European Rubber Journal articles from March 2006

European Rubber Journal archives from March 2006

On the ERJ web site ... www.europeanrubberjournal.com.(News)
March 1, 2006... You can find all the news we can't fit into the magazine, including... Polycomp wins ISO 16949 automotive standard... Xerium buys roll coverer Coldwater Covers... Simrit opens office in Moscow... Safic sells NR trading to UK group......

Apollo to bring truck radial capacity on stream ... Despite small radial truck tyre sector in India, Apollo invests to be the leader.(News)
March 1, 2006... Apollo Tyres Ltd is adding truck and bus capacity at its radial tyre plant in Limda, a suburb of Baroda City in Gujarat, India. The company expects to bring the line on stream in October and market the new tyres early in 2007. Apollo said the...

.... buys Dunlop South Africa.(Apollo Tyres Ltd. to acquire Dunlop Tyres International)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Indian group Apollo Tyres Ltd has announced its intention to buy Dunlop Tyres International (Pty) Ltd (Dunlop South Africa) in an all-cash deal worth about Rs 2900 million ([euro]55 million). Dunlop South Africa had a turnover of some $200...

Michelin spending $94 million to expand Thai tyre plant ... French tyre maker spending [euro]186 million to expand tyre production in Thailand and North America.(Michelin France S.A.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Michelin is investing $94 million ([euro]78 million) to expand capacity for passenger tyres by about a third at its Michelin Siam Co. Ltd plant in Laem Chabang, Thailand. The project, disclosed by chairman Edouard Michelin at the firm's...

... $26 m at US car tyre plant, $90m in Canada.(Michelin North America Inc., investment plans)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Michelin North America Inc. will invest $26 million ([euro]22 million) in its Greenville, South Carolina, passenger and light truck tyre plant through 2008 to expand capacity 20 percent. The group also plans to double capacity in North...

Conti adds distribution.(Circum Real Estate GmbH & Co. KG to build a distribution center for Continental AG)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Continental AG has broken ground for a new tyre distribution centre at Korbach, to supply customers across Europe from 2007 onwards. Continental said Circum Real Estate GmbH & Co. KG, Deutschland is investing about [euro]11 million in this...

Dana files for Chapter 11 in US-Europe unaffected; Dana - ranked 31st globally in rubber product makers - is reorganising in the US as its market share declines.(News)
March 1, 2006... Dana Corp. and 40 of its US subsidiaries filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on 3 March so Dana can address financial and operational issues. Dana's European, South American, Asia-Pacific, Canadian and Mexican subsidiaries are not...

Skellmax buys Gulf Rubber units in Australia, N Zealand.(Skellmax Industries Ltd., New Zealand)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Byline: Liz White Skellmax Industries Ltd is expanding again. The New Zealand pump, footwear and dairy rubber group has paid NZ$32 million ([euro]18 million) for the Australian and New Zealand businesses of Gulf Rubber. The transaction...

Conti sells Stankiewicz to Gilde.(Continental AG, Stankiewicz GmbH, Gilde Buy-Out Fund of Utrecht)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Continental AG has sold its Stankiewicz GmbH unit to Dutch investor Gilde Buy-Out Fund of Utrecht, the Netherlands. The parties agreed not to disclose the price. Stankiewicz, which was part of the ContiTech technical rubber goods unit, was...

Lord buys Henkel's rubber-to-metal bonding business; US-based Lord grows its adhesives business with European acquisition.
March 1, 2006... Byline: Liz White Lord Corp. has signed an agreement to purchase the rubber-to-substrate bonding and rubber coating business of Henkel KGaA of Dusseldorf, Germany. The transaction is subject to closing conditions, including antitrust...

briefs.
March 1, 2006... Lanxess lifting TMQ production Leverkusen, Germany-Lanxess is to raise capacity of the antidegradant TMQ (2,2,4-trimethyl-1,2-dihydroquinoline, polymerised), at its facility in Brunsbuttel, Germany, the group announced 28 Feb. Lanxess,...

Manuli opens high-tech hose plant in Suzhou.(News)
March 1, 2006... Manuli Rubber Industries Group has established a modern, high-tech hose plant in Suzhou, China. Milan, Italy-based Manuli has spent around [euro]20 million on the plant, and expects to spend the same again in 2006, bringing the total cost of...

Trelleborg acquires US profile maker EPG.(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Byline: Liz White Trelleborg has bought US sealing profiles maker EPG Inc. and will add the operation to its Building Systems business. EPG makes polymer sealing products such as extruded profiles and pipe seals, primarily for the...

New theories on crack growth.(elastomeric materials research)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Scientists at the Max Planck Institute and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have released new research that appears to show cracks can move at speeds faster than the Rayleigh-wave speed in elastomeric materials. In a press...

LehVoss really Europe wide, with Italian unit-Teschke; LuV's Italian venture, SO.F.TER's search for TPE niches, Wacker's new silicone foam and Kraiburg's medical SEBS uses (the last two on p14) were some of the highlights seen by ERJ at Plast 06 in Milan, 14-15 Feb.(Lehmann & Voss & Co. acquires Chem Import)
March 1, 2006... Byline: Liz White Earlier this year, Hamburg, Germany-based chemicals group Lehmann & Voss & Co. (LuV) bought Italian rubber and chemicals distributor Chem Import. Now the German group is "really a European operation," with the...

Wine corks a niche for SO.F.TER.(services)
March 1, 2006... Italian group SO.F.TER SpA is always looking at new uses, new market niches, for thermoplastic elastomers, said Dott.ssa Lauretta Stella, TPE area sales manager with the Italian TPE and plastics compounder. Stella pointed to the...

Silicone foam allows Wacker to attack new markets.(Wacker Silicones Corp. develops silicone elastomer foam)
March 1, 2006... Development of silicone elastomer foam will allow Wacker Silicones to penetrate more markets, according to Dr Jurgen Weidinger, technical service manager for silicone foams with the Burghausen, Germany-based silicone specialist. Silicone...

Medical uses for Kraiburg's TPEs.(Kraiburg TPE GmbH develops new thermoplastic elastomer)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... German thermoplastic elastomer manufacturer Kraiburg TPE GmbH has recently developed special TPEs for medical uses, said Ernst Lifka, manager of the company's European offices. Kraiburg has helped PARI, a specialist in devices such as...

briefs.(Techint-Pomini signs contract with Nizhnekamsk)(Rep SA showcase injection molding machines with partner Tung Yu at Plast 06)
March 1, 2006... Automated for west, hybrid for east Milan, Italy -French injection moulding machine manufacturer Rep SA featured two of its own highly automated injection presses and one of the compression presses made by Rep's Taiwanese partner Tung Yu at...

Tyre equipment suppliers see boom in sales; Global sales of rubber machinery grew by about 7 percent last year to [euro]2000 million. Sales to the tyre sector boomed, while the non-tyre sector was positive, but not outstanding. Western injection moulding machine suppliers suffered a 10 percent decline.(Special Report)
March 1, 2006... Byline: David Shaw The world's rubber machinery business grew by about 7 percent last year to $2400 million ([euro]2000 million), according to exclusive ERJ research. However, this healthy growth hides a complex picture. Sales of machinery...

Harburg change went smoothly.(L. Possehl und Company mbH acquires ThyssenKrupp ElastomerTechnik and name changed to Harburg Freudenberger)
March 1, 2006... Byline: David Shaw Six months ago, the former ThyssenKrupp ElastomerTechnik announced a name change to Harburg Freudenberger. The change coincided with the sale of the company to new owners, L. Possehl & Co. mbH, based in Lubeck in...

Manuli buys machinery firm.(Manuli Rubber Industries S.p.A. acquires Techmaflex)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Manuli Rubber Industries SpA has bought French maker of machinery for assembling hydraulic hose, Techmaflex. Hydraulic hose experts Manuli describe the equipment maker, headquartered in Nantes, France, as "the market leader for design,...

Conti orders 3rd VIC mixing line for Timisoara.(Continental AG signs contract with Techint-Pomini )(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Continental's tyre plant in Timisoara, Romania, has placed a third order for a mixing line based on Techint-Pomini's VIC (Variable Intermeshing Clearance) mixer. This is the third identical line ordered by Conti. The first order was placed 18...

More automation, China slowing says Colmec.(Colmec SpA global business and sales)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Most business-up to 80 percent-for Italian extruder maker Colmec SpA is outside Europe now, said Ubaldo Colombo, managing director of the Busto Arsizio-based firm. In the past, about 90 percent of Colmec's business was in Europe and 10...

Goodyear changes tack to become customer-focussed; Goodyear is taking a new approach to marketing, balancing technology pull with consumer push.(News)
March 1, 2006... Byline: David Shaw Goodyear has almost completed its turnaround - and not only in finances. The company is changing into a consumer products company, in which its policies, products and philosophies are driven by consumer and customer...

Good tyre pressure management saves energy.(News)
March 1, 2006... Both Michelin and Bridgestone are in the midst of high-profile campaigns to persuade drivers to reduce fuel consumption by - among other things -maintaining correct pressure in their tyres. But they are promoting similar messages from widely...

Legislation will bring TPMS but runflat sales grow slower; Runflat tyres need proper tyre pressure warning systems, but that technology is still evolving.
March 1, 2006... Byline: David Shaw Sales of runflat tyres have not taken off as the tyre industry expected they would, even as late as last year. According to Goodyear data, sales in 2005 were only about 3.1 million units, whereas expectations a year ago...

Goodyear-Michelin cooperate on runflat systems.(Compagnie Generale des Etablissement Michelin)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... During Bill Hopkins' presentation at the Tire Technology event, he referred to a joint venture project between Goodyear and Michelin, in which the two companies are cooperating in the area of runflat tyres. "Five years ago Goodyear and Michelin...

TuV develops fast road scanning technology; Laser line system can scan roads at 80 kph to 10mm horizontal resolution.(TUV Sudwest, road profiling system)
March 1, 2006... Byline: David Shaw TuV Sud, the German automotive research institute, has developed a road profiling system that is capable of scanning a road surface at speeds up to 80 kph, and resolutions of 10mm in the horizontal and 1mm in the...

Tenneco to make elastomer-based NVH parts in China.(building component facility)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Byline: Liz White Tenneco Inc. announced 27 Feb that it is setting up a wholly owned elastomer component facility in Suzhou, as part of an expansion in China. The engineering group said it will invest some $21 million in manufacturing...

Tyres do deteriorate as they get older - consumer report; US researcher adds to tyre ageing controversy.
March 1, 2006... Byline: David Shaw According to Sean Kane, director of the US- based company Safety Research & Strategies, there is a great deal of hard evidence to support the idea that old tyres perform less well than new ones. Speaking at the Tire...

New bonding system for glass cords works for profiles, belts; This article is taken from a paper originally presented by Dr Christopher Stevens of NGF Europe, at the Rapra conference on Rubber Bonding, held 21-22 February 2006, Dusseldorf, Germany.(NGF Europe develops rubber adhesives)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Byline: David Shaw NGF Europe says it has developed a new way to bond glass reinforcing fibres to rubber compounds as used in both automotive profiles and in timing belts. NGF says the process has significant advantages, including better...

NR prices appear to have stabilised above $2 / kg.(News)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... 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)
March 1, 2006... * Oilfield engineering with polymers, conference. 29-30 March: London. Contact Rapra Technology. Tel +44 1939 250383, fax +44 1939 251118. * IRC. 16 - 18 May Lyon, France. Contact AFICEP. Tel www.irc2006.com. * ExpoBor. 16 - 18 May,...

China comes of age - where will it leave us.(rubber machinery sector improves tremendously)(Column)
March 1, 2006... Byline: David Shaw I've been looking at the rubber machinery sector recently, and China has figured in all the scenarios that have been discussed. Orders from China account for about a quarter of all rubber machinery sold in the world....

Machinery unit seeks external business.(Continental AG)
March 1, 2006... Byline: David Shaw Just as Michelin Goodyear and other tyre makers are buying more machinery on the open market, Continental has opened the door to allow its own captive machinery supplier to sell to external customers. "We are looking for...

Ansell invests in China.(News)
March 1, 2006... Ansell Ltd has bought a 75-percent interest in Wuhan Jessbon Sanitary Products Co. Ltd, a condom supplier based in Wuhan, China. Ansell has been selling into the Chinese synthetic occupational glove market for a number of years, but the...

Pirelli making tyre division a stand-alone company.(News)(Pirelli & Company S.p.A.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Pirelli & C. SpA's board of directors are planning to spin off the firm's tyre business into a separate, publicly traded company-but one still majority owned by Pirelli. In disclosing its intention to explore options for a "better...

briefs.(Continental Tire North America Inc. plans to invest in Illinois facility)(Rapra Technology Ltd. goes into administration)(Nokian Tyres invests to increase production)
March 1, 2006... Continental, unions agree Stocken deal Hanover, Germany-Continental AG has settled a dispute with its workforce over planned closure of passenger car tyre production at its Hanover-Stocken plant, with the loss of 320 jobs. Following...

Datwyler strengthens Helvoet Pharma unit.(Datwyler Holding AG acquires Hospira Inc.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Datwyler Holding AG has bought assets of the Ashland, Ohio-based pharmaceutical rubber business of Hospira Inc., through Helvoet Pharma, its Datwyler pharmaceutical packaging division. No purchase price was revealed. As part of the...

Schlegel bought by Lupus Capital.(Lupus Capital plc acquires Schlegel Building Products Division from Unipoly)(Brief article)
March 1, 2006... Schlegel Building Products Division has been bought by Lupus Capital plc from Unipoly, in a deal completed 3 March. Schlegel Building Products, based in Bedford, UK, makes environmental sealing systems for windows and doors, printer and...