The cost-of-living crisis is pushing the European Commission into action. Having faced accusations of being on the backfoot since the pandemic, it is now increasing the number of dawn raids and antitrust investigations. The ultimate intention is to prevent consumers facing higher costs than necessary from businesses.
Linglong became the first Chinese tyremaker to start producing tyres in Europe when it opened the doors to its Serbia facility in February. Since then, the company has continued to expand its European operations and most recently appointed Wolf Fuder as Head of Marketing Europe based within the Linglong Germany GmbH operation.
Chennai, India-based Royal Tyres Private Ltd was established in 1992 by Mr M Mani. Since then, the company has manufactured and exported solid tyres, smooth press-on tyres, mould-on wheel tyres and paver tyres. Each year, between 20 and 40 per cent of the company’s production is exported around the world. Current key markets include the USA, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Sri Lanka and Nepal. But of course, European and other export markets are of interest too.
Goodyear is significantly restructuring its Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) operations in measures that will result in 1200 job cuts across the salaried workforce, the creation of 500 new positions and therefore a net job reduction of 15%. Tyres & Accessories understands that the “business transformation programme” centres on Goodyear EMEA’s salaried workforce. Furthermore, it does not impact the company’s manufacturing workforce, which has been addressed separately.
On 1 August 2023, the Hubtrac tyre brand relocated its European operational headquarters and production facilities to Serbia. Strategic departments were inaugurated in the UK and Germany, marking the completion of a Europe-centric operational structure. The goal? The establishment of an undeniably European tyre brand alongside the already-established product R&D centre in Germany. According to the company, “this strategic shift heralds the dawn of a new era.” Tyres & Accessories met with the director of the Hubtrac brand and marketing department, Edward Xu, in order to learn more.
Continental has unveiled its new Conti CityPlus concept at the IAA Mobility event. According to the Hanover-based tyremaker, this state-of-the-art tyre technology increases the total energy efficiency of a tyre by up to 10 per cent. The results are said to be “lower CO2 emissions from passenger cars with combustion engines and longer driving ranges for electric vehicles.” This was achieved by optimising the tyre behaviour during stop-and-go traffic in urban driving situations, increasing the range of passenger cars by up to 3 per cent as a result. This corresponds to a saving of 0.6 kWh per 100 kilometres for electric vehicles.
TMT Tanks & Trailers, the Italian trailer manufacturer, has selected Apollo Tyres’ EnduRace RT2 tyre as original equipment (OE) for its premium ‘moving floor’ truck trailers. TMT’s moving floor trailers feature specialised loading and unloading systems that allow the unloading of bulk material without the need for tilting mechanisms.
In January 2022, Ceat announced it had “curbed” its ambition in the truck and bus radial segment and was looking to shift its investment focus to off-highway tyres. The company now appears to have reconsidered this step and is reactivating previously approved TBR capacity expansion plans.
Colourful big cats are teaming up with tyres in a new collaboration between Nexen Tire and Haitian-American artist Kervin Brisseaux. The tyre maker explains that efforts to establish itself as “a trendy and innovative brand” in the European market are behind the advertising campaign that is based upon Brisseaux’s artwork.
18 years after MG Rover collapsed and was bought by SAIC (Shanghai Industry Automotive Corporation) and 7 years after the carmaker moved MG production to China in 2016, SAIC is planning to build a new car factory in Europe. The location has not yet been finalised and details of which brands will be made there are scant, but as the European car parc transitions to electric vehicles, it appears that the production history of the MG Rover is going full circle.
The European Parliament and Member States have come to an agreement relating to the Data Act. The Data Act is legislation designed to make a competitive data market, opening opportunities for data-driven innovation. The European Tyre & Rubber Manufacturers’ Association (ETRMA) welcomed the agreement.
US-based waste-to-energy firm Global Clean Energy, Inc. (GCEI) reports that its Pyrolysis division has selected three European and ten domestic locations where pyrolysis facilities for processing end-of-life tyres into oil, recovered carbon black and steel can be built on a profitable basis. News of these proposed facilities follows the company’s decision not to initiate operations at another pyrolysis plant.
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