach regulation non-compliance. Giti Tire Europe, whose GT Radial brand is produced in China, has also addressed potential uncertainty that may arise over the status of its products.
Continue ReadingFirestone brand to exit Indycar
The Indycar series is held in equal high esteem by US motor racing aficionados as Formula One is in other parts of the world, and as has been the case for the Bernie Ecclestone run championship, vehicles racing in Indycar have been fitted with tyres produced by Bridgestone companies for a good number of years. But the similarities do not end there; more than a year after the withdrawal from Formula one was announced, Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations (BATO) stated it has “mutually agreed” with Indycar to end the sponsorship and supply contract for its Firestone brand – a partnership it describes as “one of the most successful in all of motorsports” – at the end of the 2011 season.
Continue ReadingGoodyear Blimp to promote European road safety
Goodyear’s brand event in Seville earlier this year (a report will be published in March’s Tyres & Accessories) saw the company talking up a safety message through its promotion of its new Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 and UltraGrip 8 tyres, but the company plans to do more than provide increased safety features through its products. European brand director Hugues Despres announced that “the Goodyear Blimp will take the lead on a number of road safety initiatives as it becomes the focal point for Goodyear’s consumer based activities and events.” This will be the Blimp’s first return to Europe for over 10 years, embarking on the 2011 Goodyear Safety Tour.
Continue ReadingFederal the official sponsor of Australian tuning show
Summernats 2011 in Canberra, Australia has become Federal Tyres’ first name-sponsored automotive show, alongside distributor National Tyre Wholesalers. The precision driving event at Canberra Showgrounds is a motorkhana style grass event where courses are set up with varying degrees of difficulty. It tests different aspects of both the car and driver to see who can better accelerate, turn, brake and manoeuvre their way through the course in the quickest way possible.
Continue ReadingFulda launches SportControl UHP summer tyre
Fulda has launched its new ultra-high performance summer tyre, the SportControl. Designed for “sporty driving”, in the brand’s words, the tyre features “progressive humps throughout the width of the tread, which help to optimise stiffness and force distribution from tyre to road.” The tyre has a full silica tread compound and new “Aqua Flow” tread grooves provide enhanced grip and shorter braking distances in wet conditions. The tyre also has a low weight carcass to reduce rolling resistance.
Continue ReadingMarch Editorial: Driving distribution forward
The last time Tyres & Accessories reported at length on EDIWheel the coverage provoked a welcome reaction. The healthy debate on the implementation of EDIWheel followed our publication of a report on the subject just over a year ago (January 2010), which featured a TIF hosted summit on the protocol. More than a year after the event, and after systems suppliers such as Tyreman made recent efforts to promote their EDIWheel compatible wares, Tyres & Accessories thought it was time for an update.
Continue ReadingSMMT sees strong commercial registration February growth of 27%
While the car market stayed low in February, registrations of new trucks and vans were up by more than a quarter on February 2010, at 27.4 per cent. Trucks saw a rise of 50.9 per cent to 2,068, making the figures in the first two months 36,070 units registered, or a rise of 11.1 per cent. Vans were up 23.8 per cent to 11,113 in February, keeping growth consistent from January, meaning 230,658 units have been registered in 2011 to date, up 22.7 per cent.
Continue ReadingSMMT satisfied with new car registration 7.7% February decline
While new car registrations dipped in February 2011 compared with February 2010, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said the returns represented less of a drop than had been expected, given that the previous year had been boosted by the government’s Scrappage Incentive Scheme. The first two months of 2011 have seen 192,235 units registered, down 10.2 per cent. While the decline in registrations was the eighth straight month in negative figures, the 7.7 per cent drop represented the smallest drop in this time period. This was thanks mainly to fleet demand, which grew 8.6 per cent. The executive, luxury saloon, sports car and MPV segments continued to show “double-digit growth”; diesel cars took more than 50 per cent of the market.
Continue ReadingChinese manufacturers receive mixed results in Reach compliance test
The use of ‘high-PAH’ extender oils in tyres manufactured for sale within the European Union has been prohibited under the Reach regulation since January 1, 2010. This restriction was heeded by firms producing within the EU and appropriate modifications to the manufacturing process made before the deadline, and the European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers’ Association (ETRMA) reports the confirmation of these producers’ compliance by independent testing. However the ETRMA notes “strong industry concern” exists as to whether all tyres imported into the European Union are being tested for compliance. For this reason the ETRMA itself took on the task of testing 45 brands of tyre – 110 tyres in total – that are currently offered for sale within the European Union. The results confirmed that the association’s apprehension was not unfounded.
Continue ReadingVan den Ban – ready for the next 40 years
In August 2009 Dutch wholesaler Van den Ban Autobanden opened its new ‘Logistic Tyre Centre’ in the town of Hellevoetsluis. Those seeking a detailed description of the hi-tech warehouse facility can find it in the March 2010 edition of Tyres & Accessories, yet it is definitely worth mentioning that the material handling system used is without parallel in the tyre industry and enables the fully automated and mechanised internal transport, sorting and order picking of all tyres housed within the 24,000 square metre building; last year it smoothly dispatched more than 5,0 million tyres to customers throughout the region. Back when the centre opened, construction work on Van den Ban’s new administrative headquarters was underway on an adjacent greenfield site; last October this new head office building officially opened, marking the conclusion of Van den Ban’s two-stage expansion project. The wholesaler says it is now fully equipped to take on the ever evolving market and any challenges it may bring.
Continue ReadingCooper acquires 100% share in Kunshan JV operation
By mid-March Cooper Tire & Rubber should be the proud 100 per cent owner of Cooper Kenda Tire. Upon finalisation of the US$116.5 million transaction the former 50 per cent Cooper owned joint venture operation will be renamed Cooper Kunshan Tire (contingent to government approval) in recognition of the city in China where it is headquartered. According to Cooper Tire, the transaction should be completed by March 15 through a wholly-owned company subsidiary.
Continue ReadingEC approves switchable battery research project
Automotive supplier Continental and ten other European and Israeli companies active in the electric vehicle sector, have joined together to form ‘Easybat’, a consortium dedicated to furthering EV development. On March 2 the consortium announced formal approval from the European Commission for a research and development programme into means of facilitating the European production of electric cars with switchable batteries. The March 2 announcement is the first switchable battery electric car project approved by the Commission.
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