Michelin North America today marked the opening of its newest plant in North America, a 135,000-square-foot facility in Piedmont, S.C. The facility – the first Michelin plant dedicated to the production of its airless Tweel products – represents Michelin’s 10th manufacturing facility in South Carolina and the 16th in the U.S. The company will invest about $50 million in the new plant.
“The Tweel being built here in South Carolina is yet another dramatic example of Michelin’s long-standing commitment to breakthrough innovation,” said Pete Selleck, MNA chairman and president. “The Tweel concept was born in Greenville, S.C., and now the Tweel will be manufactured right here in the Greenville area to satisfy a growing commercial market.”
According to Michelin, the new plant gives the tiremaker the ability to boost output of its Michelin X Tweel SSL skid-steer tires and begin production of the new Michelin X Tweel Turf as original equipment for the John Deere ZTRAK 900 Series line of zero-turn commercial mowers.
“Differentiating us from competitors, the Tweel airless radial tire is the industry’s first commercialized airless radial solution and verifies Michelin’s leadership for the next generation of mobility,” said Ralph Dimenna, head of Michelin Tweel Technologies. “The Tweel airless radial tire enables Michelin to enter new markets and expand its reach in existing business segments within the low-speed application category. The industry is hungry for solutions contributing to productivity, safety and bottom lines. Serving our customers is at the center of our strategy for success.”
Gov. Nikki Haley was not able to participate in the grand opening, but sent her best wishes.
“Michelin has been a global leader for over 125 years, and we are proud to say they have been part of the South Carolina family for over 40 years,” said Haley. “Michelin is a leader in the tire industry, and they are innovative in their product development, which continues to put South Carolina on the world stage.”
At this stage, the technology will only be a solution for low-speed application categories. Answering questions on Tweel technology’s adoption in passenger vehicles, Michelin’s Selleck had this to say:
“One day, I can tell you the Tweel may even be on automobiles. But there is more exhaustive researchand testing to make sure that it is right. Right now we do not know when Tweel tires will be on passenger cars. We do know that the low speed applications are just the beginning. And we do know Michelin will always be the first. Michelin engineers can imagine that in some developing economies where bad roads dictate slow moving passenger cars, Tweel tires may be the answer and that could lead the way to broader passenger car applications.”
