Morry Taylor was re-elected to the Board of Titan International, as was reappointed as chairman and CEO. Shareholders re-elected Taylor to another three-year term on the board at their recent annual meeting. The board then re-elected Taylor as chairman and CEO, and also re-elected Erwin Billig as vice chairman, Kent Hackamack as vice president of finance and treasurer and Cheri Holley as vice president and secretary. (Tire Review)
Yokohama Rubber states it is establishing the position of president within its Tire Group. This role, which will be formally approved at a general meeting of shareholders on June 25, is to be undertaken by Hikomitsu Noji, who currently also holds the position of general manager of the company’s Tire Global Production Division. At the same time, Noji is being promoted from the position of director and corporate officer to that of director and managing corporate officer.
An Exmouth entrepreneur opened a new HiQ centre on 1 May, saying that “Having the backing of HiQ’s national brand is like working with a big brother. The network helps to open doors that you could never open as an independent retailer”. Martin Price, along with business partner Mike Pickering, has become a franchisee with the HiQ network and will now operate a centre in St Andrew’s Road. Price has 17 years experience in the tyre trade. He was recommended to the network by local franchisees Gary Thomson and Justin Roberton, who used to be Price’s area managers when he was a centre manager at HiQ Honiton six years ago. HiQ has stated that it intends to expand its network to 185 sites by the end of the year.
In Japan, only 1.4 per cent of executives are women, so Sakie Fukushima’s rise to become the first woman ever to be elected to Bridgestone’s board of directors is gaining plenty of attention, not least from CNN, which describes the move as “breaking the ‘bamboo ceiling’”.
During an ordinary session meeting held on April 21, Pirelli & C. SpA shareholders approved the company’s 2009 financial statements and agreed to the distribution of a dividend of 0.0145 euros per ordinary share and 0.0406 euros per savings share. The payment date will be 27 May 2010.
Amtel Group founder Sudhir Gupta has reportedly sold a so-called “good quality bungalow” to Sareen Gajendra Singh who owns Omni United (S) Pte Ltd. According to local Business Times newspaper, the $28 million (Singapore dollar) sale of the property in the Binjai Park area of Singapore accounts for more than 5 per cent of total first quarter property sales in the “good quality bungalow” sector of the local market. The paper reports that this segment of the domestic property market recorded sales of S$500 million in the first quarter of 2010.
Two Bridgestone Americas Tire Operations facilities and a retired BATO plant manager were each recognised for environmental initiatives by state agencies and environmental organizations recently, reports Tire Review. The North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources recognized the Wilson, North Carolina, plant as an environmental steward; the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control awarded the plant in Aiken County, South Carolina, the 2010 DHEC Earth Day Award for Large Businesses; and Ron Brooks, recently retired plant manager at the BATO facility in Warren County, Tennessee, was named Community Servant Leader of the Year at the Green Business Summit at Lipscomb University.
Former COO Richard J. Kramer has taken over as president and chief executive officer of The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company. Kramer, who becomes the 19th president since the company’s foundation in 1898, follows Robert J. Keegan who remains with the company as executive chairman.
Speaking at Goodyear’s 2010 Annual Shareholder Meeting, Kramer described the tyre industry as one of very few industries that has been and remains a growth industry after more than 100 years: “I am privileged to lead a team whose dedication to Goodyear and commitment to success is second to none,” he said, thanking Keegan and the board of directors for their confidence in electing him to lead the company.
Belgium’s Prime Minister Yves Leterme has paid Bridgestone Corporation’s headquarters in Tokyo as part of his April 7 to 10 visit to Japan. During the visit, Mr. Leterme met with Shoshi Arakawa, Bridgestone’s chairman of the Board, CEO and president, and several other company executives.
Christine Karbowiak, who currently serves in the role of executive vice president, Community and Corporate Relations and member of the Board of Directors at Bridgestone Americas (BSAM), has been appointed to the newly created position of BSAM chief administrative officer, effective April 1, 2010. In addition to her current Community and Corporate Relations’ responsibilities, which includes government, media and community relations as well as internal communications and overall brand oversight for the companies under the BSAM umbrella, Karbowiak will also be responsible for roles related to Environmental Affairs, Internal Audit, Safety and Industrial Hygiene, and Corporate Security.
Goodyear chairman and CEO Bob Keegan was presented with the University of Arizona Executive of the Year Award last week, reports Tire Review. Established in 1983 by the board of advisors of the university’s Eller College of Management, the Executive of the Year Award honors “individuals who exemplify executive qualities in private enterprise and public service,” the university said. Keegan was on hand 26 March to accept the award.
Titan International’s Board of Directors has approved a quarterly cash dividend of US$0.05 per common share for the first quarter of 2010. The cash dividend is payable April 15, 2010, to stockholders of record on March 31, 2010.
Titan International’s shareholders voted to double the company’s common shares offered on the stock market, reports Tire Review. The board revised Titan’s articles of incorporation to increase the number of common stock shares form 60 million to 120 million. Titan said 86 per cent of shareholders voted in favour of the move. Titan chairman and CEO Morry Taylor said the new shares will “allow the company additional flexibility for possible business opportunities.”
Bridgestone Americas has added to its collection of EPA SmartWay certified medium truck radials – with the first two P&D tyres approved, reports Tire Review.
Aad L Goudriaan has been appointed the new chief executive officer of Dutch emissions control equipment supplier Bosal, effective 1 April. He joins from DAF Trucks where he had been president. He has also performed managerial roles for DAF in logistics, manufacturing and sales since 1987.
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