Goodyear Receives Military Aircraft Tire Development Grant
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company will receive $2.25 million under the defense appropriations bill, passed last week by the U.S. Congress. The grant will fund research and development on the next generation of aircraft tires to be used on the nation’s new Navy and Air Force joint strike fighter jets.
Tower Automotive CEO Elected to Ashland Inc. Board
Kathleen Ligocki, president and CEO of Tower Automotive, has been elected to the board of directors of Ashland Inc.
Pep Boys Remodels Stores, Adds New Brands and Product Categories
Yesterday, Pep Boys celebrated grand re-openings at five newly remodeled stores in Jacksonville, Fla. The re-openings — which featured special retail and service promotions, ribbon-cutting ceremonies, remote radio broadcasts and a market-wide sweepstakes promotion — are part of a major “retail renewal” initiative that the company has undertaken.
Top Tire Industry Performers for 2003
Nokian Tyres, Hankook and Bandag were the tire industry’s top performers in 2003 in terms of earnings as a percentage of sales, while Goodyear, Titan International, Bridgestone Americas Holding and Alliance Tire anchored the bottom of the list.
ContiTech Creates Automotive Belt Trouble-Shooting Manual
ContiTech’s Power Transmission Group has developed and released a manual that gives installers, jobbers and distributors practical tips on storing, handling and mounting v-belts, multi-ribbed v-belts and timing belts.
MEMA Holds First Automotive Suppliers’ Legislative and Public Policy Summit
Automotive suppliers, members of Congress and federal agency heads met to discuss automotive safety, energy and the environment, international trade and soaring health care and pension costs during the “MEMA Legislative and Public Policy Summit: Advancing American Manufacturing,” held May 5-6 in Washington, D.C.
APRC Presents Third Annual Excellence in Automotive PR Awards
The winners of the third annual Excellence in Automotive Public Relations Awards were honored on April 21 at the Automotive Public Relations Council (APRC) Spring Conference held in Dearborn, Mich. APRC, a part of MEMA, is a professional organization for public relations practitioners in all segments of the automotive industry. The only award of its kind, the Excellence in Automotive Public Relations Award identifies public relations programs that have successfully addressed an automotive-related public relations issue with exemplary professional skill, creativity and resourcefulness.
Toyo to Raise Prices
Toyo Tire USA Corp. announced on Apr. 22 that it would increase prices on all consumer and commercial products. Toyo joins the ranks of other tiremakers, including Continental and Cooper, that announced price increases in the past few weeks.
National Tire Safety Week Participation Growing
The Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) has announced that participation in the third annual National Tire Safety Week has doubled this year, with more than 8,000 tire retail stores participating. As part of the campaign, tire retailers will distribute “Be Tire Smart” brochures produced by RMA. The Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) has announced that participation in the third annual National Tire Safety Week has doubled this year, with more than 8,000 tire retail stores participating. As part of the campaign, tire retailers will distribute “Be Tire Smart” brochures produced by RMA.
High-tech is Giving Drivers Another Set of Eyes on Highways
Advances in automotive technology are giving drivers another set of eyes. There is parking assistance that backs a car into a parking space, miniature cameras that help a driver see at night and in blinding sunlight, detection devices that sound an alert when a driver crosses into a lane without activating the turn signal or starts to get too close to a pedestrian.