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NOW AND THEN - take a trip with us through the history of Dunlop in South Africa - from first production to world speed records.
Dunlop tyre evolution – 1973 to 2011
The Dunlop Ladysmith factory began producing radial textile belted tyres in 1973. They were generally sidewall-over-tread construction, with two casing plies. Initial moulds were a two-piece construction. By the late 1980’s car tyres were mainly steel-belted and moulded in centripetal moulds instead of two-piece moulds.
As material technologies progressed, the move was from rayon and nylon casing ply materials to polyester. Rayon was and is still used solely for 17 and 18-inch UHP tyres. Tyre-building machines also moved from two stage machines to the more advanced uni-stage building machines from the late 1990’s onwards to 2002.
Increasing field performance demands prompted the move from bandage construction to a jointless bandage wrap on all transfer ring machines (which had replaced the bell type machine), to improve uniformity and high-speed performance. Since then, the tyre curing process has progressed from an all-steam medium to a nitrogen medium, improving product performance at reduced energy costs.
Tyre compound changes have centred mostly on ply topping compound and tread compound modifications – essentially to improve aged and dynamic cord adhesion in the casing. The introduction of silica-silane technology helped to improve tyre grip and rolling resistance. Inner liner compound technology also improved, and all product converted to use halo-butyl polymer to improve casing air impermeability.
Sidewall compound design was improved to reduce heat and flex cracking, especially in high-performance tyres.
In recent years compounds have been modified to comply to international regulations such as REACH (an ECE regulation) and ISO 14001 (Safety and Health Standard).
Output has risen from about 5000 a day in 1990 to 97 000 a day.
The biggest tyre Dunlop makes is a 235/40/18 SP6060 and the biggest SUV tyre is 245/70 R16 and 255/75 R15. The smallest tyre is the 145 R10, which used the original moulds from 1980.
Story of a legend
John Boyd Dunlop, a Scottish inventor, created the first practical pneumatic – or inflatable – tyre for his son’s tricycle in 1888. The result was the beginning of a revolution of the automobile industry, and the beginning of Dunlop tyres.
Dunlop was a founder of the rubber company ‘Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company’. Dunlop officially opened the first tyre factory in Durban in 1935 and manufactured the first car tyre in South Africa that year.
In 20XX, Indian tyre manufacturing giant Apollo Tyres took over trademark rights to the Dunlop tyre brand in South Africa with their core business being the manufacture and distribution of internationally recognised Dunlop passenger and truck tyres in South Africa and the 30 territories in which Apollo Tyres owns trademark rights to the Dunlop brand.
Spirit of Dunlop
On August 16 2001 Grant van Schalkwyk powered the Dunlop commissioned V8 racer “Spirit of Dunlop” to a world and South African speed record for standard production tyres of 388,538km/h – a car fitted with Dunlop’s SP Sport 7000 DW-rated passenger tyres, made in the Ladysmith factory.
Driven by Precision
In 2009 Dunlop launched their new positioning – 'Driven by Precision' – with the company’s largest yet corporate advertising campaign incorporating TV, print and online media.
The new positioning placed Dunlop as a performance player in the premium tyre market and delivered the company’s promise to dedicated precision – attention to detail and quality – in every way.
Human Precision
In 2010 Dunlop extended their 'Driven by Precision' positioning to include the growing chain of Dunlop Zone dealerships – the largest independent group of tyre dealerships in southern Africa – by telling South Africans about the precision tyre-fitting experience they could expect at a Dunlop Zone.
A brand-new TV ad alluded to the precision training and attention to detail that South African motorists can expect from Dunlop Zone and its employees by harnessing the free-running sport parkour for a visually exciting, appealing metaphor.
Dunlop Hall of Firsts
• The first South African tyre company to produce a 17 and 18 inch UHP tyre
• Set the South African land speed record at 388kmh with a standard production tyre
• Manufactured the first super single truck steer axle tyre in 2004
• Manufactured the first 18-inch ultra high performance passenger tyre in South Africa in 2005
• Introduced the Dunlop Interactive Display Module – the first customer tool of its kind in the tyre industry
• Voted South Africa’s Iconic Tyre Brand in 2010.
Dunlop tyre evolution – 1973 to 2011
The Dunlop Ladysmith factory began producing radial textile belted tyres in 1973. They were generally sidewall-over-tread construction, with two casing plies. Initial moulds were a two-piece construction. By the late 1980’s car tyres were mainly steel-belted and moulded in centripetal moulds instead of two-piece moulds.
As material technologies progressed, the move was from rayon and nylon casing ply materials to polyester. Rayon was and is still used solely for 17 and 18-inch UHP tyres. Tyre-building machines also moved from two stage machines to the more advanced uni-stage building machines from the late 1990’s onwards to 2002.
Increasing field performance demands prompted the move from bandage construction to a jointless bandage wrap on all transfer ring machines (which had replaced the bell type machine), to improve uniformity and high-speed performance. Since then, the tyre curing process has progressed from an all-steam medium to a nitrogen medium, improving product performance at reduced energy costs.
Tyre compound changes have centred mostly on ply topping compound and tread compound modifications – essentially to improve aged and dynamic cord adhesion in the casing. The introduction of silica-silane technology helped to improve tyre grip and rolling resistance. Inner liner compound technology also improved, and all product converted to use halo-butyl polymer to improve casing air impermeability.
Sidewall compound design was improved to reduce heat and flex cracking, especially in high-performance tyres.
In recent years compounds have been modified to comply to international regulations such as REACH (an ECE regulation) and ISO 14001 (Safety and Health Standard).
Output has risen from about 5000 a day in 1990 to 97 000 a day.
The biggest tyre Dunlop makes is a 235/40/18 SP6060 and the biggest SUV tyre is 245/70 R16 and 255/75 R15. The smallest tyre is the 145 R10, which used the original moulds from 1980.
Story of a legend
John Boyd Dunlop, a Scottish inventor, created the first practical pneumatic – or inflatable – tyre for his son’s tricycle in 1888. The result was the beginning of a revolution of the automobile industry, and the beginning of Dunlop tyres.
Dunlop was a founder of the rubber company ‘Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company’. Dunlop officially opened the first tyre factory in Durban in 1935 and manufactured the first car tyre in South Africa that year.
In 20XX, Indian tyre manufacturing giant Apollo Tyres took over trademark rights to the Dunlop tyre brand in South Africa with their core business being the manufacture and distribution of internationally recognised Dunlop passenger and truck tyres in South Africa and the 30 territories in which Apollo Tyres owns trademark rights to the Dunlop brand.
Spirit of Dunlop
On August 16 2001 Grant van Schalkwyk powered the Dunlop commissioned V8 racer “Spirit of Dunlop” to a world and South African speed record for standard production tyres of 388,538km/h – a car fitted with Dunlop’s SP Sport 7000 DW-rated passenger tyres, made in the Ladysmith factory.
Driven by Precision
In 2009 Dunlop launched their new positioning – 'Driven by Precision' – with the company’s largest yet corporate advertising campaign incorporating TV, print and online media.
The new positioning placed Dunlop as a performance player in the premium tyre market and delivered the company’s promise to dedicated precision – attention to detail and quality – in every way.
Human Precision
In 2010 Dunlop extended their 'Driven by Precision' positioning to include the growing chain of Dunlop Zone dealerships – the largest independent group of tyre dealerships in southern Africa – by telling South Africans about the precision tyre-fitting experience they could expect at a Dunlop Zone.
A brand-new TV ad alluded to the precision training and attention to detail that South African motorists can expect from Dunlop Zone and its employees by harnessing the free-running sport parkour for a visually exciting, appealing metaphor.
Dunlop Hall of Firsts
• The first South African tyre company to produce a 17 and 18 inch UHP tyre
• Set the South African land speed record at 388kmh with a standard production tyre
• Manufactured the first super single truck steer axle tyre in 2004
• Manufactured the first 18-inch ultra high performance passenger tyre in South Africa in 2005
• Introduced the Dunlop Interactive Display Module – the first customer tool of its kind in the tyre industry
• Voted South Africa’s Iconic Tyre Brand in 2010.
