The 2008 Calendar is set entirely in Shanghai: the picturesque streets of the old French Concession, the splendid gardens of the former British Legation, the mysterious and sensual atmosphere of forbidden China, the convulsive Nanjing Road and the characteristic tea houses constitute the background for the camera shots that will grace the coming months.

The twenty-three intense portraits (two for each month; August has just one) recount the pomp of ancient China, with its splendour and the colours in which the Oriental myth of female beauty – perfection, purity, grace – is searched out. “Very often I find Western people seem to go for the more cliché Chinese faces: long hair, slanted eyes. All that has changed I think. Many Chinese women are graceful; I think we have an inner grace that’s more rare than you find in the West,” affirmed Maggie Cheung, the well-known Chinese actress.

Patrick Demarchelier, the influential maestro of portrait photography, who for the second time authors the celebrated almanac (his first Pirelli Calendar was shot in 2005 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) said: “The casting was a fascinating mix between the West and the Orient: an interesting group of faces.”

Shooting last April kept eleven models and actresses occupied for ten days of intense work that involved a troupe of more than 40 people.

The leading ladies of this edition are rising stars such as Agyness Deane and Lily Donaldson (UK), Doutzen Kroes (the Netherlands), Catherine Mc Neil and Gemma Ward (Australia), Sasha Pivovarova (Russia), Coco Rocha (Ireland) and Caroline Trentini (Brazil). The Calendar also features Chinese beauties like Mo Wan Dan and Du Juan and one name in particular stands out: Maggie Cheung, the celebrated actress and Asian beauty, known internationally for her acting in Police Story (1985), Super Cop (1992), Actress (1992), Chinese Box (1997), In the Mood for Love (2000) e Hero (2003).

The official unveiling of the new Calendar occurs just a few days after the opening of the second Pirelli tyre plant in the Shandong Province. China and the other Asian markets are, in fact, the new frontiers for international expansion of the Group, which is investing and growing in order to take advantage of the extraordinary business opportunities in the area.

“The Cal,” which has always been an artistic synthesis bringing together innovation, respect for values, and tradition, also expresses Pirelli’s capacity to adapt to and integrate different cultures while at the same time affirming the qualities and the glamour of what being Italian is all about.

In late November, the book “The Complete Works: The Pirelli Calendar 1964-2007,” published by Mondadori, will be distributed in bookstores worldwide. The book represents an important international publishing event and involves seven foreign co-publishers (Flammarion for France, Schirmer & Mosel for Germany, Rizzoli USA for the US and Canada, Thames & Hudson for the United Kingdom, South Africa, Australia, and other world markets, Magma for Russia, Rebis for Poland, and Slovart for the Czech Republic). The book is the result of a long, meticulous project of research and recovery of original materials. From the sixties to today, the reader takes a passionate excursion through the evolution of fashion, trends, and customs of the last 40 years, in harmony with the evolution of the language of Pirelli’s communication. 

THE INVESTMENT IN THE NEW FACTORY AMOUNTS TO NEARLY 100 MILLION DOLLARS. OVERALL, IN THE LAST THREE YEARS, PIRELLI HAS INVESTED MORE THAN 200 MILLION DOLLARS IN CHINA

PRODUCTION WILL BE DESTINED FOR CHINA AND THE ASIA-PACIFIC AREA MARKETS

WITH THE NEW FACTORY, BUILT IN THE SAME AREA AS THE TRUCK FACTORY OPENED IN 2005, AN IMPORTANT MANUFACTURING, LOGISTIC AND COMMERCIAL POLE IS CREATED, WITH ABOUT 2,000 EMPLOYEES

HOLDING IN CHINESE SUBSIDIARY RISES FROM 60% TO 75%

NEW SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY INITIATIVES AND PROGRAMS FOR TRAINING AND CULTURAL INTEGRATION OF PERSONNEL BEGUN

Pirelli today began manufacturing high-performance car tyres in China in the Group’s second factory in the Shandong Province. 

The new industrial facility, which rises in the same area as the factory for truck tyres which opened in 2005, was inaugurated in the presence of Riccardo Sessa, Italian Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China, Marco Tronchetti Provera, Chairman of Pirelli, Francesco Gori, CEO and General Manager of Pirelli Tyre, Niu Yshun, Chairman of  Yinhe Group, and Chinese authorities.

The factory occupies a covered surface area of 70 thousand square meters and has a manufacturing capacity of about 3 million pieces per year, with areas sufficient to contain manufacturing expansion up to 10 million pieces per year. Employees, nearly all of local origin, count about 1,000. The investment made by Pirelli to build the factory amounted to nearly 100 million dollars. Production will be destined for China and the main markets in the Asia-Pacific area.

Realization of the car tyre factory will start the second phase of the expansion plan of the Group in China, one of the world markets of reference for tyre manufacturers.

In the next four years, growth in the local tyre market will be driven by a significant increase in demand for new cars, resulting from the combination of several factors: from GDP growth (estimated at about 10% per year between 2008 and 2010) to the improved quality of life of large segments of the population; from better road infrastructure to the trend towards lower prices due to increased competition and technology innovation.

Following the investment in the truck tyre factory, which allowed Pirelli to establish its presence in the Industrial business – confirmed by the leadership gained from supplying original equipment to CNHTC (the No. 1 domestic manufacturer of industrial vehicles) – the objective now is to conquer the growing Chinese automobile market, in particular in the mid-high range segments, where double-digit CAGR (cumulative annual growth rate) is expected over the next four years. Pirelli, whose brand is highly regarded throughout China, intends to play a leading role in this growth process and aims to conquer a double digit market share in the high end of the Chinese market.

The growth strategy of Pirelli in the local market also includes strengthening the distribution network, which will grow to more than 1,000 points of sale (of which about 2/3 monobrand), by the end of 2008.

In order to accompany its expansion in China and throughout Asia, in addition, for the first time in history the Group has decided to set in Shanghai, and present in Shanghai, “Pearls of the Orient”, the celebrated Pirelli Calendar. The 2008 edition of “The Cal”, shot by photographer Patrick Demarchelier, will be presented there on 29 November.

The new Yanzhou plant, one of the most modern in the world for tyre manufacturing, uses the best non-robotized technologies and has been conceived for production of mid-high performance tyres.

The car tyre factory is adjacent to the factory for radial truck tyres opened in the second half of 2005, which has potential manufacturing capacity of more than 1 million pieces. The entire industrial complex, with two large, technologically advanced plants, will therefore become an important manufacturing, logistic and commercial humb for all of the Far East. For its realization, in the last three years, Pirelli invested a total of over 200 million dollars.

With the completion of the car tyre plant, the workforce at Yanzhou has doubled, growing from about one thousand to about two thousand employees. The themes of development and training of human resources will remain central in the future: in particular, studies of the English language will be intensified and Italian lessons for key resources will be promoted (currently, 50% of the first line of local management of Pirelli is of Chinese nationality); a project for internal communications is underway and international mobility of Chinese employees will be favoured.

Much attention has been dedicated to corporate social responsibility, with a campaign to sensitize employees on CSR themes, and to intercultural integration initiatives and work-life balance initiatives such as recreational events and trips. Pirelli has also launched a free vaccination campaign for all workers.
Pirelli operates in China through a subsidiary company, the result of the joint-venture agreement signed in 2005 with the Yinhe Group. The stake in the jv has recently been increased from 60% to 75%. This transaction had a value of about 11 million euros.

The strengthening of the new Yanzhou pole consolidates the international presence of Pirelli, which currently counts 25 factories in 12 countries around the world.

CHINA NATIONAL HEAVY DUTY TRUCK GROUP CO., LTD

The headquarters of China National Heavy Duty Truck Group Co., Ltd. (CNHTC) is located in Jinan city, Shandong Province, P. R. China. It is the cradle and leading production base of the heavy-duty truck industry in China. It is famous for developing and manufacturing the first heavy duty truck — “HUANGHE” brand vehicle model JN150 in China, for successful introducing the “STEYR” heavy duty truck production project, and for setting up a joint venture with VOLVO to manufacture the heavy duty trucks with up-to-date international level.
At present, CNHTC has Jinan Truck Co., Ltd., Jinan Commercial Vehicle Co., Ltd., Jinan Power Co., Ltd., Jinan Axle Co. Ltd., Jinan Special Vehicle Co., Ltd., Jinan Bus Co., Ltd, and Huawo Truck Co., Ltd. in Jinan Area for manufacturing and assembling of truck CBU, manufacturing and processing of engine, axle, gearbox, wheel, propeller shaft, cab trimming, seat and so on components and parts, and producing and manufacturing task of bus and special vehicle. In Shandong Area, there are Qingdao Special Vehicle Company, Taian Wuyue Special Vehicle Company, Jining Refitting Vehicle Company and Jinan Park Machine Company for manufacturing of special trucks and refitting trucks. Out of Shandong, there are Hangzhou Truck Engine Works of Jinan Power Co., Ltd., Chongqing Fuel Pump & Nozzle Factory and so on. The Technical Development Center at the Jinan headquarters, which is a state level enterprise technical center, supplies powerful technical support for the R & D of CNHTC’s products. Besides, CNHTC also has been managing subsidiaries such as real estate company, import & export company, Hong Kong company, finance company, Xinhai vouching company, and property management company etc. CNHTC also possesses a listed company, namely, A stock “G CNHTC”.

CNHTC performed technique innovation; it has invested 4 billion to more than 100 programs to make man craft and scale production linked quickly with advanced enterprise in the world. Jinan Industrial Aera, Changqing Industrial Aera and Zhangqiu Industrial Area have been built up in succession; the digital frame line, new assembly line, HOWO welding line, painting line ect. Which are representatives of international advanced level have been put into use. The production capacity of Jinan Power Co., Ltd, which was been invested nearly CNY 1 billion, reaches 60000 units and has developed times featured engine for heavy-duty truck. This kind of engine represents the top technical level of 10 liters emission engine in China and has made truck CUB producer establishes technical criterion by itself, thereby to make sure the upgrade with truck CUB technology. By using the technology advantages of itself and absorbs the advanced technology of the heavy-duty truck around the world, CNHTC has developed series heavy-duty trucks such as HOWO, STEYR-King, Golden-Prince, HAOJUN, HAOYUN, Huanghe Commander, Huanghe General and so on, which includes more than 1380 models. CNHTC focuses on the protection of knowledge property right and makes more than 600 technologies get the national patent.

To strength the marketing construction of “Great market, great marketing”, and to build up comparatively sound marketing network system. CNHTC has built up more than 50 regional marketing branches, more than 500 dealers, 120 refitting units, nearly 80 4S chain shops and 800 service stations all over the country. Now CNHTC has reached three “No.1″ in China: number one in the segment of heavy tractors sold in China, number one in the segment of large power engine (>300hp) sold in China and number one in the segment of heavy duty truck equipped with engine (more than 10 liter) in China.

From January to September, 2007, CNHTC has produced totally 77,420 heavy duty trucks, reached 20.40% share of market, positioned No.1 in heavy duty truck segment in China, bias truck tire and radial truck tire takes 50% respectively out of total OE tyres, and Pirelli delivered 25% of total radial tires to CNHTC.

THE PIRELLI GROUP

Pirelli & C. SpA is the parent company, listed on the Italian Stock Exchange, of a multinational Group which is active in over 160 countries and which has 135 years of industrial experience based on recognised excellence in innovation and a profound understanding of global markets.

Pirelli operates in the tyre sector with Pirelli Tyre, fifth in the world in terms of revenue and leader in the high-end segments of the market, with 25 manufacturing plants in 12 countries around the world. In real estate the Group is present with Pirelli RE, a company that in just a few years has affirmed its leadership in Italy, introducing a new business model and highly professional standards. Pirelli RE has recently begun expansion in Central and Eastern Europe.

The Pirelli Group also features two start-ups: Pirelli Broadband Solutions, active in the fields of broadband access and second generation photonics, and Pirelli Ambiente, specialising in environmental and sustainable development projects such as the Gecam™ low environmental impact fuel, particulate filters, photovoltaic energy and quality waste-derived fuel. The Group’s “innovation engine” is represented by Pirelli Labs, the advanced research centre at the service of all Pirelli businesses. Pirelli Labs has partnerships with universities and research centres around the world.

In 2006, the Pirelli Group reported sales of 4,841 million euros and operating income of 401.4 million euros. At the end of 2006 the Group had around 28 thousand employees.

The Pirelli-equipped Peugeots of Marcus Gronholm and
Markko Martin finished second and third, underlining a dominant
performance by Pirelli in the hot and tough conditions. The
Italian rubber won all but four of the stages, moving Solberg into
the lead of the drivers’ championship while Peugeot now heads the
constructors’ series.

The Mitsubishis of Harri Rovanpera and Gilles Panizzi, also
running on Pirelli tyres, finished fifth and eighth – making
it five Pirelli drivers in the top eight places.

Road conditions on the rally were unusually hard and free of
loose gravel on the first day of the rally, but softer and more
gravelly for the rest of it. Despite these difficult and changeable
surfaces, Solberg claimed Pirelli’s 137th World Championship
victory on the debut of the brand-new Subaru Impreza WRC2005 -
highlighting the perfect partnership between car and tyres.

Pirelli brought three different types of tyre to Mexico,
which the teams had to nominate in advance according to World Rally
Championship regulations. Subaru used the latest evolution of the P
Zero XR3 tyre on the hard surfaces of the opening day, before
switching to the more open pattern of the KP2 tyre in order to
disperse the loose gravel which characterized the remaining two
days. Peugeot used the KP2 throughout the rally, while Mitsubishi
made use of the more closed pattern K2 tyre on the unusually clean
surfaces of the opening leg

Fiorenzo Brivio, Pirelli’s Rally Manager, commented: ”
Petter’s use of the XR3 tyre on the opening day was instrumental in
helping him to a momentous victory. This tyre was traditionally
used for rough gravel events, but it has now been developed to be
equally effective on medium to fast gravel. The KP2 tyre was used
most often on this rally, and the fact that we have five cars in
the top eight places is the best testimony to its performance.
Congratulations to everybody!”

Rally Mexico (round 3 of 16) – Final classification

1 Solberg-Mills Subaru Impreza WRC 3h41m06.2s
2 Gronholm-Rautiainen Peugeot 307 WRC +34.5s
3 Martin-Park Peugeot 307 WRC +1m38.3s

4 Loeb-Elena Citroen Xsara WRC +3m51.1s
5 Rovanpera-Pietilainen Mitsubishi Lancer WRC +3m58.1s

6 Gardemeister-Honkanen Ford Focus WRC +4m05.6s
7 Warmbold-Orr Ford Focus WRC +6m01.0s
8 Panizzi-Panizzi Mitsubishi Lancer WRC +6m01.7s
9 Schwarz-Wicha Skoda Fabia WRC +8m05.3s
10 Duval-Prevot Citroen Xsara WRC +16m14.2s

Next round: Rally New Zealand (8-10 April, 2005)