Technical Tire Consulting: Performance has it Roots in the Process

TTC stands for Technical Tire Consulting, a team of specialists with many years’ experience in the field of tyre manufacturing and familiarity with the latest technologies. During their time in the business the consultants have been responsible for building world class manufacturing facilities, such as those producing drop centre tyres, and have knowledge of all aspects of the business at their fingertips.

The four consultants behind TTC include Uwe Ramcke, who was previously engaged in research and development at Continental and later in production, marketing and most recently in the area of factory planning. Ramcke left Continental after 24 years with the company as, he explains, he wanted to start on something new. Joining Ramcke at TTC are other ex-Conti men, including the chemist Dr. Helmut Kreuser and Carsten Boltze, formerly a member of the German manufacturer’s tyre development and testing department. A recent addition to the TTC team is Dr. Wolfgang Holzbach, a top-notch plant specialist who recent took early retirement after 27 years’ with Continental.
 
The team’s loyalty to their former employer is still noticeable during conversation. And the feeling is mutual – when visiting Continental one can still hear a note of regret when the men’s departure from the company is talked about. They are, it seems, remembered as characters that never gave in without a fight. Yet although this affinity for each other remains, for TTC today is a dawn of a brand new era.

TTC offers consulting services that may not at first glance seem absolutely essential, as they appear similar to those offered free by every machinery supplier upon the purchase of their equipment. But appearances can be deceptive.  The reality is that even though more or less everything imaginable, including the recipe for compound, can be committed to paper, performance is in fact dependant upon the process in place. Were this not the case, buying the world’s finest machinery would be all that was needed in order to open the doors on a new world-class tyre making facility. This is patently not so, and that is a good thing for TTC, whose services are now in demand.

The automotive industry in up and coming developing countries requires suppliers in the local region, and is reliant upon the setup of such businesses as imports are hindered by taxes and duties. It also makes no economic sense to produce cars using parts sourced from the furthest corners of the world.

TTC serves as a valued partner during the construction of a new tyre facility. It can deliver a general layout for the factory and take local conditions into account so as to adjust and conform the overall concept to meet specific requirements. At the moment the consultants are working on a demonstration project in Russia. A factory for truck drop centre tyres, considered to be probably the most modern and best in the world, is to be built. During the economic slowdown last year the project was delayed, yet despite this it seems likely to be finished ahead of schedule. While TTC cannot and does not wish to do and offer everything itself, the experts know exactly where the crunchpoints are and how, how quickly and by what means mistakes can be eliminated and the process flow optimised. Using this knowledge they concentrate on harmonising the process flow.

Performance always stems from the process, and it is very important to keep this in mind. The consultants’ former employer also operated factories with more or less identical equipment and with the same machinery, yet nevertheless the performance at factory A was not comparable with that at factory B. Many small individual details need to be attended to in order to take advantage of a factory’s optimal performance. The experts at TTC know this from their own hard-earned experience, gained when their former employer acquired other tyre manufacturers and set about incorporating their facilities into its production network.

The construction of an entire new factory is not an everyday event, and TTC also offers problem solving assistance in many areas. Should a tyre manufacturer wish its factory to gain certification, for example, but fails the process, it would be highly risky to repeat the procedure without calling on outside help. The danger of failing on a second attempt, particularly when facing time pressures, would be too great.
 
A range of other individual modules are offered by TTC, such as those relating to energy consumption. Reducing energy costs is a high priority issue worldwide. Countries such as Russia have some catching up to do in this area and by focusing on energy cost reduction stand to realise immense savings. Further individual modules include market analysis, the creation of specification documents and the development of new tyre ranges. This last mentioned topic includes the development of treads that reduce road noise, improve wet condition braking and, perhaps most importantly, optimise rolling resistance. The phrase “one stop shop” sums up nicely what TTC has to offer.

TTC sees itself as a neutral and independent consultancy that does not enter into licensing agreements with customers or commit itself into long contractual obligations. The company’s intention is to accompany the customer on the “five steps to success” – cost reduction, increasing productivity, the newest technology, acceptance as an automotive industry partner and the development of competitive product lines – and then help the customer realise these points.