Hankook Tire was named a GM Supplier of the Year by General Motors during a virtual ceremony honoring the recipients of the company’s 28th annual Supplier of the Year awards on June 24.

During the event, GM recognized 116 of its best suppliers from 15 countries that have consistently exceeded GM’s expectations, created outstanding value or introduced innovations to the company. The awards ceremony was originally scheduled as a live-event to be held in March, but was postponed due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The recognition is for supplier performance in the 2019 calendar year.

“Our suppliers play a key role in delivering the products, services and experiences our customers deserve – and these award-winning suppliers went above and beyond our expectations,” said Shilpan Amin, GM vice president, Global Purchasing and Supply Chain. 

“We also believe it’s important at this point in time to thank our entire supply base for their efforts the last few months to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19,” added Amin. “Not only have we been able to safely restart our manufacturing operations, our suppliers played a key role in assisting our initiatives to increase the supply of ventilators and personal protection equipment (PPE) for frontline health care workers to help save lives and keep communities safe.”

The Supplier of the Year award winners were chosen by a global team of GM purchasing, engineering, quality, manufacturing and logistics executives. Winners were selected based on performance criteria in Product Purchasing, Global Purchasing and Manufacturing Services, Customer Care and Aftersales, and Logistics. 

“Hankook is honored to be recognized by GM as a Supplier of the Year,” said Hyunjun Cho, Head of Hankook Tire OE Division. “We are grateful to have the opportunity to build top-quality, innovative tires for GM products, and look forward to a longstanding relationship together.”