Conti Product Manager Talks Trade Offs, Limitations, Tire Development
Barry Terzaken is product manager for light truck/SUV tires at Continental Tire the Americas. His role is part technical and part marketing, working internally and externally to communicate difficult technologies. Coming from a technical background, Terzaken also well understands the development process and how performance parameters are determined and instituted. TR: Let’s talk about iterations
Celebrating 50 Years, Climbing Up an Icon
Standing at the bottom of a metal ladder that’s slightly rusted and visibly curved, I wonder why am I doing this again? Then the Uniroyal representative manning the tire tells the small group clustered around him that more people have been struck by lightning than have climbed the iconic 80-foot Uniroyal tire. I may or
How Does a Goodyear Online Tire Sale Stack Up?
While media everywhere were distracted by Goodyear’s move to “next generation” silica, most paid no attention to the official launch of its online tire sales scheme. Chicagoland was chosen for the rollout, which rolled out May 5. So with a worthy Zip code in hand, we set off to see how the system worked….and, more
Nexen Plans to Succeed with Focus on Improved Brand Image
Kyle Roberts is director of marketing for Nexen Tire America Inc., the Diamond Bar, Calif.-based country headquarters of South Korean tiremaker Nexen Tire Corp. A newcomer to the tire industry, the 38-year-old Roberts spent many years in key marketing posts in other B2B/B2C businesses like office furniture. He is charged with boosting the company’s fortune
ChemChina, Pirelli Can Gain Much in Deal
Ren Jianxin, the 57-year-old chairman, referred to the $7.7 billion acquisition of Pirelli SpA , as “revolutionary” for ChemChina, almost as though it was the mouse that had swallowed the elephant. In fact, Ren’s ChemChina, which he created 30 years ago on a $1,600 government loan, is six times Pirelli’s size, certainly the elephant in
Selleck: Performance Standards, Mandatory Registration are Musts
At the recent Clemson University Tire Industry Conference (at which I was a guest speaker), Pete Selleck, chairman and CEO of Michelin North America was the keynoter. In his 20-minute talk, Selleck touched on a few key issues both he and MNA feel strongly about. On still-pending tire fuel efficiency ratings and labeling: “The consumer
Q&A: IndyCar driver Hélio Castroneves
At the North American Tire & Retread Expo in New Orleans last week, Tire Review sat down with award-winning IndyCar racecar driver Hélio Castroneves. In addition to his many racing accomplishments, Castroneves competed in the reality TV show Dancing With the Stars, winning the competition with partner Julianne Hough in the show’s fifth season. Castroneves
Of Mice, Men and Where the ChemChina-Pirelli Deal Will Take Us
Ren Jianxin, the 57-year-old chairman, referred to the $7.7 billion acquisition of Pirelli SpA, as “revolutionary” for ChemChina, almost as though it was the mouse that had swallowed the elephant. In fact, Ren’s ChemChina, which he created 30 years ago on a $1,600 government loan, is six times Pirelli’s size, certainly the elephant in most
Change Will Have to Come
It will take some time before the dust fully settles, before all of the final decisions are made and all of the appeals exhausted. And only then will we be able to fully understand all of the direct ramifications of the absurd countervailing and anti-dumping duties heaped on imported China-produced consumer tires. Trade protection is
Interview: Federal Tire Corp. Making Its Case
Federal Tire Corp. was founded a little over 60 years ago by Chi San Ma, in Chungli City, in the Zhongli District of Taiwan, with a population of just over 380,000. Despite its size, the Zhongli District is considered the heart of Taiwan’s industrial economy. Federal Tire is a dichotomy. On one hand, it claims
Disorder in Our House
It was totally ironic that Warren Zevon’s “Disorder in the House” was playing in the background when I started piecing this column together. It was hard not to think about this whole thing, especially when Warren warbled: “The floodgates are open We’ve let the demons loose. The big guns have spoken And we’ve fallen for
Chinese Tire Factories Coming to U.S., Says Major Distributor
[Editor’s Note: Among its many tire brands, Houston-based Horizon Tire Corp. represents a number of Chinese tire brands in the U.S. market, including Crosswind, produced by Shandong Linglong Tyre Co. This puts Horizon Tire close to the action when it comes to the impacts felt by the recent posting of countervailing and anti-dumping duties on
