European Rubber Journal articles from May 2001

European Rubber Journal archives from May 2001

Michelin to acquire Tofan car/truck tyre unit.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Romanian tyre plants are snapped up by Michelin, as Tofan focuses on agricultural sector. Tofan Grup of Romania is selling its truck and passenger car tyre making facilities, domestic distribution network and retreading unit to Groupe...

Toyoda Gosei opens UK profiles plant.(weatherstripping plant)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Japanese firm spends $46 million on weatherstripping plant in UK to supply Toyoata, Honda. Japanese auto components major Toyoda Gosei on 10 April officially opened its 32 million [pounds sterling] ($46-million) European base, in...

ERJ newsbriefs.
May 1, 2001... Goodyear shuts plant [] Mexico City--Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. has closed its tyre manufacturing plant in Tultitlan, Mexico, which employs around 1559 people, the company announced 6 April. The closure of the 60-year-old facility was...

ExxonMobil to set up metallocene EPDM unit.(ethylene elastomers plant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... ExxonMobil to spend over $150 million on 90 ktpa plant for metallocene-catalysed ethylene elastomers. ExxonMobil Chemical Co. is to spend over $150 million on a 90-kilotonne per annum capacity plant to make metallocene-catalysed EPDM and...

Trelleborg in fender system acquisitions.
May 1, 2001... Swedish group broadens its fender offerings and global scope with three purchases. Trelleborg AB plans to acquire control of three manufacturers of Fentek marine fender systems with headquarters and manufacturing units in Singapore,...

Michelin and Shanghai Tire ink JV deal.(Shanghai Michelin Warrior Tire Co. joint venture)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... As the Chinese vehicle market becomes more important, it will be able to source Michelin-brand tyres from French-Chinese JV. Groupe Michelin and Shanghai Tire & Rubber Co. Ltd (STRC) have formally agreed a $200-million plan to set up a...

European deal agreed on tyre noise limits.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Compromise on tyre noise levels allows tyre makers to focus on safety and environment. European legislators have agreed a compromise on tyre noise regulations, which will cut noise limits by 1 decibel (dB), instead of the 2dB previously...

Tomkins seeks buyer for Gates' Scottish plant.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Dumfries industrial rubber operations of Gates are up for sale as Tomkins moves to divest non-core units. Transmission belt plant is not part of the deal. Following a strategic review, Tomkins plc has started divesting a number of its...

Pacific Dunlop withdraws Ansell spin-off plan.
May 1, 2001... Managing director goes as shareholders force Pacific Dunlop to retain glove maker Ansell. Under pressure from disgruntled shareholders, Pacific Dunlop Ltd has withdrawn a proposal to spin off glove and condom maker Ansell Healthcare Inc.,...

New process may hike Amorim sales, presence.(Amorim Industrial Solutions )(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 1, 2001... Portuguese supplier of cork-rubber composites finds use in automotive. Cork-rubber maker Amorim Industrial Solutions of Corroios, Portugal, plans to increase sales 40 percent through 2004, bolstered by the introduction of injection-moulded...

Apply now for remaining EU materials funding.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Rubber processors have only a few weeks left to apply for a share of EU money for materials technology. Time is running out for rubber companies to get a slice of [European Dollar] 2705 million in funding from the European Commission for...

Michelin outlines tyre sales strategy.(management strategy information)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Tyre firm shows a C3M system to analysts, outlines main points of its tyre sales strategy. Michelin has clarified its sales strategy for the main tyre segments. It has also revealed its C3M manufacturing system as a key element in its...

United Polymers to lose 70 job at Corsham.(personnel management)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... New rubber transformer blames loss of key contract and cost pressures in automotive for cutbacks. United Polymers, a new UK rubber processing operation, is to make up to 70 people redundant at its Corsham seals and gaskets manufacturing...

GEO to acquire Hercules peroxy chemicals.(GEO Specialty Chemicals Inc)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... GEO Specialty Chemicals Inc. is to enter the rubber chemicals sector by acquiring Hercules Inc.'s peroxy chemicals business for an undisclosed amount. The deal is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2001, said GEO. With...

Dale Polymers expanding in specialities.(companies expanded product line)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Blue silicones made detectable for the food sector, TPEs, fluoroelastomers and are growing parts of Dale Polymers' portfolio Small specialist UK moulder Dale Polymers is raising its capacity for silicone-covered rubber rollers and for...

New focus for Leyland & Birmingham.(Dave Cowell selected as commercial manager)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... L&B aims to build long term relationships with customers to foster sustainable profitability. Rubber manufacturer Leyland & Birmingam Ltd has strengthened its commercial structure, appointing Dave Cowell as commercial manager for its...

Michelin joins Concorde rehabilitation project.(new tire product development)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... French tyre maker offers damage-resistant aircraft tyres to aid Concorde's return to airworthiness. Groupe Michelin has developed a new aircraft tyre, which will be trialled on an Air France Concorde in the next few weeks, according to the...

Book your place for Asian tyre show now.(conference information)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... ITEC-Asia takes place in Busan, Korea on 18, 19, 20 September this year. Visit www.itec-Asia to book your place ITEC-Asia's organisers are finalising the programme for the region's prestigious 2001 tyre conference in Busan, Korea,...

EIU puts rubber price recovery on hold.(Economist Intelligence Unit )(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)(Statistical Data Included)
May 1, 2001... NR prices will rise--but later than predicted, as shortages take longer to bite, says UK forecasting group. The Economist Intelligence Unit is sticking by its earlier forecasts of natural rubber shortages, but says that the declining...

Performance Materials goes solo.(AEA Investors Inc acquires company)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... BF Goodrich Co. has completed the sale of its Performance Materials business to an investor group headed by AEA Investors Inc. The sale, for $1000 million in cash and $172 million in debt securities issued by the new company, includes...

Good tidings for Yule Catto's latex business.(Synthomer Latex)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Synthomer moves out of commodity paper and carpet latex business to concentrate on speciality sectors. Growing demand for SR latex has led to "very high levels" of capacity utilisation at Synthomer's plants in the UK and Germany, according...

New Michelin axle system aids cornering.(PrOject Ecco)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... New axle development promise optimised contact patch between tyre and road. Groupe Michelin wants to bring the cornering control of racing cars to drivers everywhere. The tyre maker has developed a new axle system that uses...

Mix controller optimises mix cycle in real time.(Trelleborg AB production management information)
May 1, 2001... For over a decade the big boys of mixer control have sought to develop control systems which adapt the mix cycle in real time to changing input conditions. Their success has been, at best, mixed. Now Trelleborg reveals it has been doing exactly...

RubberChem review.
May 1, 2001... Apart from the radical new mixer control system reported in the main story, delegates to the recent RubberChem conference in Brussels heard about a number of new developments in the industry. The common theme was how the rubber industry is...

Rubber experts to gather in Birmingham.(conference information)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... This year's main IRC event will be held in Birmingham in June. here we present a listing of the conference papers. Next month, in a pull-out supplement, we will give details of the whole event, conference, exhibition and surrounding activities....

Conti on course with chassis strategy.(Continental AG acquires Timec, Shin-El and ShinTec)(Company Profile)
May 1, 2001... Despite a drop in profits for 2000 compared [to the previous year, Continental AG is surging ahead with its strategy of becoming a complete chassis systems supplier for the automotive industry, and has made a number of acquisitions to further...

Pirelli: `tyre-centric' and proud of it.(Pirelli Sistemi Antivibranti S.p.A.)(Company Profile)(Statistical Data Included)
May 1, 2001... Pirelli is cash-rich following the divestment of two niche optical cables units. But it is not making rushed decisions on how to spend its windfall. In tyres, it is very happy with its strong branding in the high-performance tyre sector and...

More UHP tyres sold in Europe.(ultra-high-performance)(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)(Statistical Data Included)
May 1, 2001... High-and ultra-high-performance tyres will continue their rapid growth in Europe, according to new data from Continental. The company outlined its view of the replacement market across Europe at the launch of two new tyres for the replacement...

Uniroyal aims tyres at wet weather.(Continental AG)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Continental AG launched two ranges of tyres designed to deliver excellent wet weather performance, during the week of March 24. The tyres, dubbed the Rallye 680, for S- and T-rated applications, and Rainsport 1 for Wand Z- fittings, both have...

Pirelli outlines strategy by segment.(new range of high performance car tires)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... At the launch of a new range of high performance car tyres in Barcelona, Spain, on 21 March, Pirelli executives pointed to a useful segmentation it has identified in this sector, enabling the Italian tyre firm to focus its tyre branding more...

ERJ people.(includes multiple appointments)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... ElastomerSolutions appoints [] Horsham, Pennsylvania--Elastomer Solutions.com has appointed Michael Agnew as chief operating officer. Agnew previously managed industrial and business-to-business firms, and was a management consultant...

VMI speeds up tyre-building machines.(single-stage tire building machine)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... Netherlands-based machine supplier comes up with a single-stage tyre building machine capable of making a complete green tyres in around 35 seconds. The machine is designed to handle passenger car tyres in rim sizes from 12-inch to...

DDE offers next-day-delivery on Kalrez parts.(DuPont Dow Elastomers L.L.C.)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... DuPont Dow Elastomers is aiming to deliver parts made from its Kalrez perfluoroelastomer and Zalak high-fluorine elastomers, to European users next day as a routine service. To do this it has signed a shared-site agreement it described as...

Wacker gains QS-9000.(Wacker-Chemie GmbH, elastomers)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... [] Munich, Germany--Wacker-Chemie GmbH's elastomers business unit has been certified to the automotive industry's QS 9000 quality standard. Wacker, whose silicones division gained ISO 9001 in 1994, describes the QS standard as "one of the...

FDA approves Zetpol for food contact.(Zeon Chemicals, hydrogenated nitrile elastomers)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... [] Louisville, Kentucky--All of Zeon Chemicals LP's Zetpol hydrogenated nitrile (HNBR) elastomers are now fully compliant with the requirements of the US Food and Drugs Administration's regulation covering applications in repeated contact with...

Atofina launches elastomer for window seals.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... [] Paris--Atofina has developed a thermoplastic elastomer designed for all-round sealing of fixed glass windows in cars. The material, called Sunfrost, can be injection-moulded directly into components with a suitable matt finish for this...

Deflashing service available.(Rapra Technology Ltd.)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... [] Shawbury, Shropshire--Rapra Technology Ltd has upgraded its cryogenic deflashing service and is offering this to manufacturers for "cost-effective processing of small to medium sized runs and specialist batches." Rapra has an Air...

Dunlop Industrial serves the environment.(ecoServe System)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... [] Stoke-on-Trent, UK--A new service from elastomeric adhesives supplier Dunlop Industrial aims to help customers develop better environmental options for their businesses. Via its new ecoServe system, Dunlop Industrial will remove its empty...

A little bird told me ...(wrestling with confidentiality)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2001... One of the interesting things about being a journalist in a small, close field like the elastomer industry, is that you hear a great deal about what is going on in the world. Some of it is on the record--and we print pretty well everything we...