North Hants Tyres: Specialist Niche Sees Little Change
Classic car tyre provider, North Hants Tyres says that the past year has yielded a rise in classic radial sizes such as 125x15, 145x15 and 165x15 as the major manufacturers ceased their production. The small niche market for specialist tyres has, according to the company, seen little fluctuation and, in spite of undoubtedly difficult market conditions, there has been an increase in sales over the past year.
Continue ReadingUSW OKs Four-Year Deal With Bridgestone
(Tire Review) The last of the major tyre-makers has a new contract with the United Steelworkers.Union workers at Bridgestone Americas’ tyre plants ratified a new four-year master contract with the tyre-maker Saturday, brining the 2009 master contract negotiations to a quiet end.
Continue ReadingGoodyear Launches DT818 High Speed
Goodyear UK and Ireland has launched its DT818 High Speed to the market. Part of the very popular Optitrac radial drive farm tyre range, the tyre comes in 13 sizes. According to the company, High Speed (HS) means that the tyres are D-rated and can operate at speeds up to 44mph (70kph) or at inflation pressures as low as 9psi. Even at lower operating speeds and for tractors that have a top speed of 25mph (45kph) or 30mph (50kph) these tyres provide performance advantages being able ton carry up to 9.5% more load at same inflation versus the conventional DT818 tyre. Furthermore, DT818 HS can carry the same loads as DT818 at lower inflation pressure thereby, elongating the footprint generating more traction and pull so that work gets completed faster and at lower cost as well as reducing soil compaction. The tyre has a tuned and modified casing and the rubber compounds required to overcome the increased strains and forces on the tyres at 44mph. However, DT818 HS features the popular and proven Optitrac tread design concept including identical external dimensions and tread depth making it easy to convert from regular tyres to the new DT818 HS ones.
Continue ReadingNewsweek: Goodyear Among "Greenest Big Companies in America"
Newsweek Magazine has recognised Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company as one of “The Greenest Big Companies in America.” Companies were scored on factors that included environmental impact, green policies, and overall reputation as an environmentally conscientious company. The rankings were determined by Newsweek in conjunction with KLD Research & Analytics, Trucost and CorporateRegister.com. The rankings were published in the September 28 edition of the magazine. “The evaluation was based on specific criteria such as greenhouse gas emissions, water usage and ‘green’ programs,” stated Don Stanley, Goodyear’s vice president of product quality and plant technology. “We pride ourselves on the progress we’ve made over the years on these and other fronts. However, we also recognize the fact that environmental stewardship requires continuous improvement across a broad spectrum of opportunities, and at Goodyear we are committed to getting better each and every day.”
Continue ReadingRicciardo Wins First Cooper Tire British F3 International Title
Cooper Tire & Rubber Company’s first year of sponsorship of the British Formula 3 International Series has been completed, with Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo becoming the first driver to win the prestigious championship. The Cooper Tires brand took over title sponsorship of the series in 2009 as part of a three-year deal, and also took over the role of sole tyre supplier to the series from associate brand Avon Tyres.
Continue ReadingJones Brothers Clinch Avon Tyres British GT Title
The 2009 Avon Tyres British GT Championship was decided by a single point in a title fight that went down to the very last lap of the 14-race season. Identical twin brothers David and Godfrey Jones clinched the honours, sharing the driving of an Ascari KZ1R in the series they first entered nine years ago.
Continue ReadingMicheldever IT and Telecoms Manager Shortlisted for Award
Luke Claughton, Micheldever Tyre Services IT and Telecoms Manager has been shortlisted for one of the IT industry’s most prestigious awards. Claughton is a finalist in the Young IT Professional of the Year which will be announced at an industry dinner in London on the 12 November. Luke has been with Micheldever Tyre Services for six years and has been responsible for upgrading and enhancing the company’s IT system. “We are absolutely delighted that Luke has been shortlisted for this important award”, said Micheldever Tyre Services (MTS) CEO, Paul Fox. “We set very high standards here at MTS and this nomination is a reflection of our staff going that extra mile and exceeding excellence in their particular field and being recognised by their peers. We look forward to Luke bringing home the award next month.”
Continue Reading50,000 Tyres On Fire In County Londonderry
Up to 50,000 tyres reportedly caught fire at the Campsie Industrial Estate in Eglinton, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland at 22:00 on Sunday 5 October. News sources say more than 70 fire-fighters are attending at the scene and residents have been told to keep their windows closed. Local resident John Lamberton sent tyrepress.com the video and photo images alongside this story, having become aware of what he thought were fireworks late on Sunday night. Meanwhile, Cambridgeshire fire-fighters report that another fire, which has been burning at Murfitt Industries, near Littleport since August is likely to burn out this week. This fire began on 21 August. Customers told Tyres & Accessories that despite the fire they haven’t noticed any interruption of service.
Continue ReadingCooper Tire Europe Appoints New Export Sales Manager
Cooper Tire & Rubber Company Europe has appointed Tom Edwards as its new Export Sales Manager for North Africa, the Mediterranean and Scandinavia. Edwards, 29, moves into Cooper Tire’s sales department from the marketing sector in which he was, until earlier this month, European and EMEA Marketing Manager.
Continue ReadingBlackcircles.com to Launch New Service This Month
Online tyre retailer Blackcircles is set to launch a new service that will see the company foray deeper into the aftermarket. (For full report see November’s Tyres & Accessories magazine) Earlier this summer the company announced that it would expand its network of independent garages by 30 per cent by the end of the year in preparation for the move. Blackcircles currently counts 1,200 independent garages in its network. The South East and North West are said to be prime regions for new garages to meet demand. In recent years Blackcircles.com has grown to a turnover of in excess of £10, after having only launched in 2001. In an earlier report, the Financial Times quoted Welch as saying sales were as much as 80 per cent up year-on-year. While year-on-year sales growth is currently quoted at 60 per cent it remains nonetheless impressive. 2008 turnover was £11 million, but in 2009, it is predicted to be £15 million.
Continue ReadingBridgestone Brings F1 Glamour to BA Bush Store Opening
Bridgestone will help its partner, tyre retail group BA Bush & Son celebrate the opening of its latest depot with a weekend of events designed to entertain the whole family. BA Bush will be showcasing a replica Ferrari Formula One car – supplied by F1 tyre supplier, Bridgestone – this weekend (3 and 4 October) at Springfields Outlet Shopping & Festival Gardens in Spalding, Lincolnshire. Visitors will be able to have their picture taken next to the F1 car in exchange for a small donation to local charities.
Continue ReadingOnline Tyre Sales Still a Mid Range Market
With 70 per cent of us now having access to the Internet, and consumers making an average of 2.1 virtual purchases a month, maintaining the right online presence is as important as ever. According to the 2009 Oxford Internet Survey, the two most common online activities are researching product purchases and actually buying them (about 80 per cent of web users having done each). However with a multitude of distractions out there in cyberspace, tyre businesses have developed complex e-marketing strategies designed to lure customers to their sites with low prices, before up-selling them onto more expensive products. Some of the clearest evidence to date shows that the Internet is an increasingly competitive mid-range market, not a budget bargain basement as some say. Comparing online price monitoring data with the results of market research conducted by Encircle Marketing shows that national fast fits continue to be the most expensive places to buy, with tyres costing £86.22 between January and August 2009. No surprises there. The fact that tyres are cheapest at pure e-tailers (£65.91) on average, won’t surprise many either. In fact, with the exception of average prices at autocentres rising to meet those at car dealerships (£78.68 and £79.18 respectively) the pattern is pretty much the same as it was last year.
Continue ReadingDe Klok Holds High Expectations for the New Season
Dutch wholesaler De Klok Banden is releasing a completely updated product range for the 2009/2010 winter tyre season. But it is not only the size and depth of the line-up that’s been taken care of – the company is also convinced that tyre dealers will be hard pressed to go past De Klok’s brands when it comes to quality, availability and pricing. Furthermore, a recently added extra 15,000 square metres warehouse capacity shows that the firm from Oud-Beijerland, south of Rotterdam, is set to expand.
Continue ReadingCam Commits to £1.3 Million Software and Services Programme
Cam Systems, the leading provider of software solutions and services to the UK independent tyre industry, has announced that it is investing £1.3 million in a customer charter called Cam 20:20. According to the company, Cam 20:20 sets out the its aims to serve customers more effectively by providing “wider IT options…and by ensuring the transparency of Cam’s performance against defined customer service levels.” In other words, the company is furthering its joined up approach to tyre business systems, with new products and a set of new service level agreements. Cam 20:20 is the result of customer surveys conducted by Cam that highlighted the requirement for both more tailored and, at the same time, more comprehensive services from one systems provider. This means the launch of a 32 bit version of the company’s popular Cameo software, which runs on the latest windows operating systems and vastly improving reporting capabilities – even opening up the possibility of Google-style analytics. At the same time, Cam’s .NET system rewrite will deliver document management software (for purchase and sales ledgers, fleet management and call centre options) in the early part of 2010. To support the introduction of Cam 20:20, the company has created a dedicated customer services team after appointing Steve Bazeley to the new role of customer services director. And new service level agreements (SLA) provide a more tailored approach to IT service needs. Customers can opt for Premium, Business or Standard agreements.
Continue ReadingMarangoni Merges Retreading Businesses
As a response to market changes and the rapid evolution of its manufacturing and distribution arms, Marangoni has decided to merge by incorporation its Marangoni Spa and Marangoni Tread SpA operations into Marangoni Pneumatici SpA. This new company, which came into being on October 1, 2009, will serve as the parent company and will be officially known as Marangoni SpA. This merger, says Marangoni, is part of a medium-term strategic plan aimed at strengthening the group and placing a greater focus on its core retreading business.
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