Japanese tyre maker Bridgestone’s US-based farm tyre manufacturing plant will lay off 69 workers beginning this week due to dropping demands for farm workers. The laid off workers will receive 80 % of their salary as stipulated in the company’s…
Local carmakers to dominate Malaysian car market, institute says
The Malaysian Automotive Institute (MAI) predicts that Malaysian carmakers Proton Holdings Bhd and Perusahaan Otomobil Kedua Sdn Bhd (Perodua) will dominate the local car market by 52 %. “Based on the new models and the variant planning of the national…
Bridgestone announces new tyre technology development
Japanese Bridgestone Corporation has a new technology that estimates tyre wear and tread depth, based on the Contact Area Information Sensing (CAIS*1) concept. The new technology sensors attached to the inside of tires prevents tyres from becoming worn or losing…
Bain Capital Partners attempts control of Ti Automotive
American private equity firm Bain Capital Partners recently attempted to seize control of British manufacturer TI Automotive. It was their third time doing so. The firm is working on a £1.2bn takeover of the company which produces part of cars…
Standard Profil opens its 10th global plant in Mexico
Automotive sealing manufacturing company Standard Profil recently unveiled its 10th global plant in Mexico. The plant runs on cutting-edge technology and was built in 9 months on a total budget of US$36 million. “We always aim to be closer to…
Toyo R888R debuts at Essen Motorshow
The new Proxes R888R track tyre by Toyo Tire Europe GmbH recently made its debut at the Essen Motorshow in Germany. The line succeeds the Proxes R888 which the company says have been used to win various championships, including 2014…
Dmack secures £3.5m investment from Maven
Tyre brand Dmack, famous for being the second tyre supplier in the 2011 FIA World Rally Championship has secured an investment of £3.5m from private equity managers Maven. The investment is expected to fund the next wave of the company’s…
China’s rubber formula move to hurt Southeast Asian markets
China recently approved a new standard formula that sees the amount of natural rubber reduced in a move which analysts predict will hurt Thai and Malaysian rubber markets. Compound rubber, which includes small amounts of powdered carbon, is popular in…
BMW to share costs of overstocked cars
Automotive company BMW will pay 5.1 billion yuan ($US820 million) to disgruntled auto dealers in in China who complained that the cost of overstocked showrooms must be shared. The luxury car maker is facing cutthroat competition: for example, it’s range…
Rubber imports jump in India
India has seen a 19 % rise in its imports of natural rubber to 33,156 tonnes from a year earlier, India’s Rubber Board said, due to a dip in local output and lower global rubber prices. Also, there is a…