(Akron/Tire Review) The Tire Industry Association (TIA) has partnered with Australia’s Klinge & Co. Pty Ltd. to develop an earthmover tyre technician training and certification programme. The deal was announced at TIA’s recent OTR Tire Conference.
(Akron/Tire Review) Cooper Tire & Rubber Co.’s Mickey Thompson brand division has hired Carl Robinson to the new position of wheel product manager. Robinson had been Weld Wheel Industries Inc.’s director of motorsports and president of Race Wheel Enterprises Inc. in Dania, Fla. Robinson has also helped develop various testing devices for wheel and tire assemblies and is a past member of the S.F.I. Wheel Certification Committee, Cooper said.
Yokohama’s Hangzhou Yokohama Tire Co. Ltd. Chinese subsidiary has secured ISO 14001 certification. The company achieved the standard in January, Yokohama reported. Established in December 2001 and financed by Yokohama Rubber (90 per cent) and YHI Holdings Pte, Ltd (10 per cent), Hangzhou Yokohama Tire manufactures and sells radial tyres for passenger cars.
Xiamen-based Shengjeng Machinery Co, Ltd was founded in 2000. Since then, the rubber mould manufacturer’s customer base has swollen to include well-known companies such as Chengshin (the maker of Maxxis tyres). The company employs more than 150 people and reportedly turns over $1,000,000 each year. 40 per cent of the moulds they produce are for export.
More than 200 dealerships across the country are now certified to replace run-flat tyres, as part of Bridgestone’s comprehensive Run-Flat Certificate Programme.
The scheme comprises of free training for tyre dealers and fitters. To date 203 dealerships and in excess of 600 UK fitters and store managers have attained certification, and more than 400 machines have already been inspected and accredited by Bridgestone.
Rome, Georgia-based Pirelli Tire North America (PTNA) has received ISO 9001:2000 accreditation and ISO/TS 16949:2002 technical specification. Guy Mannino, PTNA’s president, was informed at the recent SEMA Show in Las Vegas that the company had been awarded the coveted certification.
Calling it the “next generation of SUV tyre technology,” Goodyear is introducing the new 4×4 Fortera(R) tyre, featuring TripleTred Technology. The tyre seeks to “respond to SUV drivers’ demands for confidence and security while driving on rain-soaked, snowy or dry roads,” according to Todd Hershberger, Goodyear’s marketing manager, light-truck tyres.
Bridgestone continued its programme of preparing First Stop dealers for a rise in run-flat replacement fitments by inviting them to test the technology at a specially designed event in Bedford.
Dealers were given the chance to drive BMW 3-Series cars fitted with original-equipment Bridgestone Potenza RE050 RFT run-flat tyres around a track designed to simulate a variety of different road conditions, in order to test the tyres for themselves.
An American law firm has filed a federal class-action lawsuit against Bridgestone Firestone North American Tires LLC and Bridgestone Firestone Corp, seeking damages and the recall of 30 million Firestone Steeltex tyres the firms says are defective. The action, filed last week in Los Angeles Federal Court by Lisoni & Lisoni, involves Firestone Steeltex R4S, R4SII and A/T tyres, local newspaper, The Whittier Daily News reported.
Fulda’s high performance tyre, Attiro, has topped the medium/large car category in the recent Which? tyre tests.
ArvinMeritor Inc has been awarded Q1 certification from Ford Motor Company. The award, which was presented by Terry Revord, Ford North American Supplier Technical Assistance Engineer, recognises Ford suppliers who demonstrate excellence in product quality, on-time delivery and outstanding customer service.
When presenting the award, Revord said: “The Q1 award symbolises that ArvinMeritor Chickasha is among the very best suppliers to Ford Motor Company, with the commitment and processes in place to consistently provide the highest quality parts to our customers.”
“We are very proud to receive Q1 certification today,” added Paul Rogers, director of operations for the Chickasha facility. “Our employees have worked very hard for almost a year to meet Ford’s stringent requirements to be certified Q1. We value our relationship with Ford and look forward to supplying them with superior ride control products for many years to come.”
The Chickasha facility has more than 650 employees and manufactures automotive shock absorbers and MacPherson struts. The Q1 celebration included a cookout served to employees by facility management.
Hayes Lemmerz International has announced that all facilities in its Brake and Powertrain Components Group have achieved ISO/TS 16949:2002 (with design) Certification, from the International Automotive Task Force (IATF), a worldwide consortium of automotive manufacturers and trade associations. The group’s systems were audited and certified by Smithers Quality Assessments Inc. (SQA), an independent accredited registrar. ISO/TS 16949 is an international quality management system that aligns existing American (QS-9000), German (VDA 6.1), French (EAQF) and Italian (AVSQ) automotive quality systems into a single standard, thereby eliminating the need for multiple certifications.
Goodyear Philippines Inc. has been recommended to receive the latest global quality certification standard, ISO/TS 16949:2002. The standard specifies quality system requirements for design, development, production and installation of automotive-related products. Goodyear Philippines is the first of the company’s factories in the ASEAN region to achieve the new standard.
Goodyear’s North American Tire region has been recommended for certification to ISO 14001 environmental standard. The standard requires an organisation to identify and reduce its impact on the environment beyond legal requirements.
American Racing Equipment has been awarded ISO 14001 certificate of registration for its environmental management system. ISO 14001 provides a framework for managing environmental impact, similar to the way in which the ISO 9000 standard addresses issues of product or service quality. The International Standards Organization (ISO) awards the 14001 certification to companies whose environmental management systems conform to specified requirements and demonstrate a serious commitment to ensuring that company operations do not harm the environment.
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