The tyre business along with the rest of the automotive industry was hit hard by the effects of coronavirus. This tag brings you the latest news as it happens.
Firestone returns to the All Points East festival as sponsor for a third time over the August Bank Holiday weekend. The event returns to London’s Victoria Park after a year’s absence, and the Firestone Stage will be ready to entertain.
Within the next few hours, production will recommence at Hankook Tire & Technology’s Geumsan plant in South Korea following a 48-hour pause that began on 24 July after a number of workers tested positive for Covid-19. Health authorities have set up a test centre at the plant and intend to test around 3,000 employees early this week.
The media might have picked up on the rhetoric of “freedom day”, but the NTDA’s recent “Keeping Tyre Centres Safe” report highlights the fact that businesses will still be required to take responsibility for managing health and safety risks: “All employers will continue to have a legal responsibility to protect workers and others from a risk to their health and safety and have a legal duty to consult workers on health and safety matters.” Here, Tyrepress.com takes a close look at the responsibility and choices facing tyre retailers.
Data in the NTDA’s “Keeping Tyre Centres Safe” report shows that 95 per cent of tyre centres keeping some or all Covid-19 measures. Providing useful insights into consumer and retail thinking on subject, the NTDA report highlights that: two-thirds of drivers are concerned about Covid-19 restrictions being lifted (this trend was most noticeable in Scotland where the figure was 69 per cent); that the majority “want to see safety measures REMAIN in tyre centres”; and that “63 per cent of the nations’ drivers would be more likely to choose (and 65 per cent more likely to trust) a tyre centre that continues to enforce safety measures”.
With the 19 July 2021 relaxation of Covid-19 legislation fast-approaching, some have dubbed next Monday as “freedom day”. However, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has stressed that the pandemic is not over and in practice the government is passing responsibility for health and safety and social distancing onto businesses and households. With this in mind, the National Tyre Distributors Association (NTDA) commissioned the “Keeping Tyre Centres Safe – Insight Report” and is launching a “Safe Tyre Centre Scheme” in order to help tyre distributors with the challenging choices they face. At the top of the list of difficult decisions is “which (if any) COVID-19 restrictions they will relax in their branches and workshops” after 19 July, as NTDA chief executive Stefan Hay notes in his foreword to the report.
Data released by the UK car industry throughout the pandemic has shown the negative impact of Covid-19 on sales of new and used vehicles, but new research shows the figures could have been worse. A study for Kwik Fit indicates that as 3.8 million drivers said Covid-19 caused them to put off a planned car purchase. However, this was partially offset by the fact that 3.2 million drivers were prompted by the impact of the pandemic to buy a new or used car.
Registrations of new cars in June grew 28.0 per cent year-on-year to 186,128, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT)’s latest figures. The monthly performance was again artificially lifted through comparison with June 2020, when the UK began to emerge from the first pandemic lockdown and showrooms in England opened up at the beginning of the month.
The organiser of The Tire Cologne 2022 is encouraging potential exhibitors to take the plunge with an early bird discount, which can be obtained until 30 June. Koelnmesse comments that initial indications and registrations “all point to the trade fair being another strong business event that will live up to its ambition.”
Maha UK’s Luke Fuller joined the company during 2020, right in the midst of the pandemic, but he didn’t let the ‘stay at home’ rule affect his confidence or ability to build a rapport with customers. Now back out on the road, he’s keen to make up for lost time.
It’s no surprise that considerably more new cars were sold throughout the European Union in May 2021 than during the corresponding month of last year. Indeed, upon reporting the 891,665 new registrations for the month, a 53.4 per cent year-on-year increase compared with May 2020, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) notes that the bar was set low by the lockdowns and various restrictions in place throughout Europe a year ago. In order to place the latest registration figures into context, the ACEA points out that no less than 1.2 million passenger cars were sold within the region in May 2019, 26.7 per cent higher than last month’s figure.
Pirelli will begin its vaccination plan for company employees and their families on 16 June 2021. According to the company, the campaign is directed at all employees at the company’s three Italian sites – Milan, Bollate and Settimo Torinese – where a total of around 3,000 people are employed. Pirelli had already indicated its willingness to provide vaccinations at the company and the campaign will allow employees to be vaccinated on a voluntary basis.
Sri Lankan tyre maker GRI Tires strives to be a responsible company that always recognises the importance of giving back to the country and its people, especially in times of need. Managing director Prabhash Subasinghe states that it “is ingrained in our DNA as an organisation to give back to society.”
Kumho Tire Europe has a vision to “grow into a major brand,” shares Namhwa Cho. Speaking with the CEO Edit, a show presented outside the UK by BBC StoryWorks, the Kumho Tire Europe president spoke about the tyre maker’s aspirations as well as its experiences during the pandemic and plans to capitalise on mobility megatrends.
NTDA
NTDA
NTDA
Maha UK
Pirelli