Kumho’s next generation e-NIMF and e-TOPS tyres have been honoured with 2020 International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA). Having already received iF and Red Dot accolades in February and March respectively, has now won three of the world’s top design awards in the same year.
Workers Kumho Tire’s Macon, Georgia factory have voted to join the United Steelworkers (USW) union after the final completion of an election last Autumn. According to the USW, workers sought representation to fight “low wages, hazardous working conditions and abusive treatment at Kumho, which ruthlessly harassed and bullied union supporters in an attempt to derail the organizing campaign”.
Kumho has introduced two new patterns in 2020, the all-season Solus 4S HA32 and WinterCraft WP72. It said the range updates are a response to increasing demand for such products. The Kumho Solus 4S HA32 joins the HA31 this autumn, bringing the total size range to 70. The manufacturer will add an HA32 SUV range in 2021.
Over the last five years of data collection for the Tyres & Accessories’ ranking of the leading tyre manufacturers, a few trends can be observed – see accompanying graphs for more details. Firstly, it is easy to see that there are a few separate groupings of rival companies within the top ten. In our first chart, we can see that Continental has continued to progress in narrowing the tyre sales gap with Goodyear, partially because Goodyear has yet to regain the level of sales achieved in 2015, despite improved results on its half-decade low in 2017. Tyrepress noted in 2018 that based on tyre volumes, Conti looked likely to overtake Goodyear in light vehicle (passenger car and light truck) tyre volumes, showing how it has gained ground on the previous ‘Big Three’. Regardless of their order, it has been appropriate to talk of a global Big Four tyre manufacturers for a few years.
Kumho’s Ecowing ES31 has been selected as the standard tyre for the latest version of the Ibiza, Seat’s bestselling model. The compact hatchback will run on size 185/65R15 88H tyres. The new deal continues the South Korean tyre manufacturer’s 14-year relationship with the VW Group. Kumho began supplying OE fitments for the Volkswagen Polo in 2006.
Kumho is opening a major new tyre warehouse in Hamburg, Germany with leading European logistics company Fiege. Located adjacent to the city’s harbour, Kumho states the new facility will allow it to supply stock to the majority of German tyre dealers within 24 hours. It will also supply some Kumho distributors in Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and Austria. Fiege Logistics will be responsible for all warehouse processes, including tyre handling from the arrival of product by container to delivery and shipment tracking.
Drumroll please…more awards for Kumho tyres. Hot on the heels of the Good Design awards in Japan for the Kumho Majesty 9 and Ecsta PA51 patterns and the iF Design awards in Germany for the Majesty 9 and WinterCraft Wi51, the three abovementioned tyres have all been honoured with the Good Design Award of North America.
Kumho’s long-standing relationship with Volkswagen has continued with the fitment of Kumho’s ecowing ES31 pattern on its 2020 Polo model. Specially tailored for the car, the 185/65R15 tyre is Kumho’s first ultra-low rolling resistance version of the ES31, with A-grade fuel efficiency and wet grip on the EU label. The 2001 Polo was Kumho’s first major European motor manufacturer OE contract.
In recent years, the products of Korean tyre producer Kumho Tire have received a number of iF, Red Dot, IDEA and Good Design awards. Now the company has added two more Good Design awards into its already bulging trophy cabinet. The patterns recognised on this occasion are both passenger car products – the Majesty 9 Solus TA91 and ECSTA PA51.
The latest global tyre market share figures from tyre industry analyst Astutus Research show how long-established, leading players headquartered in Japan, Europe, and North America have seen their volume share diminish, while Chinese, ASEAN, and selected other markets’ tyre manufacturers’ share has risen. The analyst states that in aggregate, the ten leading PCLT tyre manufacturers based in Japan, Europe and North America (J-E-NA) have lost almost 6 percentage points of market share since the end of 2011 (OE and replacement segments combined, volumes in tyre units). In part this reflects a strategic choice of some to focus on the higher value premium segments of the market.
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Stephen Goodchild
