The Uniroyal Giant Tire Is 50
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93 Henderson Street, Riverview, NB E1B 4B6 Telephone: (506) 386-4306 • Fax: (506) 387-3987 Email: [email protected] www.atda.ca Vol. 17 No.1 Summer Edition June, 2015 A landmark tire: The Uniroyal giant tire is 50 A landmark of a Detroit suburb wheel carried more than 2 million celebrated its 50th anniversary this riders, including dignitaries and week. The giant Uniroyal tire located celebrities, including Jackie Kennedy adjacent to I-94 in Allen Park, Mich., is and the Shah of Iran. The company also billed as the largest tire model says that Pete Selleck, chairman and ever built. president of Michelin North America Inc., also rode the Ferris wheel. The tire has stood as an important symbol of Uniroyal’s 123-year heritage The structure was designed by Shreve, for half a century, Ray Fischenich, Lamb and Harmon, the same architec- Uniroyal brand manager and country tural firm that designed the Empire operations marketing manager, told State Building. members of the Automotive Press Association (APA) at a luncheon held When the fair ended in 1965, the tire underneath the tire. was shipped by rail in 188 sections to Detroit. It was reassembled in four Fischenich also took time to explain months and anchored in concrete and Uniroyal’s position in the marketplace steel off I-94 at the Uniroyal now, as one of the brands currently sales office. being sold by Michelin North America Inc. It is the largest tire model ever built, standing 80 feet tall and weighing 12 Uniroyal now competes in the third tons. tier tire segment, according to Fischenich. He said this segment is the The tire’s interior is 120,576 cubic feet, largest segment of the tire market and and the tread measures half-a-foot also is the fastest-growing segment. deep. Fischenich told APA members that this segment is for the budget-minded The Giant Uniroyal Tire was given its consumer who looks for a specific first update in 1994 with neon lighting price point. and a new hubcap added to the tire’s body. In 1998 it was modified again, He added that Uniroyal looks to this time with a giant nail embedded partner with dealers on three things to promote Uniroyal’s self-sealing – pricing, supply and coverage. On NailGard passenger tire. a positive note for tire dealers, Uniroyal tires will be at supply levels not seen in years, said Fischenich. Uniroyal will be expand- The biggest renovation occurred in 2003, when Uniroyal invested ing its Tiger Paw GTZ tire line with six new sizes this December and nearly $1 million to refresh the landmark as part of Detroit’s I-94 will launch ten new sizes of its Tiger Paw Touring line in March 2016. corridor revitalization effort. Those updates included replacing 30 steel beams inside the tire, installing asphalt and storm drains, As for the giant Uniroyal tire, here are some fun facts, according to painting the exterior, applying reflective lettering, and completing the company. The tire originally was constructed as a Ferris wheel other structural improvements — all made to ensure the longevity for the 1964-1965 World’s Fair in New York. The 96-passenger Ferris of the tire. Atlantic Tire Dealers Association Elected Officers & Directors 2014- 2016 Past President Stephen Quigley President Shane Sutherland 1st Vice President Fen Mabey 2nd Vice President Earle Atkinson Directors Ernie Titus Rod Creaser Chad Singleton Directors to the T.D.A.C. Shane Sutherland, Frank Connor Executive Director - Frank Connor Editor - Frank Connor Is there a tire sales and service company in your area that is not a member of The Atlantic Tire Dealers Association? If so, please advise the executive director. Also, we would appreciate it if you would contact such companies to advise them of the advantages of becoming a member. Atlantic Tire Dealers Association NEWSLETTER ADVERTISING RATES One full color page : $450.00 ATDA WELCOMES NEW MEMBERS OK Tire 120 McLean Ave. Hartland, NB Jeff Foster B-Line Equipment & Tire Supplies Inc. 32 Rayborn Crescent St-Albert, AB Mike Bolduc 2 3 Carlisle Canadian ad_REV_10_2014_Layout 1 10/23/14 3:47 PM Page 1 Lawn,Garden and Golf Tires ATV/UTV Tires Agriculture/Construction Tires Trailer Tires Skid Steer Tires carlisletire.com ©2014 CTP Transportation Products, LLC 4 Facts section: Tire shipments West Coast port problems The Commission gave preliminary approval “to a cap of four North American container port demand has increased days for parking or dockage fees charged by the port to ships significantly the last three years. Record tire imports have at berth,” according to the Port of Long Beach. “Due to delays added to the congestion problems at ports, especially in Los in cargo movement, ships have needed to stay at berth longer Angeles and Long Beach, Calif. and have had to pay higher fees. With the dockage relief, the The Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners recently Port would forgo an estimated $150,000 in fees by allowing approved measures to relieve congestion. It also petitioned longer stays without charge during stays from Dec. 1, 2014, the Federal Maritime Commission “for permission to work in through March, 31, 2015.” concert with the neighboring Port of Los Angeles.” The Port The development of a new generation of “mega ships” and a of Los Angeles also wants to work together. shortage of “truck trailer frames used to haul cargo containers” have been partially blamed for causing bottlenecks at ports Chart 7 around the country. Increased trade, although desired, has WORLD LEADERS IN NEW TIRE SALES simply exacerbated the problems. (fiscal year 2014; in billions of U.S. dollars1) The growth of e-retailing, or e-tailing Tire company 2014 2013 There is no question retail tire sales over the Internet are Bridgestone Corp. $29.3 $31.0 increasing. But at what rate? And what is the percentage of Groupe Michelin $24.4 $25.5 consumers who buy them online? When American Tire Distributors Inc. (ATD) launched Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. $17.8 $18.9 TireBuyer.com in 2008, it estimated 3% of the tires sold in Continental AG $12.9 $12.7 the U.S. — more than 7 million tires — were being sold to Pirelli & Cie SpA $8.0 $8.1 consumers over the Internet. According to its own research, consumers between the ages of 18 and 34 years of age, espe- Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd. $6.9 $7.0 cially women, were more likely to purchase tires online “and Hankook Tire Co. $6.4 $6.5 to shop exclusively online.” Yokohama Rubber Co.2 $4.8 $4.9 When asked how likely they would be to purchase tires Cheng Shin Rubber Ind. Co. Ltd.3 $4.3 $4.5 online in the future, 30% of the consumers surveyed by ATD indicated they were “very or somewhat likely” to do so. Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. $3.5 $3.4 In 2013, Matthew Walker, managing director of Tireweb Kumho Tire Co. Inc.2 $3.3 $3.4 Marketing Inc., was quoted as saying 90% of shoppers preferred Toyo Tire & Rubber Co. Ltd. $3.0 $3.0 to purchase tires in the store. “We also know most of them start their research online, and about 50% will leave a website U.S./CANADIAN LEADERS IN NEW TIRE SALES if it doesn’t have pricing information on it.” (fiscal year 2014; in billions of U.S. dollars) The 2013 “Google Auto Tires Purchase” online study de- Tire company 2014 2013 termined 10% of consumers purchased tires online in 2012. Bridgestone Americas Inc. $8.8 $9.3 That jumped to 29% in 2013. Online tire buyers also were spending more money per tire, and considering more brands Goodyear Tire & Rubber $7.3 $8.0 during online research. Michelin North America Inc. $7.3 $7.7 In terms of online purchasing dollars spent on automotive Continental Tire the Americs LLC $2.8 $2.8 replacement parts, three categories represented half of the e-tail dollar volume in 2013 and none of them were tire- Cooper Tire & Rubber $2.6 $2.5 related. According to the Auto Care Association’s “E-Tailing Toyo Tire Holdings of America Inc. $1.5 $1.5 in the Automotive Aftermarket” report, the top three product Hankook Tire America Corp. $1.3 $1.3 categories were braking systems, primarily pads and shoes; ignition and engine (fuel pumps, alternators, ignition coils, Yokohama Tire Corp. $1.3 $1.4 etc.); and glass, mirrors and lamps.” Sumitomo Rubber Industries4 $.90 $.91 When even Wal-Mart Stores Inc. is investing a considerable Kumho Tire U.S.A. Inc. $.70 $.74 sum of money on e-commerce at the expense of store growth, retail sales online cannot be ignored. Pirelli Tire North America $.64 $.65 It should be noted, however, that for now, online-only 1 The average exchange rates between foreign currencies and the U.S. dollar differed from 2013 to 2014 as follows: Japanese retailers don’t have to pay sales tax. That may change soon. yen, up 8.2%; Korean won, down 3.7%; Taiwan dollar, up 2.2%. “The Marketplace Fairness Act” grants states the authority The euro was relatively unchanged. to compel online and catalog retailers, no matter where they 2 Yokohama Rubber Co. and Kumho Tire Co. Ltd. signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Nov. 29, 2013. As part of the are located, to collect sales tax at the time of a transaction. That strategic alliance, the companies will share resources to “jointly would put them on a level playing field with local retailers. pursue research and development of tire related technologies to However, the act requires states to simplify their sales tax compete with the Big 3,” according to Kumho.