Retreading
Continental re-emphasises partnership with ContiTread cold retreaders
Continental reports that it is “further enhancing its support services to strengthen its partnership with ContiTread cold retread shops”. This development is being led by John Cox, Global Head of Technical Services Retread and will centre on the enhancement of support services.
Marangoni and Vipal announce partnership
Marangoni Spa and Borrachas Vipal SA have announced that the two retreading material suppliers have entered into a partnership agreement aimed at “increasing the synergies and productivity, strengthening the industrial and commercial organisation of both groups”. Details of precisely what this means are still scarce but, according to a statement issued by Marangoni, this will lead to the creation of “the largest global independent player in the tyre retreading sector”.
Berwin Industrial Polymers featured in Parliamentary Review
An important event in the diaries of both politicians and business leaders, the September release of The Parliamentary Review sees the documents highlight the best practice of organisations across the private and public sectors. The document shares some of the most forward-thinking work that has occurred in the country over the last year and is edited by former minister The Rt Hon David Curry. The 2018 edition features UK-based tyre compound supplier Berwin Industrial Polymers.
Port Express signs Vacu-Lug Tyre Management for compliance, efficiency
UK container transport service company Port Express has selected Vacu-Lug Tyre Management as its dedicated tyre management solutions partner. The company operates a fleet of more than 90 vehicles and 150 dedicated trailers from its depots in Felixstowe, Southampton and Birmingham. Port Express will utilise Vacu-Lug’s Tyre Rescue service to reduce downtime.
INMETRO certification for Marangoni’s RingTread, Unitread plant
Marangoni Tread Latino America has been accredited with INMETRO certification for its RingTread and Unitread pre-cure retreading materials production. Certification came after an independent assessment of Marangoni’s production plant in Brazil by Instituto Falcão Bauer, an accredited certification body in Brazil.
Superdoll Zambia gains mine safety accreditation
Superdoll OTR Retreading plant in Ndola, Zambia has been granted accreditation for OTR retreaded tyre distribution after going through all required documentation, company profile and records, according to Superdoll country manager Vick Nachson.
The four steps of the Bandvulc/Conti integration
Retreading has always been a key part of Continental’s truck offer to achieve what it refers to as Lowest Overall Driving Costs (LODC), but this was further enhanced when the company announced the purchase of Bandvulc, (located in Lee Mill, Ivybridge) in the UK in July 2016. Bandvulc had been producing Continental’s hot retread ContiRe for over 20 years to support fleet business in the UK, so it was a natural progression to bring Bandvulc into the Conti family – but how has the Devon-based retailer been integrated?
65 years young and still looking forward – CIMA
CIMA Impianti Spa might be celebrating its 65th anniversary this year, but the company reports that it continues to look forward. According to the company, features of the business’ 65-year pedigree include that it “keeps investing in buying equipment, but mainly in hiring people, a lot of which very young, giving space to a new generation capable of securing the future of the company.”
Marangoni GRP launches India’s first franchised Ringtread plant
Since late 2015, the Marangoni Ringtread process has been represented in India by Marangoni GRP, a joint venture between the Marangoni Group and India rubber recycler GRP. The joint venture operation has now begun the rollout of a network of franchised retreaders within the country – the first, Autobahn Retreading, has opened its doors in the city of Kochi (Cochin). The Autobahn Retreading plant was officially inaugurated by Giuseppe Marangoni, vice-president of the Marangoni Group, together with GRP’s chief executive officer, Harsh Gandhi.
NTDA: EC anti-subsidy decision ‘no great surprise’
Following decisions on the part of the European Commission (EC) to review its Chinese truck tyre anti-dumping tariffs and to decide against implementing anti-subsidy remedies against Chinese-produced tyres for the time being, the industry itself has been responding to the news. For its part, the UK’s National Tyre Distributors Association (NTDA) was not shocked by the news that the EC is not planning to implement anti-subsidy (otherwise known as counter-veiling duties) and highlighted difficulties associated with their implementation.
Nick Boles MP visits Vacu-Lug
Retreader and tyre management provider Vacu-Lug, which has today been acquired by Zenises, was visited by its local MP Nick Boles. The member for for Grantham and Stamford spent his time at the company seeing its latest manufacturing developments and learning more about its recently developed VMS Mobile app, designed to provide operators with fingertip access to their fleet’s tyre data whenever and wherever they need it.
Zenises makes “capital commitments” to Vacu-Lug following acquisition of tyre retreader
As part of the transaction that saw Zenises group purchase Vacu-Lug, Zenises Group has confirmed that it has also made “several large capital commitments in equipment and technology to ensure that Vacu-Lug becomes, over time, the most advanced independent retreader in Europe”.
All-season tyre prices continue to grow, winter prices flatten
Earlier research based on point of sales system-based sell-out data shows that mid-range all-season tyres are leading market growth, followed by premium tyres (see “Mid-range all-season tyres lead market growth” for more on this). At the same time 4x4 and SUV tyres specifically appear to be driving growth. Both facts point to the hypothesis that market growth is being driven by high-value products, which makes both all-season tyres in general and SUV/4x4 all-season tyres in particular attractive parts of the tyre business to engage in. But what evidence is there that this thesis is supported by sell-out pricing?
Zenises buys Vacu-Lug
Zenises has bought Grantham-based Vacu-Lug. The acquisition means Vacu-Lug remains the only significantly sized independent retreader in the UK. With an annual truck tyre retread capacity of 120,000, Zenises representatives described the firm as the largest independent retreader in Europe.
“My product can do even more”
Many retreaders face an uphill battle just to maintain their position in European retreading markets. For those that do, a key factor in their success is – as we’ve previously commented in these pages – possession of a stable customer base. Yet loyalty is only earned through unflagging effort; maintaining close relations with customers is important, as is product quality and price in comparison with new tyres and the competition’s retreads. A fine example of how this works on a small, regional scale can be seen at W.H.H. Reifenerneuerung, a Hamburg, Germany-based retreader that’s been in the business for almost 40 years.