Plastics/Rubber
Not 'Tired' Of Yokohama
June 19, 2013 10:30 am | by Nathan Gregory, The Commercial Dispatch | News | CommentsCustomers of George's Tire in West Point are specifically ordering Yokohama's car and light truck tires, said owner Todd Glusenkamp. Glusenkamp said he has seen an overall sales increase of about 20 percent to 30 percent since he started distributing Yokohama tires just over a month ago.
Fiat: Supplier Delays Will Force Shutdowns
June 13, 2013 7:46 am | News | CommentsItalian carmaker Fiat says it will temporarily stop production at some European car plants in the coming days due to insufficient deliveries of plastic parts. Fiat said in a statement Wednesday that more than 5,500 vehicles can't be completed due to missing components from the Italian supplier Selmat, creating an "unmanageable" backlog.
Cooper CEO: Buyer Committed To U.S. Operations
June 12, 2013 1:55 pm | by John Seewer, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe head of Ohio's Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. says a $2.2 billion deal that puts the company under new ownership won't result in the closings of its three U.S. manufacturing plants. Cooper chief executive Roy Armes says India's Apollo Tyres Ltd. also plans to retain Cooper's management operation in Ohio.
3-D Printing Goes From Sci-Fi Fantasy To Reality
June 3, 2013 7:49 am | by Martha Mendoza, AP National Writer | News | CommentsUsers are able to make just about anything they like: iPad stands, guitars, jewelry, even guns. But experts warn this cool innovation could soon turn controversial — because of safety concerns but also the potential for the technology to alter economies that rely on manufacturing.
Yokohama: Higher Tire Demand Calls For U.S. Plant
April 29, 2013 7:15 pm | News | CommentsExecutives with Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. say they will build a new tire plant in Mississippi because they see a global supply shortage for tires. The company plans to invest $300 million, hiring 500 people, in a first phase, and could invest $1.2 billion, hiring 2,000 people, over time.
Goodyear, Union Begin Contract Talks For 6 Plants
April 29, 2013 1:49 pm | by Thomas J. Sheeran, Associated Press | News | CommentsWith the contract between the Akron-based Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and United Steelworkers of America expiring July 27, both sides have plenty of time and indicated the talks would be in recess until June while they evaluate each other's opening positions.
Manufacturing Revival Radio: Mike Anderson And TenCate Protective Fabrics
April 16, 2013 9:22 am | by Manufacturing Revival Radio | Podcasts | CommentsJoined in the studio today by Mike Anderson, the Vice President of Operations of TenCate Protective Fabrics. TenCate Protective Fabrics develops and produces the most comprehensive range of proven, high performance fabrics used to make protective clothing. They serve the first responder, military (currently in theater) and industrial markets with protective fabrics.
Bridgestone To Set Up First Tire Plant In Russia
April 15, 2013 2:31 pm | News | CommentsBridgestone Corp. has said it plans to establish a car tire plant in Ulyanovsk in western Russia -- its first tire production base in the country -- by the end of June, aiming to build production capacity for around 12,000 tires per day in 2018.
French Workers Sue Goodyear In Ohio To Save Jobs
April 10, 2013 8:11 am | News | CommentsThe class-action lawsuit was filed in Summit County Common Pleas Court against Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. on behalf of workers at its factory in Amiens, France. Robert Gary, an attorney who worked on the filing, said the labor dispute was taken to court in Ohio because corporate decisions affecting French workers were made in Akron.
Goodyear To Build New Blimp Fleet
March 24, 2013 8:55 pm | News | CommentsGoodyear is building the first of a new generation of its iconic blimps. The tire maker said Friday that the blimp built in Germany by ZLT Zeppelin Luftschifftechnik (looft-shif-TEHK'-nik) will be assembled at Goodyear's Wingfoot Lake Hangar near the company's headquarters in Akron, Ohio.
Bridgestone Workers Protest Against Plant Closure In Italy
March 15, 2013 12:08 pm | News | CommentsIn the demonstration lasting about two hours, the employees called for continued operation of the passenger car tire-making factory, which Bridgestone Corp. said earlier this month will close in the first half of 2014 due to deterioration of the facility's profitability and changing market conditions.
Italy Protests Bridgestone Tire Plant Closure
March 7, 2013 2:14 pm | News | CommentsItaly's labor minister is criticizing a decision by the Bridgestone tire company to close a plant in southern Italy as "serious and without reason." Corrado Passera protested in a letter to the Japanese company, released by the labor ministry Thursday, that the company had failed to work with authorities to find another solution.
Clashes At Goodyear Protest Of Factory Closure
March 7, 2013 7:37 am | News | CommentsBurning the very fruit of their labor, workers from Goodyear clashed with police outside the tire-maker's French headquarters in a last-ditch attempt to save their jobs. Goodyear has been trying to restructure or close its plant in northern France for five years, saying tires made there no longer sell.
In Grim French North, Worker Unrest Looks To Last
February 26, 2013 8:11 am | News | CommentsWorkers at a dying French tire factory who've become the butt of American jokes are staging a day of last-ditch protests to try to save their jobs. The protests Tuesday at the Goodyear plant in the northern city of Amiens come after efforts to find a new buyer for the struggling plant have fizzled.
U.S. CEO Ridicules French Workers
February 20, 2013 1:51 pm | News | CommentsMaurice Taylor, CEO of tire-maker Titan International, wrote a letter to French Industrial Renewal Minister Arnaud Montebourg to explain why his company wouldn't buy an ailing Goodyear factory in Amiens. The ministry confirmed the letter as authentic however attempts to obtain comment from Titan have been unsuccessful.
CEO: $500M Plastics Plant Coming To W.Va.
February 13, 2013 5:58 pm | by The Associated Press | News | CommentsA formal announcement could be made by month's end about plans for a $500 million plastics plant near Wheeling, the CEO of Texas-based Appalachian Resins said. James Cutler told the State Journal (http://bit.ly/VSUiB1) the plan includes a small ethane cracker, a plant that extracts some liquids from wet natural gas to make the chemical feedstock ethylene.
Alpla Chooses Ky. For Manufacturing Operations, Creating 72 Jobs
February 12, 2013 4:49 pm | by Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce | News | CommentsThe Bowling Green Area Chamber of Commerce announced today that Alpla, Inc., an Austrian-based plastic packaging company, plans to establish manufacturing operations in Bowling Green, Kentucky, creating 72 new, full-time jobs and investing more $22.4 million in the Commonwealth.
Tire Workers Confront French Police Over Layoffs
February 12, 2013 8:07 am | News | CommentsWorkers have fired flares and French police have sprayed tear gas in a standoff over layoffs at a French plant for U.S. tiremaker Goodyear. The protest Tuesday comes amid a slowdown in Europe's car industry that has hurt automakers and their suppliers across the continent.
Tenn. Federal Secrets Case To Get Resentencing
February 5, 2013 8:07 am | News | CommentsThe decision means that Howley and Roberts, former engineers with Wyko Tire Technology, may face stiffer prison time in the corporate espionage case. Both men were sentenced to house confinement and probation. It's not clear whether either will appeal the decision.
Chemical Activity Barometer Up For Sixth Consecutive Month
January 25, 2013 12:13 pm | News | CommentsThe American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) monthly Chemical Activity Barometer (CAB) released today showed sustained growth, notching a 0.4 percent gain over December 2012 on a three month moving average (3MMA) basis. The year over year 3MMA showed a solid 2.8 percent gain over January 2012.
APS Launches Second Line Of Viprene TPVs
January 7, 2013 2:18 pm | Product Releases | CommentsOnly weeks after introducing the firm’s first general purpose grades of Viprene® thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPVs), Alliance Polymers and Services LLC is offering new Viprene P (high performance) thermoplastic vulcanizates. TPVs are compounded with a polyolefin phase with a cross-linked EPDMK phase which give products rubber-like performance for demanding applications.
Floor-Level Cabinet Oven From Grieve
January 2, 2013 11:50 am | Product Releases | CommentsThis Grieve oven has 4” insulated walls, 2” insulated floor, top-mounted heating chamber, Type 304, 2B stainless steel interior, stainless steel exterior with #4 brushed finish, double doors front and rear, plus a special sealing flange to allow the oven to seal into a wall between a cleanroom and the fabrication area in the customer’s facility.
Japanese Firm Pays $45M In U.S. Import Cheating Case
December 18, 2012 8:04 am | by Emery P. Dalesio, Associated Press | News | CommentsA Japanese producer of violet coloring for inks and plastics is paying more than $45 million to settle allegations it falsely described where the products were made to avoid U.S. import duties on Chinese and Indian makers, the Justice Department said Monday.
The Plant Of The Future: 3D Printing
December 10, 2012 4:16 pm | Articles | Comments3D printing is a technology that has, for more than a decade, seen inroads mostly in the hobbyist community. It’s expensive and slow, but is capable of producing items that are difficult — if not impossible — to replicate with more traditional processes. But 3D printing could have a real place in the future of manufacturing.
Ky. Plastics Plant Slated To Close
December 10, 2012 8:24 am | News | CommentsMilwaukee-based Johnson Controls plans to close a central Kentucky plastics manufacturing plant early next year, potentially putting nearly 400 employees out of work. The Courier-Journal reports that a mass layoff notice filed with the Kentucky Office of Employment & Training on Friday says up to 392 workers could be cut in February when the facility in Louisville closes.
