National Continues to Support Breast Cancer Care
National Tyres and Autocare is continuing support of cancer charity, Breast Cancer Care. During the month of May, National staff members were encouraging customers to donate £1 to Breast Cancer Care and promoting the charity in all press advertising, with plans to continue to support the charity throughout the year. The charity provides essential services such as a free and confidential helpline, website, discussion forums, courses and one-to-one support sessions. Tony Neill, Chief Executive, NTA, commented “We are delighted to support the exceptional work carried out by Breast Cancer Care. Cancer touches the lives of so many people and we are proud to be able to raise funds towards providing vital care for cancer sufferers and their families.”
Continue ReadingPoole Harbour Terberg Tugs Switch to Michelin
Poole Harbour Commisioners have fitted their fleet of six Terberg TT22 4x2 tractor units with Michelin’s X-Terminal T tyres. Engineering Manager, Paul Gillingham, explains the reasoning behind the switch: “The new Michelin tyre is on target to increase tyre life on the steer axle by over 300 per cent and on the drive axle by 140 per cent. We are anticipating that the tyres will give our drivers the comfort and traction they need when pulling the trailers or loading the ferry.”
Continue ReadingAufine Announces Price Increase
The Qingdao, China-based Aufine Group has become the last tyre manufacturer to announce additional price increases. In a statement released to the press, Aufine’s management explained that the as yet unknown price increase will take effect from 1 July. The company puts the price increase down to the continuing price pressure manufacturers are receiving from the raw material suppliers.
Continue ReadingFleet Awards for Michelin and Kwik-Fit
Michelin and Kwik-Fit were among the companies who picked up awards at the 2008 Van Fleet World Honours ceremony, held at the Royal Automobile Club, Pall Mall, in mid May. These annual awards are presented to those companies, individuals and organisations that are judged to have achieved the highest possible level of excellence in the opinion of the judging panel – a panel made up industry professionals. Van Fleet World editor John Kendall presented Michelin with the Environment Award for the tyre manufacturers latest Agilis van tyre, for light CVs between 2800 and 3500kg. He said that most drivers view their tyres as round, black and not very interesting, but fitting the right tyre can have a notable impact on a fleets carbon footprint.
Continue ReadingDonnell & Ellis Plump for ATS Euromaster
Omagh-based Donnell & Ellis Heavy Haulage have signed a contract to make ATS Euromaster the company’s sole tyre service provider. The contract, said to be worth close to £100,000 per year, is aimed at providing the company with proactive tyre management as a measure against unexpected vehicle downtime. In addition, the agreement sees a fleet-wide change of preferred brand; ATSE are fitting Michelin tyres on its 30 Scania tractor units, and Hankook tyres on 60 specialist trailers, some of which have a payload capacity of up to 200 tonnes.
Continue ReadingGoodyear Receives Hino Motors’ Excellence Award
Hino Motors Manufacturing USA Inc. has presented Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company with its Quality Excellence Award for commercial tyres on Hino medium-duty trucks. Hino Motors said the award was given to Goodyear for outstanding product quality. Goodyear supplies Hino Motors, a Toyota Group Company, with a variety of truck tyres, including Unisteel G149 RSA RH and G182 RSD regional-service tyres.
Continue ReadingBridgestone Offers First Stop Dealers Toyota Incentive
First Stop dealers around the UK are being rewarded for their performance with a courtesy car scheme. Bridgestone UK launched the scheme in December 2007 and has incentivised dealers by offering the Toyota Aygo Hatchback 1.0 VVT to garages which have surpassed performance expectations. To date nearly 20 dealers have received a Toyota Aygo, on a two year lease, which can be used by garages for employees to go to and from work, as a courtesy car or as a general garage run around for collecting parts. Commenting on the scheme Mark Fereday, Retail Development Manager, at Bridgestone said: “Bridgestone supports outstanding performance and the courtesy car scheme is the latest in a range of measures to support the First Stop network and believe businesses will feel significant benefits from being involved. The success to date suggests that it will be up and running across the network very soon.”
Continue ReadingBandvulc Hosts Network Seminar
Bandvulc Tyre Contracts recently hosted a seminar on tyre contract management in Stratford upon Avon with its network of partners. The main aim was to identify areas of opportunity for growth. “It’s been the case in recent years that tyre management and centralised administration have become more and more popular. It’s also the case that when acquisitions take place the regional and local fleet operators can become part of a national network themselves,” says Philip West, Sales Director of Bandvulc, adding: “With this background the independent tyre distributors can find it difficult to maintain the relationships they have had with the larger fleets”.
Continue ReadingChicago Pneumatic Increases Socket Range
Chicago Pneumatic has announced a large extension to the company’s existing range of sockets. The addition of 500 individual sockets and 16 new sets represents a large increase in the product range available, encompassing in total 44 socket sets and 774 impact sockets. Gary Rigg, the company’s UK business line manager comments that the update has been prompted by customer feedback: “we had some feedback from customers and distributors that a good impact socket line needs to cover all their needs in term of types and sizes. This is the reason why we drastically expanded the range. We also took this opportunity to improve the quality of the new impact socket line”.
Continue ReadingInternational Tyre Exhibitors Sign Up for Tyrexpo Asia’09
International exhibitors are already confirming plans for the new products and displays designed to catch the eye of tyre industry buyers at next year’s Tyrexpo Asia March’09 exhibition. For Singapore-based manufacturer and distributor Omni United, the sales focus next March has already been agreed as its Radar ranges of bus and truck tyres, designed in India and manufactured in China. Radar OTR tyres will also form a very prominent stand presence, with products ranging in size to cover mining and industrial equipment from 21 to giant 57-inch wheel sizes. Confirming the company’s plans, senior vice president, Shivi Kalra said: “Tyrexpo Asia’09 is an important opportunity to interact with current customers, showcase our expanding ranges of products and meet potential new customers. Next year the focus will be on our ranges of SUV, PCR, TBR and OTR tires – all marketed under our Radar private brand range.”
Continue ReadingForklifts ‘Fill’ the Benefits of Zeus Technology
Having been working on development for some time, Zeus Tyre Filling Solutions has launched a new additional range of high performance tyre filling compounds branded TRIOfill, based on a unique “3-Part (PUR) Based – Chemicals Technology.” Supplementing its well known “PolyFill – range, TRIOfill represents a new and more advanced tyre filling specification, that is designed to deliver a cleaner, greener product and a reduced carbon footprint. However, it is also said to considerably improve tyre fill’s physical properties, when compared with the more traditional (pure liquid) compounds. According to Zeus TRIOfill offers unique advantages in terms of physical strength and its unique component characteristics are said to offer a much wider range of benefits to both FLT users and OEMs, particularly in terms of the plant hire companies. Here, says Zeus, the new tyre filling formulation, not only delivers greater flexibility of tyre use and applications, but it also raises overall FLT tyre performance. One example of this is the increase in operational safety levels, particularly when operating at their maximum lift heights, because of the extra stability the tyre fill provides. In addition Zeus representatives told T&A that other key benefits of reduced costs include: increased operational mobility, and putting a stop to all pneumatic blow outs, punctures and tyre pressure losses. Furthermore, TRIOfill comes with a new re-engineered “Fully Integrated - Pumping & Mixing Unit” that is not only the first pumping system to be electrically driven, but is designed to be much faster, cleaner, greener and more economic, than competing PU pumping systems. “This unit, together with the innovative benefits of TRIOfill’s specification, now offers many original equipment manufacturers, an ideal, cost effective, safe and green tyre filling solution, in their considerations for driving out cost, improving supply line efficiencies and updating their own operational procedures, especially when linked to Zeus’s unique waste tyre filling materials collection & recycling service,” Zeus’ promotional literature explains.
Continue ReadingPirelli-equipped Citroën C4 Wins Acropolis Rally
In an Acropolis stage famed for its punishing surfaces, Sebastien Loeb claimed his fifth victory in seven events to regain the lead of the Drivers’ championship. After the event, Loeb was full of praise for his C4 WRC, reserving particular commendation for the performance of his Pirelli Scorpion tyres: “We drove with the idea of preserving the car and the tyres on an incredibly rough surface. The Pirelli Scorpion tyres were able to resist stages that were truly a massacre, so the overall conclusion is very positive – particularly considering that these tyres do not have anti-deflation mousse and that they have to adapt themselves to a very wide range of different surfaces.”
Continue ReadingRubber Workers Strike in Turkey
4,000 tyre manufacturing workers have responded to ICEM’s (International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers’ Unions) Turkish trade union call to strike, after last-minute proposals by the employers’ association failed to avoid the action taking place. The four manufacturing works affected by the strike action, in the Turkish cities of Izmit and Adapazari, are operated by Goodyear, Bridgestone and Pirelli. News sources state that the companies are resisting demands for three bi-yearly salary increases at the rate of Turkish inflation, following an initial wage increase of 12%.
Continue ReadingCERM Research Shows Michelin Leads Motorcycle Tyre Performance
CERM (Centre d’Essais Routiers Mécaniques) has tested Michelin’s Pilot Road 2 and new Anakee 2 motorcycle tyres against the leading competitors in the market, with strong results for the French manufacturer. The Pilot Road 2 was tested against the Dunlop Roadsmart as an update to previous tests against six major competitors’ sport touring tyres; while the Anakee 2 was compared to two direct, major-brand competitors – the Metzeler Tourance EXP and Bridgestone Battle Wing. In both cases the tests involved two criteria: wear resistance and wet-surface grip. The initial sport touring tyre tests, conducted in 2006 and 2007 compared 120/70 R 17 and 180/55 R 17 Pilot Road 2 tyres fitted to Suzuki Bandit 1200s with six comparable tyres from other premium manufacturers. The result were good, from Michelin’s perspective, and showed that the French tyres not only lasted longer but also offered better wet handling than its competitors, defying the supposed performance payoff between the two characteristics. According to Michelin, the same performance advantage was proven again in the 2008 tests against the Dunlop Roadsmart.
Continue ReadingPirelli Launches the Winter Sottozero Serie II
The latest evolution of Pirelli’s performance winter tyre has been unveiled at the Swiss ski resort town of Zermatt. The Winter Sottozero Serie II, a tyre the Italian manufacturer states will meet the needs of the most demanding drivers by adapting to conditions typically encountered during the autumn and winter months, has been released in two distinct performance versions: the W210/W240 for high performance cars, and the even more extreme W270 for super sports models. Pirelli reports that Porsche, Maserati, Lamborghini, Ferrari, BMW, Bentley, Aston Martin and Alfa Romeo have already homologated the new Sottozero as original equipment. “Despite global warming, winter is still here,” commented Pirelli Tyre CEO Francesco Gori at the Sottozero Serie II launch in Zermatt. Mr. Gori however emphasised that a change in thinking has taken place at Pirelli in response to recent climatic trends, along with changes in automotive technology and European regulations. The new tyre was thus designed not just for regions receiving significant winter snowfall; rather it is a tyre for low temperature conditions. Today’s more unpredictable weather conditions, says Pirelli, with dry spells when snow is traditionally expected, and sudden heavy rainfall in the late winter or at the beginning of autumn, means a need has arisen for the development of versatile tyres guaranteeing safety not only on snow and ice, but also on wet or slushy surfaces when temperatures fall below 7 degrees, a temperature that alters both the road surface and the behaviour of a tyre.
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