Halfords Autocentres to use Cam Systems e-commerce platform
Cam Systems has announced that Halfords Autocentres has signed an e-procurement agreement with the software provider, as it continues to develop its growth strategy. Halfords announced a proposed expansion of its network to 400 sites in May. Cam says the MIDaS-based platform will provide transactional interaction with Halfords’ wholesale suppliers to streamline its tyre buying processes.The system will also allow consumers to view product prices online in coordination with Halfords’ own B2C web facilities.
Continue ReadingFears India certification may lead to tyre shortages, unsold stock
Shortages make become an issue within India’s tyre industry following the release of a quality control order by the country’s Department of Commerce. Reporting on the threat, the Business Standard newspaper explains that the order prevents the sale of tyres and tubes in India unless they feature a Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) mark or a certification mark licence is otherwise obtained. The business daily also states industry sources claim the country’s tyre manufacturing industry “has come to a standstill” as it possesses a substantial inventory that cannot be sold without the BIS mark.
Continue ReadingATS Euromaster awarded top human resources honours
Fast fitter ATS Euromaster has been given HR Magazine’s “Best HR Team – Private Sector” and “Most Effective Use of Internal Communication” awards, recognising a year in which human resources strategy was used to help the company through the difficulties of the recession. The company entered 2008 with severe economic problems and had to close approximately 80 of its smaller service centres. The department used employee forums, road shows, DVDs and training programmes in a three-year strategy designed to make the company communicate better internally and provide a better service for customers. The Awards, run by HR Magazine, were presented to Group HR director Irene Stark and Jane Linnell, Group Internal Communications Manager, in front of more than 500 guests, most of them senior HR professionals from top UK companies.
Continue ReadingLeading tyre manufacturers 2011
Tyres & Accessories' rankings of the leading tyre manufactures in the world according to tyre turnover, pre-tax profits and operating profit has now published online. First published in our June 2011 print edition, subscribers can view the details of this year's table by clicking more.
Continue ReadingTransense AGM reports “huge progress”
Transense, the saw-wave RFID company that has developed the Translogik range of TPMS and related technologies, has made “huge progress” in the last three years. That’s the view of the firm’s board which released an AGM statement on 29 June lauded the businesses improvements. “Transense is now in a position to leverage its technological expertise and a much broader range of technical projects are now underway. In fact, there are more live development projects now than at any time in the company's history, such that the medium to long term future looks promising,” the statement explained.
Continue ReadingSecond-hand safety
You wouldn’t dream of buying second hand underpants, would you? Not even if they weren’t too shabby and looked perfectly serviceable? No? What strange priorities we have – the idea of togging up in someone else’s castoff briefs is enough to make most people shudder, even if the risk to health and safety from doing so is nil. Yet when it comes to tyres, something we entrust our lives with, thousands of Britons are perfectly happy to dress their cars with a pre-used product.
Continue ReadingBridgestone nets second Boeing supplier award
Bridgestone Corporation is one of 16 companies, and the only tyre maker, to be honoured at this year’s Boeing Supplier of the Year awards. The Electrical/Hydraulic/Mechanical Standards category award is the second consecutive Boeing supplier honour for Bridgestone; the Japanese manufacturer was chosen from a pool of some 17,500 active Boeing suppliers in more than 50 countries around the world.
Continue Reading‘There are no bad tyres’
Al Dobowi Group chairman Surender Singh Kandhari’s spoke on “the emergence of budget tyres” at the recent Automechanika Middle East his argument that there is no such thing as a bad tyre may have raised some eyebrows, but it certainly got the audience thinking. Highlighting that the combination of ambitious manufacturers based in emerging markets and increasingly tough legislation has seen so-called budget brands rapidly increase sales volumes and standards, his most memorable comment came when he posited: "There are no bad tyres; only good ones and better ones.”
Continue ReadingSailun raises 1 billion yuan in IPO
Roughly a month ago Sailun’s corporate headquarters embarked on an initial public offering (IPO) of A shares, which is said to have raised around 1 billion yuan at the stock exchange. 98 million shares have been sold at around US$1 each, meaning the company now has access to three-digit millions for capital expenditure.
Continue ReadingGoodyear’s Peter Tan to retire
Peter Tan, managing director of Goodyear’s global natural rubber development and sourcing centre, Goodyear Orient Company (Private) Limited (GOCPL), has announced his intention to retire at the end of this year after 39 years with the company. Franco Fan, currently manager, Asia Raw Materials at Goodyear’s Asia Pacific regional headquarters in Shanghai, has been named Tan’s successor. Fan will relocate to Singapore July 1 and work with Tan until his retirement.
Continue ReadingCooper refuses comment on Trayal investment reports
Cooper has refused to comment on multiple Serbian news reports quoting Serbian finance secretary Miodrag Djidic as saying that Cooper Tire is interested in acquiring Trayal’s automobile tyre plant. When questioned on the subject, a Cooper Tire Europe spokesperson told Tyres & Accessories that’ the company’s “corporate policy is not to comment on rumour or speculation.”
Continue ReadingMining sector demand driving Bridgestone’s off-road business
Within the United Kingdom the off-road tyre market is dominated by the mining sector and it is no secret that Bridgestone has safely the largest presence here. When Tyres & Accessories spoke with Bridgestone UK’s OTR sector product manager Barry Coleman recently, he confirmed that current industry data places Bridgestone as clear UK market leader in the OTR/EM tyre segment and added that the company’s particular strength within the segment is in the rigid dump truck business. Bridgestone’s tyre portfolio for these 100 tonne plus vehicles includes sizes up to 3700R51 in the UK.
Continue ReadingNexen ramping up European SUV marketing with 28” HP tyre
Korean tyre manufacturer Nexen Tyre has announced an increase in its activities within the European luxury SUV segment, with a range of high performance products including the Roadian HP in the size 325/35R28. This is the largest Roadian HP tyre, specially developed for tuned SUVs or high-performance recreational vehicles, such as the Car Film Components Hummer presented at the beginning of May the the Tuning World Bodensee 2011 show in Germany.
Continue ReadingGrouptyre membership “key” in B.A.B. Distribution expansion
Grouptyre member and wholesale operation of BA Bush & Son, B.A.B. Distribution has announced an expansion of its operation along the east coast of England. The company currently operates 17 centres across Lincolnshire, East Yorkshire, Humberside and Cambridgeshire, having opened four new facilities over the past two years, and it now aims to have 20 outlets by the end of the year on the back of continued growth. The wholesale group says the expansion shows that it is committed to growing its market share by investing to improve the supply chain.
Continue ReadingSMMT broadcasts automotive summit across Internet
Senior figures from across the automotive industry are meeting for the annual SMMT International Automotive Summit in Westminster today, which is being broadcast live across the Internet. The industry has had a major boost in recent weeks with huge investments announced by BMW and Nissan, but is the wider industry able to secure similar funding? For our part, Tyres & Accessories has lodged a question about the effect of the Longbridge revival and the UK’s relationship with China on the tyre trade, which we will report on as and when this is answered.
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