CHINA: Dealers, Tiremakers Are Capitalizing, But Economic Revolution Has Issues
Today’s China-made tires may well carry the names Michelin, Bridgestone, Goodyear or that of other majors and are produced using the same technology, processes and stringent quality standards of those well-known global brands. Only they are being produced for pennies on the dollar.My, how times have changed.
Harvest Time?: Ag Tire Dealers Need to Act Quickly Before Another Drought Comes
, ag tire dealers hurt. The market for ag tires depends directly on the strength of the larger agricultural economy, which, to say the least, has not been favorable. Continuing farm consolidations, more imports and fewer exports combined with steadily declining crop prices have hurt the farm economy. As if these conditions weren’t enough, farmers
Beating Goliath: How Can Small Independent Tire Shop Compete
They have economies of scale, which gives them enormous buying power. They can afford national ad campaigns and expensive PR programs. They have ready access to the latest technologies to run their supply chains and streamline their operations. Relatively speaking, their overall costs are low. They are the national retailers, the mass merchants, the big-box
Get Pumped Up: Longer Tire Life, Fuel Savings Claims Heat Up Nitrogen Inflation
The gas from the past is making news again, and this time the story has legs. There’s nothing new about nitrogen inflation of tires. It’s been around since Texan Dr. Larry Sperberg brought it to our attention in 1968. That’s when he pronounced that a tire wears out from the inside out – a process
Heavyweight Challenge: Understanding Customers’ Pain Points Can Boost Your Medium Truck Tire Sales
Turns out country singers are right ®“ a trucker’s life is hard. But we’re not talking about lonely stretches of highway. We’re talking business. “There will be a serious strain on the supply of medium truck tires available in 2004, and possibly through 2006, both at the OE and dealer levels,” says Ron Gilbert, director
Inside Information: RFID Technology Bolsters Tire Management
Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology isn’t new. But when it comes to using RFID technology to track truck tires instead of a skid of laundry soap, what’s old is becoming new again. At his trailer yard in Moses Lake, Wash., Lee McGraw, equipment maintenance manager for regional carrier LTI, scans the tires on 21 tractors
Fleets to Tire Dealers: Give Me Super Savings
He doesn’t like to talk about his experiences with super wide tires very much. “Gives me a competitive advantage over my competition,” he says. But Jimmy Ray, maintenance manager for Mesilla Valley Transportation in New Mexico, is one of a growing band of fleet converts. The 600 tractors and 1,500 trailers he oversees used to
Mutual Rewards: The Case for Outsourcing Has Never Been Stronger
“We hang on to our tire dealership relationships for dear life,” says Gary F. Petty, president and CEO of the National Private Truck Council (NPTC). Petty presumably speaks for most private fleets when he says, ®a lot of them rely on tire dealerships for servicing the tire function. They need that special expertise.® Without question,
Down to Business: BFNAT Commercial Dealers Learn of Upcoming Threats, Opportunities
BFNAT Commercial Dealers Learn of Upcoming Threats, Opportunities
Four on the Floor: BFNAT Launches New Passenger Tires, Expands Promotional Plans
BFNAT Launches New Passenger Tires, Expands Promotional Plans