European Rubber Journal articles from July 2003

European Rubber Journal archives from July 2003

Freudenberg emphasises innovation, as sales rise: By 2010, fuel cell seals could use over 3000 tonnes of rubber each year, according to estimates by Freudenberg.(Rubber news)
July 1, 2003... Freudenberg Group's future focus will be on developing fuel cell components, where the group's specially set up development company estimates demand for rubber seals could be as much as 3240 tonnes a year by 2010. Other innovative areas...

Trelleborg to close Indiana plant.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Stockholm--Trelleborg AB will close an automotive antivibration components factory in Logansport, Indiana, and move the bulk of production to a plant in Peru, Indiana The move is part of a rationalisation of assets acquired from BTR plc and...

Bridgestone to build AV plant in China.(antivibration products facility )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Tokyo Bridgestone Corp. is investing $16 million to build an antivibration products facility in China. The unit, in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, will supply automotive manufacturers both inside and outside China, according to a 26 May...

UK rubber group aims for 40-million [pounds sterling] operation: Xelflex, Bolton Rubber acquisitions are part of a major growth strategy in UK rubber moulding sector.(Rubber news)
July 1, 2003... Phoenix Medical Ltd of Preston, UK, has bought two local rubber goods makers, lifting its turnover to 10 million [pounds sterling] ($17 million), and aims to quadruple this in the next 18 months, according to Ron Aldred, managing director and...

Trelleborg, Conti in talks on agri-tyre business: European farm tyre majors are looking at ways to cooperate.(Rubber news)(Trelleborg and Continental AG )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Swedish agricultural tyre maker Trelleborg is talking to Continental AG about cooperation in the agricultural tyres business. "We are in discussions with Conti about possible ways of cooperating" confirmed a spokesman for Trelleborg. ...

Babolat shoe venture gets Michelin help.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Paris--Babolat, a French tennis racket and string manufacturer, has expanded into the tennis shoe business with a little help from Michelin. When privately held Babolat decided to broaden its product horizon, it turned to Groupe...

West to add Westar to three more plants.(Rubber news)(West Pharmaceutical Services Inc)
July 1, 2003... West Pharmaceutical Services Inc. plans to expand the capabilities of three international plants to include its Westarbrand ready-to-sterilise pharmaceutical products. The Lionville, Philadelphia-based medical components manufacturer will...

Plastic powder cited as cause of West plant explosion.(Rubber news)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Kinston, North Carolina--The 29 Jan blast at West Pharmaceutical Services Inc.'s Kinston plant was caused by an explosion of fine plastic powder used to make the company's rubber medical products, according to the US Chemical Safety Board...

Maxxim plans to close site.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Clearwater, Florida--Maxxim Medical Inc. will close its Honea Path, South Carolina, natural rubber latex glove dipping facility, although a date has not been set. Maxxim, which filed for relief under Chapter 11 of the US Bankruptcy Code...

TI Automotive streamlines.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Warren, Michigan--TI Automotive, a major supplier of fluid-handling systems, has reorganised its global business into three major units: Global Fuel Systems, Global Fluid Carrying Systems, and an Industrial Group, said Bill Laule, the...

Medical rubber manager gets award.(Mai Persson of Medical Rubber AB)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Horby, Sweden--Businesswoman of the year for 2003 in Sweden is Mai Persson, managing director and majority owner of Swedish rubber part maker Medical Rubber AB. The Horby-based firm custom-moulds precision parts in silicone rubber and...

Metaldyne adds tech centre in Germany: new tech centre to develop metal-to-rubber products as well as products formed from powdered metals.(Rubber news)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Metaldyne Corp.'s Engine Group has set up a European technical centre in Dieburg, Germany. The unit is to support development of products, including rubber and viscous dampers, powder metal connecting rods, front engine modular assemblies and...

Lord lands helicopter bearing contracts: rubber-to-metal bonding firm will supply bearings and damper for the Agusta AB139 helicopter.(Rubber news)
July 1, 2003... Lord Corp.'s Mechanical Products Division has won a contract to supply elastomer bearings and dampers for the AB139 helicopter, developed by Bell Agusta Aerospace Co. The division has also completed diagnostic testing and development of a...

Hutchinson sales up.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Paris--Hutchinson SA's sales inched up 1.3 percent last year, to $2550 million, as higher sales in North America and Europe were offset by lower sales in Asia and Latin America. The company, a subsidiary of France's TotalFinaElf SA oil and...

German rubber sector pay talks stall.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Frankfurt, Germany--Pay talks between employers and unions representing workers in the German rubber industry reached an impasse at a 2 June meeting in Hannover. The IG BCE union, which represents around 20 000 tyre and rubber processing...

Toyoda Gosei mulls Czech seals project: Toyoda Gosei's Matsuura says the company plans to build a profiles plant in the Czech Republic depend on gaining more business Europe.(Rubber news)
July 1, 2003... Toyoda Gosei Co. Ltd expects to build an automotive body sealing systems plant in the Czech Republic, a senior company official confirmed. But, he said, the Nagoya-based company has not yet won enough business with European car makers to...

Portfolio overhauled.(Rubber news)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Toyoda Gosei's Takashi Matsuura (pictured above) has presided over a farreaching overhaul of Toyoda Gosei's product lineup since being told to cut prices by 30 percent over a three-year period. About 30 Toyoda Gosei components were...

AD Vulkan back on the selling block.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Nis, Serbia--The Serbian government has launched a fresh bid to privatise AD Vulkan Industrie Gume. The rubber products manufacturer, based in Nis in southwest Serbia, failed to attract bidders in a similar privatisation exercise last year....

GDX aids better results at GenCorp.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Sacramento, California--Increased operating profits from its GDX Automotive rubber parts unit and its Fine Chemicals operation contributed to GenCorp Inc.'s improved second quarter 2003 earnings of $10 million, a rise of 66 percent over the...

Green light for IISRP meeting in China.(International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Houston, Texas--The International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers has confirmed 21-25 Sept as the date for its 44th annual general meeting in Beijing, China. First scheduled for May, the meeting was twice postponed due to the...

Cooper hikes stake in South Korean venture: Korean project should give the US automotive weatherstrip supplier a sharper competitive edge.(Rubber news)
July 1, 2003... Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. has increased its stake in a South Korean weatherstripping joint venture, as a first move toward making its automotive parts business more globally competitive. The manufacturer plans to use the company, formerly known...

Regent sale on track, says SSL.
July 1, 2003... [] London--SSL International's sale of its 182-million [pounds sterling] turnover medical business is "now well underway and has generated a substantial level of interest." The business on offer includes the Regent surgical gloves business,...

Nokian invests in Russian retreading plant: rapidly rising Russian demand for retreads prompts Finnish tyre maker to buy in St Petersburg.(Rubber news)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Nokian Tyres, based in Nokia, Finland, has purchased a small retreading plant in St Petersburg, Russia. The aim of the acquisition is "to strengthen the company's position in Russia, where sales of new truck tyres and retreading materials are...

Cheng Shin increases rubber mixing capacity: Taiwanese firm invests in new equipment for tyre plants in China, Taiwan and Thailand.(Rubber news)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Cheng Shin Rubber Industry Co. Ltd is upgrading and expanding rubber mixing capacity at plants in China, Taiwan and Thailand, according to a supplier. Chronos Richardson Ltd, which is supplying the materials-handling equipment for the...

Yokohama offers TPMS for CV tyres.(tyrepressure monitoring system)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Washington Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd is introducing a tyrepressure monitoring system designed specifically for truck and bus tyres. The Hi-Technology Tire Engineering System, or HiTES, will be unveiled in July, according to Yokohama's Tokyo...

Firms ponder tyre-tracking devices.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Nashville, Tennessee--A competing tyre-tracking technology to radio-frequency identification is attracting attention from tyre and vehicle makers. Bridgestone/Firestone North American Tire llc is the first tyre maker to evaluate...

Self-inflating tyre needs development deal: Czech Engineer touts novel way to self-inflate tyres, by peristaltisis www.selfinflatingtire.com.(Tyre news)
July 1, 2003... A Czech engineer is promoting a way to re-inflate tyre which has lost pressure. The idea is to use a tube buried within the tyre carcass. As the tyre turns against the road, this tube acts like a peristaltic pump to force more air into the...

Bridgestone expands in Poznan.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Poznan, Poland -- Bridgestone-Firestone Europe is close to finishing its plant at Poznan in Poland. The unit is already in full production, but the company is adding capacity to the new factor. This photograph shows he company offices...

Michelin cuts tyre lines in France.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Clermont Ferrand, France -- Groupe Michelin plans to shut two production lines in France--one making truck tyres at its plant in Poitiers, the other making 13-inch passenger car and light truck tyres at Bourges. The closures will affect...

Sumitomo in $285-million expansion.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Kobe, Japan -- Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd is investing [yen] 33 000 million ($285 million) to expand tyre capacity over the next two years. The Kobe-based group's plants in Japan will absorb about two thirds of the spend, with the...

Goodyear publishes data.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Konin, Poland -- Data has emerged from Goodyear comparing its production by region. The figures contrast strongly with the sales figures also given by Goodyear for the year 2000: Goodyear sales and production (2002) Region ...

Overseas business boosts Yokohama.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Tokyo -- Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd's fiscal 2003 net income surged 37.8 percent to a record $83.2 million, with the company's North American businesses contributing a significant portion of the increase. The firm's sales for the year...

ExxonMobil introduces new elastomer molecule: third family of olefinic elastomers adds to unique range of olefinic elastomer family.(Supplier news)
July 1, 2003... ExxonMobil Chemical is introducing a new family of thermoplastic, olefinic elastomers under the Vistamaxx name. The new materials bridge the gap between EPDM and polypropylene, in the same way that plastomers and ethylene elastomers bridge the...

Seal makers buoy Basler results.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Ahrensburg, Germany -- Visual inspection systems firm Basler AG has cited business with rubber seal manufacturers as a major factor behind an 82-percent surge in its first quarter sales to 6.3 million [euro] ($7.2 million). The German firm...

Dow Corning starts venture in Shanghai.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Midland, Michigan -- Dow Corning Corp. and Dow Corning Toray Silicone Co Ltd--the US group's Japanese joint venture with Toray Industries--have started up a silicone rubber manufacturing venture in the Min Hang District of Shanghai. ...

Wacker Silicones in Russian link up.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Munich, Germany -- Wacker Silicones has recently entered a long-term cooperation agreement with Penta-91, a Russian silicone rubber compounding and distribution company. Under the deal, Penta-91 is to distribute Wacker's heat curing...

Asahi Kasei unveils new structure.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Tokyo--Asahi Kasei Corp. is to position each of its core business-within one of seven new corporations, to be managed by the parent group operating as a holding company. The new structure is to take effect 1 Oct subject to shareholder...

Hyosung increases tyre cord capacity in Europe: plan to boost tyre cord capacity will lead to a fibres plant in eastern Europe, and expansion of the former Michelin plant in Virginia.(Supplier news)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Hyosung Corp.'s plan to expand its spandex, tyre cord and other industrial operations will include a major investment in an industrial fibres production facility in Eastern Europe. The European project, at a yet-to-be-specified location,...

Krupp Uhde licences KoSa technology.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Dortmund, Germany -- Plant engineering firm Krupp Uhde, a ThyssenKrupp subsidiary, has licenced polyester production technology from KoSa of Houston Texas. The technology covers processes for the production of polyester resin for...

DuPont Dow starts Elastomers plant.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Wilmington, Delaware -- DuPont Dow Elastomers has commissioned its 135-ktpa polyolefin elastomers plant in Plaquemine, Louisiana. The start-up brings the company's capacity for these products to 200 ktpa. DDE's Engage-branded elastomers...

Ameripol Synpol idling SBR plant.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Port Neches, Texas -- Ameripol Synpol Corp. said it temporarily is shutting down production at its emulsion SBR plant in Port Noches because of a "lack of financial support" related to its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. The idling process...

Dow Corning, Wacker mull Asian JV.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Munich, Germany/Midland, Michigan -- Wacker-Chemie GmbH and Dow Corning Corp. plan to form a joint venture to operate a fully integrated silicone intermediates and silica site in Asia. The venture would provide cost and quality advantages...

Crompton may plead guilty in rubb chems.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Middlebury, Connecticut -- In its quarterly report filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission 12 May, Crompton Corp. said it has had preliminary discussions with the US Department of Justice regarding a possible plea to violations...

French award for PAX tyre system.(Groupe Michelin's PAX tyre wins award)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... [] Clermont-Ferrand, France -- Groupe Michelin's PAX tyre has taken top prize in the annual Grand Prix Siemens de I'Innovation. Engineering group Siemens started the event three years to recognise the research and development efforts of French...

Aircraft manufacturers look again at radial tyres: aircraft operators slow to adopt radial tyres, because of need to re-design landing gear, but a breakthrough is near, according to Michelin.(Tyre news)
July 1, 2003... Tyre makers still have a lot of work to do to establish radial tyres as the technology of choice for the aviation tyre industry, industry executives believe. More than 20 years after their introduction, radials have gained only 17 percent...

Thona gains new backing, plans to expand: Thona Group has restructured and aim to make a strategic acquisition in the second half of 2004, possibly in the TPE compounding sector.(DKT/IRC review)
July 1, 2003... Custom rubber compounder Thona Group is looking to expand, and may move into a new business--compounding thermoplastic elastomers. New owner, investment group Andlinger & Co. Inc., is backing Thona's joint chief executives Christoph Nutten...

Hybrid TPV extrusions fail to attract customers: UV stability and recycling issues hold up the introduction of hybrid TPV/EPDM automotive profiles. Meanwhile, Krupp and Troester drop patent infringement claims.(DKT/IRC review)
July 1, 2003... Thermoplastics vulcanisate (TPV) makers have failed to establish coextruded TPV/EPDM systems in the market. The technology was intended to provide a stepping-stone technology for all-TPV door seals in the automotive and other markets. ...

Injection moulders see bright future: injection moulding machinery suppliers forecast 2nd half of 2003 will be slower than the booming first half, but that 2003 overall will be a goodyear.(DKT/IRC review)
July 1, 2003... The injection moulding machine business was strong in the first half of 2003, according to spokesmen from three of the leading machine suppliers, speaking at the DKT event in Nuremburg, 30 June-3 July. The outlook for the second half...

Steinl 250 tonne C-frame.(DKT/IRC review)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... LWB Steinl was showing a 2500 kN C-frame press, designed for moulding rubber and TPV at the same time, Peter Steinl, managing director, said the unit on display at the show was destined for a mould maker. He said the main customer had ordered...

Maplan sells dedicated TPV machine.(DKT/IRC review)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Gerd Kain said the company was showing two machines on its stand at the IRC show. One would be shipped to Saminox in Poland immediately after the show, and the other was a simple, standard machine, shown to remind customers that Maplan also has...

Alpha prepares in-mould sensors, pocket NMR: in-mould sensor for injection moulding systems can improve quality and reduce cycle time, according to global distributor.(DKT/IRC review)(Alpha Technologies)
July 1, 2003... Alpha Technologies is developing two new sensors for the rubber industry. The first is an in-mould cure sensor designed to improve actual cure within the mould and to cut overall cycle times. The second is a small NMR scanning device. ...

Ciba moves to enhance rubber additives: Swiss group sees opportunities to develop speciality additives business.(Supplier news)
July 1, 2003... Ciba Specialty Chemicals--in sharp contrast to many competitors--aims to raise its presence in the rubber chemicals sector by bringing new products to the market and by beefing up its international distribution network. Within the rubber...

SR makers report robust first quarter.(synthetic rubber)(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)
July 1, 2003... Houston, Texas - The first three months of 2003 was a period of "robust recovery" for the global synthetic rubber (SR) industry, according to the International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers Inc. (IISRP). SR demand ended the first...

Degussa hikes rubber black prices.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Frankfurt, Germany -- Degussa AG has increased prices for its tyre and MRG carbon blacks by 30 [euro]/tonne in Europe with effect from 15 May. Further marginal increases are likely in the coming months, depending on oil price movements, the...

Suppliers, tyre makers must work together: the time has come to mend fences and cooperate with the tyre makers, says Degussa's Robert Wissmer and Reinhard Stober.(Supplier news)
July 1, 2003... Degussa AG wants to cooperate with the tyre makers. Firstly it wants to develop new technologies and innovations which help the tyre makers bring new products to the market, and second it wishes to cooperate in terms of cost and pricing. ...

Anti-dumping.(Supplier news)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2003... Wissmer said the European Commission investigation into dumping of carbon black in western Europe by producers in Russia and elsewhere had been exemplary. "The commission brought some excellent people into this investigation and they did some...

Rubber market in Italy needs a technical approach.(Spotlight on Italy)
July 1, 2003... The Italian rubber sector is distinctive: it likes good technology, demands innovation, and is keen to have the latest materials, as indicated by the country's proliferation of TPE formulators. Although Italy has a large number of small...

Manuli buys back shares: the Manuli family is taking the hose-maker private again. They hope to reduce exposure and improved flexibility, following the 40 million [euro] buy-back.(Spotlight on Italy)(Manuli Rubber Industries)
July 1, 2003... Dardanio Manuli, head of Italian hose systems supplier Manuli Rubber Industries, said there are two main challenges in the business at present. The first, he said, is innovation, but this was not a real issue for MRI. "We have one of the best...

Poland's rubber industry is healthy: Poland will join the European Union next year. The country has a strong engineering heritage, a shortage of jobs and a strong rubber industry. Here, we examine some of the factors which will come to bear as the country prepares for full membership of the EU.(Poland analysis)
July 1, 2003... Poland is no longer a country in transition--at least as far as the rubber industry is concerned. All the main changes have now happened and the country is ready to join the European Union, probably in 2004. The biggest changes, according...

Russian carbon black makers raise exports.(Poland analysis)
July 1, 2003... Ask a Russian carbon black producer what he thinks of the West European market and he has two answers. First, "why don't they leave us alone and let us get on with our free market trading." Second, "Why do they use this brand name 'Russian...

Vorwerk plan tech centre in Poland.(Poland analysis)(Vorwerk & Sohn)(Company Profile)
July 1, 2003... Ten years ago, Vorwerk & Sohn set up a manufacturing plant in the Polish city of Brodnica. Results from the Saminex plant have been so successful that Vorwerk now wants to set up a similar plant for anti-vibration products a few kilometres down...

Tube maker enjoys profits: although the factory looks like something from the third world, the Kabat company is making good products and good profits, concentrating on service and the manufacture of inner tubes for tyres.(Poland analysis)(Company Profile)
July 1, 2003... In a factory which would not look out of place in Thailand or China, Kabat sj makes inner tubes for trucks and agricultural vehicles. But it is a good business. In 2002 the company sold about 8 million [euro]-worth of goods, of which 6m [euro]...

European car, truck sales decline in first quarter.(ERJ dataflow)(Illustration)
July 1, 2003... Information We present here a series of charts and tables which are meant to give a snapshot of how the rubber industry is performing. The price of rubber on the Singapore commodity exchange is possibly the most important price in the...

Diary.(Calendar)
July 1, 2003... * ITRA Expo 2003 Date tba: Louisville, Kentucky. Contact ITRA. Tel +1 502 968 8900, fax +1 02 964 7859. SEPTEMBER * Moulding end co-extrusion. September/October 2003 Contact Belgian Plastics & Rubber ...

Run-flats trigger change in reinforcement sector.(Postscript)
July 1, 2003... Since about 1990, most tyre makers have increased their use of polyester reinforcement cord. Polyester is not quite as good as rayon, but it is far cheaper, less environmentally damaging, is more consistent from batch to batch and needs less...