Freightliner Extends Bandvulc Contract
Freightliner, the UK’s largest haulier of maritime containers has extended its commercial tyre agreement with Bandvulc Tyre Contracts. Freightliner operates a fleet of over 300 road vehicles, for final delivery and collection of containers from customer’s premises. Using Bandvulc retreads across all of its drive and trailer axles, the agreement sees Bandvulc collecting and managing all of their tyres and disposing of them within environmental guidelines. Richard Branston, general manager Road and Port Operations for Freightliner comments; “Bandvulc has been involved with Freightliner for over 10 years and the processes we have developed in conjunction with BTC have helped us control and manage our tyre policy effectively and recent developments have seen us extend this relationship further. The management and control of a nationwide operation required a comprehensive set of partners to work with and BTC’s network enabled service delivery 24/7/365 in all areas of the UK.”
Continue ReadingChinese Retreading Volumes to Grow 30% This Year – CRI
According to Shanghai based research company China Research and Intelligence (CRI), increased vehicle numbers are causing scrap tyre levels in China to grow at a rate of 10 to 20 per cent per annum. Last year, CRI reports, more than 200 million tyres in China reached the end of their useful lifespan, yet only 11.5 million were retreaded.
Continue ReadingB&J Rocket Cancels Autopromotec Participation
B&J Rocket states it will not attend this year’s Autopromotec 2009 trade fair. Com"Our investment focus is on product quality and service", as Andreas Müller, managing director of B&J Rocket Sales AG, emphasises. "The intensive dialogue with our customers worldwide, personal and via our online media, has long been established on an ongoing basis."menting on this decision, the Swiss company notes that the worldwide financial situation compels companies to thoroughly look into their expenses.
Continue ReadingMichelin to Pause Remix Production at Stoke Plant
Michelin’s Stoke on Trent facility is to halt production for 15 days between February and April, resulting in employees working nine less shifts within this time period. Employees will be required to work five of these shifts at a later date, and will receive 50 per cent pay for the remaining four cancelled shifts. The dates for the shutdown of the company’s Remix truck tyre lines are reported to be February 21 to March 2 and between April 9 and 15.
Continue ReadingB&J Rocket Launches Web Shop
B&J Rocket has developed a new online shop. As of November 2008 selected articles from B&J’s wide range will be available to everyone via www.bj-rocket.com. These include items for tyre repair, carbide tools as well as products for tyre shops and service stations.
Continue ReadingWith Chinese input Prices on the Up Could there be a Retread Renaissance?
Raw material price increases affect every part of the tyre production and distribution chain. At the moment all the new tyre manufacturers (from the largest to the smallest) are feeling the raw materials pinch, which has been reflected in a run of less profitable financial reports. Even the Chinese manufacturers that were able to offer the “economic option” for so long are being forced to restructure their prices. Prior to this the low price of new Chinese made truck and bus radials had been hindering sales of quality retreads, so now that the price differential appears to swinging back against the Far Eastern budget producers, will this provide the opportunity for a resurgence in retread sales? Take Qingdao, Shandong province-based Aufine Group Co Ltd. In August Tyres & Accessories received notification that the company was bringing in a second “unfortunate” price increase in three months, brought on by the “not small” (23 per cent) increase in Aufine’s natural rubber costs. The fact that the Chinese government clamped down on production in regions adjacent to Qingdao during the last quarter has also affected the distribution of these products. Furthermore, in addition to pressures mentioned above, the supply of Chinese tyres is also described as “inconsistent” since the pound’s value has fallen against the Euro. As a result Chinese manufacturers are increasingly ‘cherry-picking’ sales in the most lucrative international markets.
Continue ReadingMichelin: Comprehensive Retreading Operations
More than any other company in the world it is Michelin that – at an early stage – began to produce retreaded truck tyres as part of its industrial operations, and has always understood retreading as an integral part of its new tyre business and incorporated it into all its industrial and marketing activities. The French corporation not only operates its Remix mould-cure production and cooperates with its pre-cure retreading partners across Europe; in the area of retreading Michelin is building on yet another cornerstone - the Laurent group, with its two production sites in Avallon, France, and Berlin, Germany. It is in particular the latter, the smaller location in terms of output, that plays a pivotal role in the ever-important Western and central Europe markets.
Continue ReadingBridgestone Bulldog Held 7.5% UK Retread Market Share in 2007
Bridgestone first started working with Bulldog remoulds as its preferred retreading partner in the 1990’s Everything changed in April 2005 when Bridgestone bought the Bourne, Lincolnshire-based retreader, bringing with it plans to more than double the site’s previous annual output and radically overhaul the operation. Tyres & Accessories gained an exclusive insight into what has happened at Bulldog during a recent visit to Bridgestone UK’s newly updated retread production headquarters.
Continue ReadingMichelin’s Stoke Site Aims to be Cutting Edge Facility
At the end of last year Michelin executives embarked on a three-phase study into modernising the company’s Campbell road, Stoke-on-Trent retread manufacturing site. The plan is to take the UK’s largest commercial vehicle retread production plant to the next level with multi-million pound investment from Michelin headquarters in Clermont-Ferrand and other parties. Tyres & Accessories visited the Campbell road Remix and Encore facilities in mid-February and saw that the site spent £1 million last year gearing for the proposed improvements.
Continue ReadingColwayski
It was back in the early days of 2002 when Gary Oliver and Peter Morris formed the company called C-Tyres and purchased the assets of retreaders Colway and Motorway from the Official Receiver. Since then, the demise of car tyre retreading in the UK has been well documented and, it has to be said, one or two quizzical eyebrows were raised when Oliver and Morris announced that C-Tyres would be making retreads. At the end of January the Colway brand and equipment owned by County Durham-based C-Tyres was bought by Polish retread company, Mark Gum. No details of how much Mark Gum paid were made available. C-Tyres managing director Gary Oliver had previously spoken of his hope that a British company would take ownership of the assets, allowing tyre production to start up again from within C-Tyres leased premises in Langley Moor.
Continue ReadingNorth Korean Leader Visits Automated Factory
Kim Jong Il has visited the newly built Pyongyang Taesong Tyre Factory, in Pyongyang, North Korea. The factory has a total floor space of more than 2,000 square metres and all its production processes are automated.
Continue ReadingSignificant growth at Sapphire Energy Recovery
Whichever way you look at it 2005 was a significant year for Sapphire Energy Recovery. Not only the did the company successfully dispose of more than 100,000 tonnes of tyres, but it markedly increased industry awareness thanks to a high-profile (putting it mildly) advertising campaign. But neither achievement has gone unnoticed as the 2006 TAFF award nominations (see page 38) recognise the company on both counts. Furthermore Sapphire expects to process its 50 millionth tyre in the coming months, something that is particularly impressive when you consider that the company was only founded in 2000.
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Chinese Retreading Market Presents World of Opportunity
While much has been made about the enormous potential of the emerging Chinese tyre market, the opportunities go further than this alone. For every tyre that is produced and used in the People’s Republic there is a potential money-making opportunity for the retreading and collection aspects of the tyre business. It is not overstating the situation to say there is huge potential for retreading in China. Currently around 265 million tyres are produced in China each year, across all segments. At the same time the domestic market’s 3 million vehicles currently demand 130 million tyres annually, according to a Hong Kong Trade Development Council report.
Continue ReadingBridgestone UK Acquires Bulldog Remoulds
Bridgestone UK Ltd has acquired Bulldog Remoulds (Holdings) Ltd, the companies have announced in a joint statement. The deal is said to have been the subject of discussion for “some time.” Both parties agreed that the pricetag attached to the purchase would remain “commercially confidential.” The purchase took effect on 29 April and will not affect existing trading arrangements with Bulldog customers and suppliers, the companies have confirmed. Bridgestone says the acquisition will strengthen its long-term capability to look after and expand its Truck Fleet customers within the UK.
Continue ReadingMarangoni begins pre-cure rubber production in Brazil
Marangoni S.p.A. has started production of precured tread rubber at Belo Horizonte, Brazil, in response to Brazils growing demand for retreads. The purpose designed, 14,000-sq.-ft. plant cost Marangoni around 13 million Euro to build and equip. Initial employment will be 60, but this should rise to 140 over time, Marangoni said. The company expects the new venture to generate sales of 6.1million Euro in the first full year of operation, rising up to 25.6 million Euro within four years.
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