DSL joins hands with Continental Tyres

Friday, 26 September 2014 00:58 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Malik Gunatilleke Douglas & Sons Ltd. (DSL) yesterday announced its partnership with international tyre manufacturer and automotive supplier Continental AG for the distribution of passenger car tyres and commercial vehicle tyres in the Sri Lankan market. Speaking at a press event held yesterday at The Kingsbury Hotel, DSL Group Executive Director Mangala Goonatilleke stated that as the official distributor for Continental tyres in Sri Lanka, these premium quality tyres would be available island wide across DSL’s network of 240 dealers. “We aim to be number one in Sri Lanka in the premium segment. Prices will be slightly higher than average tyre brands but we focus on value for money, better performance and safety, which will make this the cheaper option in the long run,” he said. Continental Tyre Director Sales Region – BU Replacement APAC PLT Choong Kee Seng stated that he felt this was the perfect time to enter the Sri Lankan market. “We are a premium brand. In Europe, around 30% of vehicle brands now come fitted with Continental tyres and this is because of our reliability. Our team of 713 testers conduct around 67,000 tests each year in order to ensure our brand’s quality,” he said. Its clientele includes all major vehicle manufacturers in the world such as Mercedes Benz, BMW, Porsche, Volkswagen, Daimler AG, Ford, Volvo, General Motors, Toyota, Honda and Renault, among others. When asked why Continental had not entered the Sri Lankan market until now, while other leading brands had strengthened their position in the country, Choong told the Daily FT that the post-war climate and the road development projects being implemented in Sri Lanka had encouraged Continental to enter the Lankan market. “I’ve visited Sri Lanka several times and over my last few visits, I’ve noticed that there has been a growth in high-end vehicles on the road with several highways having being constructed as well. This will no doubt increase the demand for high quality premium tyres from Sri Lankan customers,” he said. He also stated that certain South Asian markets had responded surprisingly to premium quality tyres over the last few years, citing Myanmar as an example. Choong said that after sanctions had been lifted from Myanmar, the market exploded with an astonishingly high demand for premium tyres which encouraged Continental to further strengthen its presence in the region. With sales of around €33.3 billion in 2013, the German-based Continental AG is one of the world’s leading automotive suppliers. Being the world’s fourth largest passenger tyre manufacturer in the original equipment and replacement market, the Tyre Division of Continental has 24 production and development locations worldwide. It is also one of the largest manufacturers of truck, bus and commercial specialty tyres worldwide.As such, the ContiComfortContact CC5, ContiMaxContact MC5, ContiSportContact5 and 5P, ContiCrossContact LX2 and the Continental SSR tyres are few of such innovations introduced by Continental. The commercial vehicle product range from Continental focuses on goods and people transport. In the radial tyre range, for the goods segment, Continental offers HSR2+, an all wheel tyre for heavy commercial vehicles and LSR2, a steer tyre for regional application in light commercial vehicles. For the people segment Continental introduces its HS Hybrid as well as the Conti RR (Road Rib), which provides excellent durability, mileage and retreadibility focused on highways and regional roads.