Michelin Plant Makes 200 Millionth Radial

(Akron/Tire Review) There is one P225/50R17 Michelin Pilot HX MXM4 that will never see the open road – the 200 millionth tyre produced at Michelin North America’s (MNA) Greenville, S.C., US1 plant last week. And Richard Simmons, the man who helped build the plant’s very first tyre – a BR78R13 – in 1975, was on hand to help produce that landmark radial. According to MNA, some 100 employees at the plant have been at US1 since day one.

“It’s an incredible milestone that shows Michelin’s commitment to North American manufacturing and to this community,” said Clarence Kegler, plant manager. “Achievements like this come as the result of hard work day-in and day-out by dedicated employees who are committed to building the best tires on the road.”

According to MNA, the 200 million tyres produced at the US1 facility could:

• Wrap around the earth’s equator more than three times
• Equip every passenger car registered in South Carolina with new tyres each year for 26 years
• Enable a commute from the Sun to Saturn every day for the entire 31 years the facility has been operating.

MNA recently announced a $26 million to upgrade equipment at the plant, which employs 1,132 people.