
Get a grip – Auto Bild Sportscar tests 10 tyres
Tyre choice is a “decisive factor” determining a vehicle’s dynamic qualities, comments Auto Bild Sportscars in the preamble to its latest comparative test.The performance motoring magazine stresses that this is particularly the case when choosing the right rubber for performance cars. We see this in its 2020 summer tyre test, in which Auto Bild Sportscars looks at ten size 245/35 R19 (front axle) and 265/35 R 19 (rear) tyres that cover a range of prices and performance levels.
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Corghi garage equipment manufacturer Nexion Group confirms Covid-19 shutdown
The Nexion Group has suspended all activities at its Italian factories and offices until Sunday 29 March. The company had managed the situation by minimising risk to its employees while continuing some business functions until now but has taken the decision to enact the closure based on current circumstances. The company, best known for the Corghi brand of garage machinery distributed by Rema Tip Top UK, states that it will use the closure as an opportunity to “check, improve and guarantee” health and safety measures currently in place at its plants.
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PCL appoints new export sales manager
PCL has appointed José Delgado as its new new export sales manager. A Spanish national, Delgado is fluent in Spanish, Portuguese and English, and lives with his family in Northampton, making him well-positioned to travel between PCL’s HQ in Sheffield and to customers and distributors abroad.
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Robert Lee named president of Continental North America
Robert (Bob) Lee will take over as the new president of Continental North America. He succeeds Jeff Klei, who will retire after serving more than 30 years in the industry. Lee will be responsible for leading customer, governmental and other external relationships across the region.
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Nokian Tyres consulting on up to 90-day factory lay-offs
Nokian Tyres plc has entered into “employee cooperation negotiations” regarding planned temporary lay-offs affecting Nokian Tyres plc personnel based in Finland.
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Rolls Royce halts production
Production at Rolls-Royce Motor Car’s Goodwood-based manufacturing plant will be suspended from Monday 23 March for two weeks. According to the company, this suspension will be followed by a pre-planned two-week Easter maintenance shutdown “in order to further secure the health and welfare of the employees of the company”.
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Goodyear suspends European tyre production in response to Covid-19
Goodyear Europe, Middle East and Africa will suspend tyre production at all its European tyre and retread plants by the end of the week, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The manufacturer states that the temporary closure, which will last until at least 3 April, is “to protect its employees and respond to the sudden decline in market demand.” The closure affects the company’s plants in France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Slovenia. It also includes the Dębica plant in Poland.
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Government announces small business support package
Chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak has announced a series of support measures that features support for businesses. The measures include:
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Lorry driver hours relaxed
Prompted by the industry, the Department for Transport has relaxed the enforcement of EU drivers’ hours rules in England, Scotland and Wales for the drivers of “vehicles involved in the delivery of food, non-food (personal care and household paper and cleaning) and over the counter pharmaceuticals when undertaking the following journeys:
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Toyota pausing production at European plants
Production at several Toyota factories in Europe has been suspended as a result of the coronavirus and its social and economic impact upon the region, and other facilities will be shuttered by the end of this week. Toyota Motor Europe (TME) says it decided to halt production for a number of reasons linked to the safety and security of its employees and stakeholders. In particular, it has needed to respond to short-term uncertainties in sales, logistics and supply chains resulting from lock-down measures implemented by various national and regional authorities.
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ZC Rubber’s Ge Guorong: The retail market under COVID-19
The coronavirus-related restrictions we’re now experiencing in the UK and Europe were first seen in China. Many changes have taken place there since the COVID-19 outbreak began. Ge Guorong, vice president of Zhongce Rubber Group, sent a live video message to the retailers of its products in China, urging them to face the current difficulties together.
Continue ReadingCoronavirus: Larger businesses need protection too, says NFDA
The National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA) has urged the government to support automotive retailers during the coronavirus outbreak and has recommended a range of measures to accomplish this. The organisation, which represents franchised car and commercial vehicle retailers in the UK, also expresses its willingness to discuss the matter further.
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Latin American & Caribbean Tyre Expo postponed until November
In order to “protect the health and safety of all participants during the Covid-19 emergency”, this year’s Latin American & Caribbean Tyre Expo and the Latin Auto Parts Expo has been postponed for four months. The organiser of the Panama City-based show, which originally was to take place between 14-17 July 2020, has rescheduled it to 17-20 November 2020.
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SRI’s microscope analysis has potential for new breed of highly efficient tyres
A new technique to observe and analyse individual materials within tyre rubber offers “enormous potential” for the development of high-performance tyres with unprecedented levels of efficiency and wear resistance, engineers at Sumitomo Rubber Industries (SRI) and Ibaraki University claim.
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Autogem online interaction to support business in ‘unprecedented times’
Autogem states that it is using online ordering and training platforms to assist customers in mitigating potential disruption amid the disruption caused by the Covid-19 virus. “We have never worked in such unprecedented times, with each day presenting potential new challenges and concerns,” said Autogem managing director Prashant Chopra.
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