Much has changed at Nexen Tire of late, a phenomenon particularly noticeable within the South Korean tyre maker’s European operation. In the past two years, the company has set up a new production facility in the Czech Republic and a European headquarters in Germany as part of its ‘Global Nexen’ strategy. This expansion is occurring parallel to similar growth in Korea and the USA.
Magna Tyres Group has opened a sales office in the Czech Republic. It said the move has been in response to demand for the Magna range of OTR ad specialist tyres in Eastern Europe. It added that it has been encouraged by “unutilised market potential in this region.” The region was previously serviced by its Polish office.
Fans of Czech First League club FK Mladá Boleslav will see a lot more of Kumho Tyre in future. As exclusive tyre partner for the coming three years, Kumho Tyre gains a logo presence on the back of players’ shirts and the front of their shorts during all First League and cup matches as well as on digital signage along the length of the playing field. The sponsorship arrangement also covers hospitality options and a presence within the club’s media activities.
An official opening ceremony is being held today for Nexen Tire’s new tyre factory in Žatec, Czech Republic. Numerous dignitaries have attended the event, including Petr Očko, the country’s Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, Travis Kang, Nexen Tire’s global chief executive officer, and Byung-Joong Kang, the company’s chairman.
Nexen Tire Europe is due to begin trial production at its new facility in Zatec, the Czech Republic. The news marks the virtual completion of the project that started in October 2015.
Tyre maker and technology company Continental has acquired a 100 per cent shareholding in Czech machine tool manufacturer VÚK. The purchase of VÚK strengthens its presence in the city of Otrokovice, Czech Republic, site of the company’s largest tyre manufacturing facility worldwide. Continental says it intends to leverage VÚK’s strengths to drive forward its development and production of technologically advanced tyre assembly machinery.
Hexpol has today acquired 100 per cent of Trelleborg Material & Mixing Lesina s.r.o from the Trelleborg Group. The divested operation develops, produces and supplies polymer compounds. The majority of its sales are to external customers and a minor share to a small number of Trelleborg facilities in Europe.
A ceremony was held last week to officially inaugurate the newly-rebuilt truck tyre production hall at Continental’s manufacturing facility in Otrokovice, Czech Republic. The inauguration marks the completion of a three-year project that involved a CZK 4.4 billion (£146.4 million) investment and has led to the creation of 130 new jobs. The project has seen the Otrokovice site, which previously served the European, Middle East and African markets, additionally develop into a production hub for markets in America and the Asia Pacific region.
A tyre manufacturer has announced a sponsorship agreement and – you’d better read this sitting down – it doesn’t involve football. Nexen Tire has signed up as an official sponsor of The 7th International Antonín Dvořák Composition Competition that will be held from 24 July to 1 August at the Prague Conservatoire in the Czech Republic. Nexen comments that this sponsorship forms part of its “cultural marketing strategy.”
Following on from the second Kraiburg summit, Kraiburg Austria invited its Czech and Slovakian customers to a workshop at the end of September in Cerna Hora in the Czech Republic. During the even the retreading specialist shared its stance on various “pro-retread” campaigns and gave a status report on the ReTyre project, explaining the background behind the impending tyre labelling.
On 1 October 2015 Nexen Tire broke ground on the site of its new plant in Zatec, Czech Republic. The company has committed to investing more than 829 million euros in building the new plant on 650,000 square metres of land in Zatec.
Until this year, Continental only produced run-flat tyres at its Aachen and Korbach factories in Germany. However a couple of years ago the company saw a need to expand production of original equipment run-flats in response to growing demand from vehicle manufacturers, and at the end of 2013 the decision was taken to equip the Continental Matador Rubber factory in Púchov, Slovakia to make self-supporting run-flat, or SSR tyres.
Dunlop riders claimed wins and podiums across the board at the FIM Motocross World Championship Czech Republic grand prix, with Italy’s Kiara Fontanesi claiming the Women’s title on her Yamaha. Dunlop’s Geomax MX32 medium terrain tyres helped the Dunlop riders with five finishing in the MXGP top-ten.
The European Commission has approved regional investment of almost €117million for the passenger car tyre factory Nexen Tire intends to build in the Czech Republic. The Commission found the aid that government trade agency CzechInvest offered Nexen for the facility in Žatec is compatible with EU state aid rules, and deemed it will promote regional development without unduly distorting competition in the internal market.
In 2018, Nexen Tire’s new 1.2 trillion Korean won (£705 million) tyre factory in the Czech Republic will enter operation. The tyre maker confirmed the project in June 2014 and says the facility it is building in Zatec will be “one of the most cutting-edge and eco-friendly plants in the world.”
NRZ/Arno Borchers
Magna Tyres