Retreading
March 2011's issue of Tyres & Accessories, which contains features on 4×4 tyres, international wholesaling and tyre recovery and disposal, is now available online in our virtual e-paper format. Simply click more below to find out how you can read this product in all its glory via the Internet.
The latest edition of our Retreading Special supplement is now online. Produced in both English and German by Tyres & Accessories and Neue Reifenzeitung, the latest issue of the growing retreading publication features exclusive articles on how raw material prices are affecting the market; Marangoni's new corporate centre in Rovereto; Bandvulc tripling export sales; the latest industry facts and figures and much more. Subscribers can click more to read the complete 32-page product.
The first phase of the Tire Retread & Repair Information Bureau’s totally redesigned www.retread.org website has gone live, and offers visitors numerous new features including a full resources section including a retread buyer’s guide, studies regarding retreading, a calendar of industry events and a DOT code searcher. A members-only section provides community-based tools to connect members geographically or through similar product interests.
The world’s only specialist sircraft tyre manufacturer, Birmingham-based Dunlop Aircraft Tyres has stated that the appointment of Ken Hutchins as technical sales manager will help to strengthen the company’s reach into North and South America. Hutchins has a wealth of experience in the aviation industry, having previously worked for aircraft wheels and brakes companies Goodrich and Messier-Bugatti. Based in Houston, Texas, and reporting to Dunlop Aircraft Tyres’ sales and marketing director David Skepper, Hutchins will drive sales of the company’s products throughout North America and the fast-expanding South American markets.
Marix UK, the sole Marix tyre wholesaler in the UK keeps a stockholding of over 5000 tyres at any given time and offers what the company calls “full backup with a technical helpline.”
Marix tyres come with a five-year manufacturer’s warranty, with company representatives explaining that retreading “represents the best way to help the environment and at the same time save money, so much so that the process is actively supported by the EU.”
At the launch at the IAA in September 2010 of Bridgestone’s latest range of truck tyres under the Ecopia brand, Europe CEO Mac Ohashi said a range of Ecopia retread patterns would follow for the M749 and R109 drive and trailer tyres. The former was released through the company’s European Bandag dealer network in January 2011 as a replacement for the Qualitread M749, while the company says the R109 Ecopia retread – a completely new product previously unavailable in the exiting Qualitread range – will follow later in the year. Tyres & Accessories spoke to Bridgestone Europe’s TBR/Retread Business Unit about the development of the Ecopia retread range and how it is presented to the market.
Desser Tire & Rubber Co. affiliate, Aero WBS has achieved the qualification for retreading Canadair 200, 700, 900 series and Embraer 135 and 145 series aircraft tyres, as well as forming an investigative committee for opening a FAA/EASA approved factory outside of the United States.
Two new mixed service treads have been added to the European Bandag range, and Bridgestone Europe says both products deliver up to 15 per cent higher mileage, along with a lower cost per kilometre, than their predecessor treads, the BDY3 and BZY2. The treads are the Bandag Drive Mixed Service (BDM1) and the Bandag Rib Mixed Service (BRM1), an all-position tyre for on/off road use.
Dunlop Aircraft Tyres has announced the signing of a major deal with Korea Aerospace Industries. The Birmingham-based manufacturer will be the exclusive supplier of tyres for its new Korean utility helicopter, the Surion. The aircraft is being developed to replace South Korea’s aging fleet of 500MD and UH-1H aircraft. The Surion made its first flight early in 2010 and more than 245 are on order.
United States organisation the Retread Tire Association has announced that it will be represented at the Society of Automotive Engineers Work Truck Safety Committee meeting in Las Vegas on 24 March. It will discuss the safety, economic and environmental benefits of using retreads on ready mix concrete trucks.
From 1 April Toyo Tire & Rubber Co. Ltd will increase the price of tyres for passenger cars and light trucks sold in the Japanese domestic replacement market by an average of 7 per cent. Despite the fact the price hike takes effect on April fool’s day, the increase is not joke and applies to both Toyo’s summer and winter tyres. In fact the cost of some size of light truck tyres will rise sooner, with their Japanese domestic market price increase scheduled to take effect on 1 March 2011.
The first retread product in Bridgestone’s Ecopia truck tyre range has been released through the company’s European Bandag dealer network. The M749 highway drive pattern was released as a retread in January 2011 and utilises the Ecopia casing, which Bridgestone says contributes around 60 per cent to the tyre’s rolling resistance qualities. In announcing the introduction of the M749 retread, the tyre maker commented that “by making the M749 Ecopia available as a retread, Bridgestone can now offer long-haul operators the double benefit of cost savings over the full tyre life and a reduction in the ecological tyre print of the fleet.”
Marangoni Tread North America has added Presti, AmerSeal, and Counteract products to its supplies and accessory line, which includes envelopes, sealing rings, cushion gum, envelope lube, J-hooks, tire paint and buffing blades, reports Tire Review. MTNA is also adding new Gaither Tool selections to support fleet tyre maintenance needs with a variety of environmentally-friendly product options.
Marangoni Retreading Systems has announced a price increase in all European, Middle Eastern and African markets for its entire range of retreading materials. The increase, effective as of 15 February, will be approximately 10 per cent for standard products and 15 per cent for high performance products with high natural rubber content.
The rebranding of Qualitread retreading products in Europe under the Bridgestone brand name continues in January with the renaming of the M729 drive tread and R168 trailer tread as Bridgestone Retread products. In April the Qualitread M729 EVO regional drive tyre will also join the Bridgestone Retread line-up.
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