ArvinMeritor Adds Two to Board of Directors
ArvinMeritor announced that Steven Rothmeier, chairman and CEO of Great Northern Capital, and Andrew Schindler, chairman of Reynolds American Inc., have been elected to the ArvinMeritor board of directors.
WIX Filters Presented Vendor Partner Award by Parts Depot
Representatives from WIX Filters were presented with the 2004 Vendor Partner Award for Best Fill Rate at the annual Parts Depot conference that took place Nov. 6 in Roanoke, Va. Rollie Olson, chairman of Parts Depot, presented the award.
Nextel and NASCAR Announce Largest NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series Points Fund
Nextel Communications and NASCAR yesterday announced that a record points fund of more than $24 million will be distributed among the top 25 drivers in the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup series at the end of the 2004 season. The payout, a component of the sponsorship agreement Nextel entered into last year with NASCAR, guarantees each of the top 11 drivers at least $1 million for the first time in the sport’s history.
NHTSA Administrator to Join RMA in December
The Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) has announced that Scott Brenner will join the trade group in early December as vice president of government affairs. Brenner currently serves as associate administrator for external affairs with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) where he is responsible for the content and conduct of the agency’s communications with Congress, Federal and State agencies; media and stakeholders.
Ray Motes Recognized for Lifetime Achievement in Drag Racing
Longtime drag racer Ray Motes was recently honored with the Lifetime Achievement in Drag Racing Award by the Heartland Hot Rod Association. The ceremony was held earlier this fall at the Great Bend Kansas Dragway, home of the first National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) sanctioned event in 1955.
Twenty University of the Aftermarket Classes Available Online
Committed to offering professional development opportunities to its members, Northwood University’s University of the Aftermarket has announced that members can take classes online at any time of day or night. Twenty courses are now available — from programs designed to introduce new hires to the complex automotive aftermarket industry to courses on improving management, supervision and leadership skills. All of the online courses qualify for University of the Aftermarket continuing education credits (CEU).
GPC Declares Regular Quarterly Dividend; Announces Officer Change
The board of directors of Genuine Parts Co. declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of 30 cents per share on the company’s common stock. The dividend will be payable Jan. 3, 2005 to shareholders of record Dec. 10.
Lear Announces Executive Appointments
Fortune 500 automotive interiors company Lear Corp. announced the following organizational changes this week. Jim Brackenbury, has been named president – Mexican Operations, succeeding Dino de Falco who is retiring. Frank Orsini succeeds Brackenbury as president of the DaimlerChrysler Division and Dan Golles replaces Orsini as vice president – GM Truck Group. Brackenbury, Orsini and Americo Nesti, president – South American Operations whose position remains unchanged, report directly to Douglas DelGrosso, president and COO – Americas. Golles will report to Frank Sovis, president of Lear’s GM Division.
Hankook Announces Price Increases
Hankook Tire America Corp. announced that it is raising prices on its full line of passenger, high performance, light truck and medium truck tires by 3 to 5 percent.
Hayden Automotive Issues Second Notice for Catalog Recall
Four Seasons, a division of Standard Motor Products, has issued a second notice to the industry about a recall of certain current automotive parts catalogs. Hayden Automotive, a Four Seasons company, recently settled a legal battle against U.S. Motor Works and C.P. Auto Products, both suppliers of the Derale brand of cooling products. The legal proceedings involved Hayden’s efforts to protect the copyright in its fan clutch catalogs. As part of the settlement, U.S Motor Works and C.P. Auto Products have agreed to return any catalogs, both print and electronic, that contain fan clutch sections, as referred to in the legal proceedings.
Visteon to Offer Salaried Staff Up to a Year’s Pay
Visteon Corp. offered white-collar employees up to a year’s salary if they accepted a voluntary buyout and left the financially struggling auto supplier. In an e-mail to 8,300 salaried employees Monday, the Van Buren Township, Mich., company explained its latest effort to cut costs by eliminating an unspecified number of jobs. Workers who quit will receive 1 1/2 weeks of their base salary for each year of service. The minimum payment would be 12 weeks and the maximum payment 52 weeks.
Snap-on Announces Resignation of CEO
Snap-on yesterday announced the resignation of its chairman, president and CEO Dale Elliott, effective immediately. The company’s board of directors has elected Jack Michaels, recently retired chairman and CEO of HNI Corp., to fill the position. Michaels has been a Snap-on director since 1998. When asked, the company declined to provide a specific reason for Elliot’s resignation, however, Richard Secor, a spokesperson for Snap-on, said the resignation was not about a change in strategy, but rather about stepping up the pace of growth. Elliot was with Snap-on for nine years.