European Rubber Journal articles from May 2002

European Rubber Journal archives from May 2002

Manuli to shut Dutch unit as automotive sales fall: a drop of 8 percent in automotive sales forces restructuring at Italy-headquartered fluid systems supplier. (Rubber news).
May 1, 2002... Tough conditions during 2001 have forced fluid-systems supplier Manuli Rubber Industries SpA to restructure its automotive activities. Milan, Italy headquartered Manuli is to close its automotive hose plant in Roosendaal, The Netherlands. It...

ContiTech opens new airspring unit in Turkey: new home for airspring plant will allow it to make 380 000 units a year. (Rubber news).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... ContiTech Holding GmbH has opened a new airsprings unit in the Turkish city of Bursa, following an investment of around 1.5 million [euro] ($1.3 million) to relocate and expand its ContiTech Lastik Sanayi ve Ticaret AS subsidiary. The...

Michelin to reopen Mexican tyre plant: Mexico unit may supply tyres for Renault Scenic to be made locally. (Rubber news).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Groupe Michelin is investing $3 million to reopen a tyre plant in Queretaro, Mexico, which it shut in August 2000. Michelin will operate the plant through a new operating division, AutoPartes Internocionales de Queretaro (APIQ), the group...

Trelleborg to end tyre manufacture in Belgium: need for low cost base prompts decision to relocate industrial tyre production from Belgium to Sri Lanka. (Rubber news).
May 1, 2002... The Wheel Systems business of the Trelleborg Group is planning to stop production of industrial tyres at its Evergem unit in Belgium. Trelleborg will relocate the production equipment to its industrial tyres unit in Sri Lanka, said a...

FedMog looks at options for its wiper business: financial restructuring at troubled automotive supplier may involve the sale of its European wiper business. (Rubber news).(Federal-Mogul Corp.)
May 1, 2002... As part of its continued prioritisation of product lines, Federal-Mogul Corp. is evaluating the options for its windscreen wiper business, ranked No. 3 in Europe. The automotive supplier is talking to potential partners to determine what,...

FP Diesel for replacement truck market.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Southfield, Michigan -- Federal-Mogul Corp. will more than double the number of products in its FP Diesel brand through the integration of the Sealed Power medium- and heavy-duty engine parts line. The brand includes gaskets and seals...

Partners to develop rubber switching device: rubber technology for electronic control devices spurs deal. (Rubber news).(Varatouch Technology Inc., Mitsubishi Copr, Shin-Etsu Polymer Company Ltd.)
May 1, 2002... A three-way alliance aims to commercialise the use of "Resistive Rubber," technology in control devices for electronic products. Varatouch Technology Inc. (VTI) of Sacramento, California, has formed a strategic alliance with Mitsubishi Corp....

Trelleborg sells moulded goods unit to Ilpea: UK unit is a good fit for new owner, which operates in the appliance sector. (Rubber news).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Trelleborg has agreed to sell its Skelton, UK-based moulded goods unit to the UK unit of Italian moulding group Industrie Ilpea SpA. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The 60-employee Skelton unit, part of Trelleborg Industries UK Ltd,...

Restructuring will leave Conti in good shape: the future of unspecified ContiTech units remains uncertain as chairman declares group remains on track as chassis systems supplier. (Rubber news).
May 1, 2002... Despite a net loss of 257.6 million [euro] ($227 million) in 2001, Continental AG is still pursuing its strategy of being "a supplier of intelligent chassis and safety systems and a competent development partner to the global automotive...

Continental buys rest of Temic.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Hannover, Germany -- Continental AG has bought DaimlerChrysler AG's remaining 40 percent of the shares of Conti Temic Microelectronic GmbH. The German tyre and automotive system supplier paid the car maker 215.3 million [euro] to be come, as...

Cannon opens new keypad facility.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Matamoros, Mexico -- ITT Industries' Cannon subsidiary has opened a 4000-[m.sup.2] keypad facility in Matamoros The new factory is a venture between ITT and Siltech, a Mexican provider of skilled labour. Cannon's Chinese keypad business...

Latex livens-up French election.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Paris -- Candidates in the French presidential election have been caricatured in latex. President Jacques Chirac is the target of a rubber puppet with a red cape and mask, called "Super Liar" A Reuters press report describes how this...

Sumitomo, Tatsuta, and Hitachi Cable form JV: low demand and profitability in wire/cables business in Japan pushes cable makers into alliance. (Rubber news).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Japanese cable makers Tatsuta Electric Wire and Cable Co. Ltd, Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd and Hitachi Cable Ltd are to establish a joint venture to make, distribute and sell wire and cable for building and industrial equipment. The...

Energy sector boosts Wellington's seals sales: seal maker feels focussed portfolio and wide geographic sales give it a strong position. (Rubber news).(UK)
May 1, 2002... Seals for the energy business have been a major driver for growth at Wellington Holdings pie, according to Peter Bennett, group chief executive for the small UK-headquartered specialist seals maker. Last year demand far outstripped supply in...

New name and focus for Pacific Dunlop.(Australia)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Melbourne, Australia -- After a long corporate strategic review, Pacific Dunlop Ltd will shift its focus to protective products and change its name to Ansell Ltd to reflect this now strategy. Shareholders at a 12 April Extraordinary General...

World Bank invests in Tigar, Michelin JV: after severe disruption by war, Serbian tyre firm gets much-needed funding from World Bank. (Tyre news).
May 1, 2002... The World Bank is investing 20 million [euro] ($18 million) in Tigar Rubber Products Co. AD, the Serbian tyre and rubber goods maker operated as a joint venture between Groupe Michelin and Tigar. The investment through the bank's private sector...

Yokohama raises stake in Hangzhou JV: Japanese tyre maker gains control of Chinese JV, to pilot it as local tyre market grows. (Tyre news).(Yokohama Rubber Co. raises stake in Hangzhou Yokohama Tire Co.)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Japanese tyre maker Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd has raised its stake in the Chinese joint venture company Hangzhou Yokohama Tire Co. Ltd 80 percent, from the current 45 percent. The move will allow Yokohama to "play a more leading role in...

Cooper's tyre, auto parts sales outpace industry in first quarter.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Findlay, Ohio -- Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. posted net income of $26 million on sales that rose 7 percent to $813 million for the first quarter. Operating profit increased 143 percent to $61 million, as Cooper's restructuring began to pay off....

Goodyear Wolverhampton workers reject rescue: Goodyear workers in the UK fail to back union-led productivity plan. (Tyre news).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Workers at Goodyear's tyre plant at Wolverhampton have voted down a trade union plan to improve productivity in a bid to safeguard its future. The Transport & General (T&G) union proposals were rejected by 594 workers, with 511 voting in...

Vredestein plans better cash management: Dutch tyre maker aim to cut debt and "systematically reduce" its working capital. (Tyre news).
May 1, 2002... "Following a disappointing year in 2001, in which it reported a net loss totalling over 30 million [euro], Dutch rubber processor Vredestein NV plans, "to become an organisation that is managed more on the basis of cash flow," the firm said in...

Krupp sells 200th Unistage tyre builder to Kirov.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Hamburg, Germany -- Tyre machinery maker Krupp Elastomertechnik GmbH has sold its 200th Unistage tyre-building machine, to the Kirov Tyre Plant in Russia. The tyre builder, built in Krupp Elastomertechnik's Hamburg-Harburg plant, will...

Michelin C3M plant in Nevada to close.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Reno, Nevada -- Michelin North America Inc. plans to close its C3M-based tyre plant in Reno by 31 May and consolidate C3M production in the US at its Greenville, South Carolina, plant. Michelin will keep a 20 000-[m.sup.2] warehouse open on...

South Pacific to expand New Zealand site.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Upper Hutt, New Zealand -- South Pacific Tyres Ltd will invest about $5 million at its Upper Hutt passenger tyre plant this year to expand output nearly two-thirds and prepare the site for around-the-clock operation. The expansion, to...

Cooper/Pirelli restructure US tyre alliance: the honeymoon is over, as US, Italian partners realign US project. (Tyre news).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. and Pirelli Tire Worldwide have restructured their US agreement in tyre manufacturing, distribution and sales, after three years, "in order to improve the competitive strength of both companies," a joint statement said....

Michelin starts employee shareholder plan: share scheme for workers will create better understanding, Michelin says. (Tyre news).(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Groupe Michelin has launched a two-phase share ownership scheme for its employees worldwide. Variations in local regulations mean that the scheme will initially focus on 100 000 employees in 16 of the 56 countries where Michelin is based....

Goodyear notes rise in EU tyre sales.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Akron, Ohio -- European Union sales of consumer replacement tyres grew by almost 3 percent in February, versus the same month last year, according to Goodyear Tire and Rubber Co. At the same time, shipments of commercial replacement lyres in...

Goodyear runflats on Mini Cooper S.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Akron, Ohio -- Goodyear's 17-inch all-season runflat tyre, the Eagle RS-A EMT, has been approved by BMW as an option on the 2002 Mini Cooper S supercharged version. Goodyear is still developing the 16-inch EMT tyres, which will be standard...

Sabic cancels purchase of Polimeri Europa: no sale yet for Eni's elastomer, styrenics and olefinics businesses. (Supplier news).
May 1, 2002... Eni of Italy and Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (Sabic) have terminated talks over the sale of Eni's Polimeri Europa unit to the Saudi group. Eni had expected to complete the sale of a 51-percent stake in Polimeri Europa to Sable in March. ...

Bayer to split rubber business into three: general-purpose, speciality elastomers and rubber chemicals units to take the place of single rubber group. (Supplier news).(Germany)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Bayer AG's Rubber Business Group will be split into three parts within the new Bayer Polymers AG subsidiary, according to a company spokesman. As well as a general rubber unit for products such as BR and SBR, Bayer Polymers will have a...

Farrel--sales down, but back in the black.(year ended 12/31/01, US)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Ansonia, Connecticut -- Rubber and plastics machinery supplier Farrel Corp. is back in the black this year, despite a drop of $8 million, or 12 percent in sales versus 2000. Farrel reported net income of $790 000 on sales of $56.2 million for...

Sabic to acquire DSM petchems business.(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Geleen, The Netherlands -- Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (Sabic) is to acquire DSM's petrochemicals business, DSM Petrochemicals, for 2250 million [euro] in a deal expected to gain approval from the regulatory authorities by the end of June....

Low prices lift NR, latex sales at Safic-Alcan: French distributor improves performance as rubber market suffers from weak automotive demand. (Supplier news).
May 1, 2002... Competitive natural rubber prices and recent restructuring helped Safic-Alcan to report improving margins at its rubber-related businesses. The Paris-headquartered group is a leading global distributor of natural rubber and latex, and claims...

JSR to toll manufacture E-SBR for Sumitomo: fierce competition in E-SBR prompts Sumitomo to contract-out its production. (Supplier news).(Sumitomo closes emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber plant, Chiba works, Japan)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Overseas competition has prompted Sumitomo Chemical Co. Ltd to shut the emulsion styrene butadiene rubber (E-SBR) plant at its Chiba Works and outsource production of the material to JSR Corp. From October, Sumitomo will supply monomer to...

IoM merging into new body.(Institute of Materials will merge with Institution of Mining & Metallurgy to form Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining, UK)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] London -- The UK's Institute of Materials (IoM) is to merge with the Institution of Mining and Metallurgy to form the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining. Members of the IoM voted in favour of the merger by a majority of 93 percent,...

Dow Chemical idles epichlorohydrin line.(Freeport, Texas)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Midland, Michigan -- Dow Chemical Co. will idle the smallest of three epichlorohydrin production units in Freeport, Texas, until demand resumes. No disruption in supply to customers is anticipated, and no jobs will be affected, Dow said. ...

NHS re-issues guidance on latex use.(National Health Service )(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] London -- The UK's National Health Service is to re-issue advice on the use of natural rubber latex, to ensure that NHS staff who are allergic to the material are aware that alternatives such as nitrile latex and silicone rubber products are...

Ameripol Synpol to idle emulsion-SBR plant.(Odessa, Texas)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Port Neches, Texas -- Ameripol Synpol Corp. will close its 95 kilotonne per year Odessa, Texas, emulsion-SBR plant indefinitely by mid to late May as part of a plan to realign production capacity with decreased market demand. Production idled...

Degussa, ECI start joint venture.(to produce furnace, thermal and specialty blacks, US)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Parsippany, New Jersey -- Degussa Corp. and Engineered Carbons Inc. have launched a joint venture to produce a full range of furnace, thermal and speciality blacks from six US plants previously operated separately by the two companies. The...

Rapra advances analytical capabilities.(invests in new lab equipment, Shawbury, UK)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... Shawbury, UK -- Rapra Technology Ltd has recently invested 140 000 [pounds sterling] ($200 000) to install a new liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC-MS) device at its base at Shawbury, near Shrewsbury. The equipment is currently being...

EIU downgrades NR price forecasts: NR prices will recover--but not as much as previously forecast, as demand continues to fall. (Supplier news).(world)
May 1, 2002... The Economist Intelligence Unit has lowered its price forecasts for natural rubber in its latest quarterly report: World commodity forecasts: industrial raw materials, April 2002. The EIU continues to expect prices to average around $810/tonne...

IISRP adds 2nd Chinese producer.(PetroChina Company Ltd., International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers Inc)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Houston, Texas -- PetroChina Co. Ltd, one of China's largest petrochemical groups and a leading synthetic rubber producer, has joined the International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers Inc. PetroChina produces BR, SBR, XSBR, NBR,...

Alliance for two-part moulding.(Bayer AG, GE Bayer Silicones, General Electric Co., Krauss_mattei)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Newbury, UK -- Bayer AG, GE Bayer Silicones a joint venture of Bayer AG and General Electric Co.--and Krauss-Mattei have started a joint project to develop new two component moulding technologies. The project aims to produce mouldings...

Dow Corning to buy French TPE maker.(Multibase S.A.)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Midland, Michigan--Dow Corning Corp. said it plans to acquire Multibase SA, a French compounder of thermoplastic elastomers, for an undisclosed amount. Multibase, which has production facilities in the US as well as in France and India,...

Solvay to re-jig for EC to OK Ausimont deal.
May 1, 2002... [] Brussels -- Solvay SA has agreed to divest some coatings and additives assets to assuage European Commission concerns about its proposed acquisition of Italian fluoropolymer producer Ausimont SpA Solvay and Montedison SpA agreed earlier this...

Columbian to hike carbon black prices.(Columbian Chemicals Co.)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... [] Marietta Georgia -- Columbian Chemicals Co. will increase prices for all grades of carbon black worldwide. The company said the move was needed for Columbian to sustain investments in its plants and to comply with stringent...

NR prices to rise, say IRSG delegates. (IRSG meeting).(Natural rubber)
May 1, 2002... At the IRSG annual assembly in Glasgow, delegates heard the NR prices are likely to rise, but also heard that demand for tyres is static and unlikely to show positive growth until 2003, while supply of synthetic rubbers is well below global...

Iran's tyre industry evolves into private enterprise. (Rubber news).(Illustration)
May 1, 2002... The Iranian tyre industry has developed very fast over the last 25 years, from enforced nationalisation of the international operators to a state-run system designed to achieve full employment, and then into privatisation, competition and now a...

Tyre market trends. (Rubber news).(Illustration)
May 1, 2002... The year 2000 was a landmark year for the tyre industry in many ways, according to Robert Simmons, speaking for the LMC International consultancy group. Tyre sales and production reached record figures with light vehicle tyre sales above 1000...

Shake-out in E-business sites: E-business was hailed as the great new industry of the late 1990s, but in the end, much of the hype has now died down, leaving a handful of well-run, competent sites, delivering ease of use, high security and a box of tools designed to improve the flow of information relating to stocks and accounts between customer and supplier. (E-business).(RubberNetwork and ElastomerSolutions)
May 1, 2002... E-business has evolved. Two years ago, ERJ wrote about a series of websites devoted to buying and selling rubber and other raw materials over the web. Most of those have either stopped trading, or have minimal business. Instead, the...

Morgan Stanley says Conti will beat market. (Automotive).(Continental AG)(Illustration)
May 1, 2002... Morgan Stanley, the automotive analysts expects Continental AG to outperform the main tyre makers over the next 12 months, while Michelin and Nokian will probably generate average overall returns (see table, bottom). The predictions come in the...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
May 1, 2002... Reliable Machinery In the Machinery Report in our March 2002 issue, we listed Reliable Machinery, based in the USA, and said in the editorial feature accompanying the piece, that employment numbers had declined due to the general condition...

SR industry in Russia has `heavy heritage': private investment is one route to help develop the ageing infrastructure of the Russian SR sector. (Russian SR focus).(synthetic rubbers)
May 1, 2002... "What we have now in our country is a very heavy heritage because of the last 10 to 15 years in which plants which make materials have aged and need new technology," said Alexander Putilov, head of the science department of the Ministry of...

Balance needed in science, technology, industry. (Russian SR focus).(synthetic rubbers)
May 1, 2002... The three-day meeting at the Klyazma Hotel in Moscow in February, organised by a group of Russian institutes working on rubber, attracted some 400 delegates, and epitomised some of the challenges facing the rubber-producing plants and the tyre...

Good value research. (Russian SR focus).(synthetic rubbers)(Brief Article)
May 1, 2002... One route for the wealth of Russian rubber researchers and their organisations may be to carry out contract re search on behalf of western organisations. In the west, fundamental research on rubber has become a luxury rather than a...

SR sector in Russia needs revitalising: SR producers in Russia have to pay high energy costs for inefficient plants--but there is optimism for the future. (Russian SR focus).(synthetic rubbers)
May 1, 2002... The Russian synthetic rubber sector has serious problems to tackle: high energy prices and low efficiency of plants are challenges faced by most Russian industrial sectors--from raw materials plants to component manufacture--in the post-Soviet...

New Russian elastomers on the way: fluorosilicones are the latest addition to Russia's SR products, along with a new butadiene copolymer with exceptional properties, other fluoroelastomers, TPEs and more. (Russian SR focus).
May 1, 2002... Fluorosilicones are unique rubbers combining resistance to low and high temperatures, and to different media--but currently, "their cost is too high" said Dr V. A. Kormer, director of NIISK, the SV Lebedev Institute of Synthetic Rubber, in St...

Foaming fluoroelastomers! A new Leeser speciality: innovation, service, precision and speciality formulations for open celled foams are the focus of German sponge profile maker Leeser. And now it is heading into exciting new territory with a technique it has developed for blowing fluoroelastomer into sponge. (Profile).
May 1, 2002... Leeser Gummiprofile GmbH & Co. KG, a specialist in sponge rubber profiles, has recently developed a novel fluoroelastomer foaming process as part of a plan to grow through innovation. It is foaming Viton to make high-performance sealing...

Diary.(Calendar)
May 1, 2002... Readers are strongly advised to confirm details with organisers before making any travel arrangements. An updated list of industry events is available on the ERJ website at http://www.crain.co.uk/ APRIL * Free the team & boost the...

E-business and the rubber industry. (postscript).(rubbernetwork.com)(Elemica.com)
May 1, 2002... They say internet time is different from normal time, and I think even in the rubber business, we can say it is true. Two years ago I wrote breathlessly about the growth of e-business in the rubber industry, and how it was being driven by...