Kumho Opens First US Facility in Georgia
Kumho Tire Co. celebrated the opening its first U.S. production facility in Macon, Ga., on May 2. The celebration including a ribbon cutting, plant tours and tree planting ceremony. Several local, state, and federal officials, as well as Kumho executives were on hand for the ceremony. “North America is home to one of the world’s
Yokohama Celebrates TBR Factory Opening
What does it take to build a tire factory? For Yokohama Rubber Co.’s first green field factory in the U.S., it’s taken just over 24 months and tireless teamwork with the state of Mississippi, as well as construction and utility partners. Over the course of two years more than 535,000 cubic yards of cut and
Making Application-Specific Suspension Specification, Axles Choices
Improving fuel economy and reducing maintenance, along with weight savings to help boost hauling capacity, remain the focus of axle and suspension system design initiatives. In particular, 6×2 configurations can address these needs. Operations best served by 6×2 configurations are those with variable loads. Applications include tank and bulk haulers, beverage and grocery fleets, refuse
Rethinking the Tire Store
Here’s a challenge for you: Close your eyes and think about your retail tire space from a consumer’s eyes. Now what do you see? Is it a typical store? Does it follow the same overdone formula with a Great Wall of China service counter, dusty tire displays along the front, poor lighting and a waiting
Interview With Ted Hughes, Mahle Aftermarket Marketing Chief
Ted Hughes was named head of marketing in North America for Mahle Aftermarket Inc. in February 2011. Hughes is responsible for promotions, public relations, advertising, motorsports programs and all electronic and Web-based activities. He recently celebrated 15 years with the company, having served in various marketing roles since graduating in 2000 from Eastern Michigan University,
Emerging OE Tire Trends
Corporate Average Fuel Economy – better known as ‘CAFE’ – regulations were first enacted in the U.S. in 1975, in the wake of the panic-inducing Arab Oil Embargo (Google that for details). CAFE standards are still with us today, and are intended to improve the average fuel economy of cars and light trucks, and the
RFID: Today, Tomorrow, Yesterday
In the early days of World War II, both sides were using radar to warn of approaching planes. At first, there was no way for either side to tell enemy planes from “friendlies.” This deficiency led to some major mistakes; like when an Army radar in Hawaii spotted the Japanese planes on their way to
Conti’s Williams Addresses Fleet Tire Trends
Continental Tire’s executive vice president for truck tires in the Americas, Paul Williams, addressed the state of the industry for the next decade during a press conference at the Mid-America Trucking Show. Looking forward, Williams said Continental’s emphasis on research and development allows the company to not just respond to, but anticipate market demands. He
Award Spotlights Contidrom’s Test Facilities
The Contidrom test facility operated by Continental near its Hannover headquarters in Germany has been named ‘Proving Ground of the Year 2013’ by Automotive Testing Technology International magazine. The 12-person judging panel presiding over the 2013 awards are said to have been particularly impressed by the Automated Indoor Braking Analyzer (AIBA) facility, which opened at
Yokohama Mississippi Groundbreaking
Yokohama Tire Corp. broke ground on a medium truck tire manufacturing plant in West Point, Miss., on Sept. 23. The facility is the first manufacturing plant the tiremaker has built from the ground up in the U.S. Hikomitsu Noji, president and CEO of YTC, joked the event was like a “wedding” in the partnership between