Goodyear Making Progress
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March 25, 2019 The Rubber Industry’s International Newspaper $99 per year. $4.50 per copy Goodyear making progress Firm emphasizes safety after four deaths at Virginia plant By Miles Moore performing maintenance on an alpha shear machine Rubber & Plastics News Staff on Aug. 12, 2016. DANVILLE, Va.—Two years after reaching a settle- In addition to the cash settlement, Goodyear and ment with Virginia regarding the accidental deaths of United Steelworkers Union Local 831, which rep- four workers at its Danville plant, Goodyear said it is resents hourly workers at the Danville facility, com- progressing with creating a safer work environment at mitted to successfully completing the application the facility. process for membership in the Virginia Voluntary Fukoku’s manufacturing plant in Laurens, S.C., is going “An in-depth review of our safety processes and cul- Protection program. Thus far, VOSH said Goodyear to invest $3 million for six new machines to be installed ture in early 2017 revealed that we had not met our has taken preliminary steps for applying for Virgin- throughout the first three quarters of 2019. own expectations for safety leadership in Danville,” ia’s STAR status and also is considering the formal said Ellis Jones, Goodyear senior director, global envi- Virginia Challenge process. The latter is a three- ronmental health, safety and sustainability. stage process that provides participants a road map “As a result, we are focused on improving our to making its work site one of the safest and healthi- Fukoku adds more safety systems, including equipment, training and est in the nation, according to the state agency. processes, as well as implementing a serious injury Jones said Goodyear is “progressing along with prevention program and a safety leadership curricu- the VPP process as planned in Danville, leveraging production in U.S. lum for all plant leaders at the site.” best practices and learnings from four Goodyear Goodyear reached a $1.75 million settlement with sites that have achieved VPP Star Status as well as By Chris Sweeney the Virginia Department of Occupational Safety other VPP mentor organizations within Virginia.” Rubber & Plastics News Staff and Health on Feb. 28, 2017. The agreement was to The agreement also set out an orderly process for LAURENS, S.C.—Fukoku America continues to settle 150 proposed citations connected with the fol- eliminating the more than 1,400 workplace hazards strengthen its presence in the U.S. market. lowing deaths at the Danville facility: VOSH inspectors identified at Danville, according The firm is in the process of adding six new machines • Jeanie Lynne Strader, 56, caught in machine to the agency. Goodyear retained up to $750,000 in to address additional growth within the region. The au- rollers on Aug. 31, 2015; penalties to abate the hazards and assist efforts in tomotive supplier is investing $3 million and will install • Kevin Waid Edmunds, 54, pinned between a meeting VPP requirements, it said. the machines two at a time in each of the first three wall and a pallet containing 3,500 pounds of rubber “The agreement required Goodyear and the Unit- quarters of 2019. on March 31, 2016; ed Steelworkers to jointly prioritize each violation,” The firm will add about 20 jobs in conjunction with the • Charles Gregory Cooper, 53, who fell into a pit VOSH said. The company and the union would as- new equipment. It currently employs about 150 people at sump containing scalding water and oil on April 12, sign each violation to be Category 1 (to be abated its 105,900-sq.-ft. facility in Laurens that opened in 2001. 2016; and within 30 days), Category 2 (within 90 days) or Cat- “We have a very aggressive sales force and a fantastic • William Christopher Scheier, 47, killed while See Goodyear, page 22 sales manager,” Plant General Manager Bob Schulmeis- ter said. “They’re out there growing our business. We have some of the highest quality in the industry and we’re cost-competitive.” At Laurens, Fukoku produces four product lines, all for the automotive industry: plastic constant velocity joint boots, plastic steering column boots, rubber brake booster diaphragms and rubber radiator seals. It operates a ware- house so its sister plants can ship product into the U.S. See Fukoku, page 22 Hubner to build plant in Tennessee By Chris Sweeney operational costs, a pro-business environment, a Rubber & Plastics News Staff strong work force and local incentives such as tax DUNLAP, Tenn.—Hubner GmbH & Co. K.G. is abatements and training grants. getting ready to expand its rubber manufacturing “They’re a very pro-business state,” Paquette presence in the U.S. said of Tennessee. “From an economics standpoint, The firm is set to begin construction on an elasto- they made it very enticing. The local universities meric products plant in Dunlap, which represents a and STEM programs are really strong in the great- $10 million investment. The site initially will span er Chattanooga area. We wanted to make sure we 36,000 square feet with 15 employees and is sched- were getting highly qualified skilled labor to work uled to be operational in the beginning of 2020. The at our company.” firm said if targets are reached it will add another Hubner currently employs 125 people at its 36,000 square feet in a second phase. Employment is 160,000-sq.-ft. site in Mount Pleasant, which produc- projected to reach 70 by the end of 2024. es gangway and articulation systems for buses and Construction is scheduled to begin sometime in trains, along with airport canopy systems used by April, according to Ron Paquette, managing direc- passengers to board airlines from the terminal. Hub- tor of Hubner Manufacturing Corp., the firm’s U.S. ner also has a hub in San Jose, Calif., that employs 10 subsidiary located in Mount Pleasant, S.C. people to support its laser and photonics business. Paquette said Hubner spent a year doing its due Paquette said the firm’s systems business is its diligence, initially looking to acquire a company. largest product line, representing about 45 percent When that plan didn’t work out, the firm consid- of its global sales. Its mobilities group—which in- ered 11 sites in six states, ultimately settling on cludes its rubber, polyurethane and plastic manu- Hubner’s extruded rubber seals are used in window systems Dunlap for a variety of reasons. Those include: low See Hubner, page 21 for the transportation industry. ©Entire contents copyright 2019 by Crain Communications Inc. All rights reserved. PROGRAM NEWS May 21-22, 2019 Schaumburg IL More details on page 16 RUBBERNEWS.COM/HEALTHCARE www.rubbernews.com Rubber & Plastics News • March 25, 2019 3 Goodyear to reduce work force amid plant upgrades Dynamic secures new facility AKRON—Goodyear has approved plans By Kyle Brown to modernize tire plants in Hanau and Rubber & Plastics News Staff Fulda, Germany, during the next two to DES PLAINES, Ill.—Dynamic Rub- three years to increase capacity for larger ber Inc. is moving into its fourth new rim-diameter consumer tires. space since the company’s beginning The plan, disclosed March 19 in an 8K in 2002. filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange It plans to start its move into a new Commission, will result in the elimination 30,000-sq.-ft. building by April, Pres- of about 1,000 jobs at the two factories be- ident Roger Anderson said. The com- cause of efficiency gains related to the use of pany is investing about $300,000 in newer equipment and new plant layouts. the transition, which includes adding The plan is subject to consultation with new equipment. relevant employee representative bodies, Anderson started Dynamic, which Goodyear said. The plants, operated by produces inflatable seals and blad- Goodyear Dunlop Tires Germany GmbH, ders, to reach a niche market, and employ about 2,800 hourly workers now— quickly started expanding. The com- Dynamic’s work force is preparing to move into a new manufacturing facility, 1,300 in Hanau in western Germany and pany began in a 3,000-sq.-ft. building doubling its footprint to 30,000 square feet with a $300,000 investment. 1,500 in Fulda in central Germany. before moving up to 10,000 square Goodyear did not disclose the projected feet and then its current 15,000-sq.- its inception, including during reces- The company is adding another pro- investment for the factory restructuring ft. location in Des Plaines. sion years, though at a slower rate. duction line for seals with fabric rein- nor the project’s effect on capacity, but it “We’ve been growing since about Anderson said part of that is because of forcement, bringing the total number did say in the 8K filing that it estimates 2010 probably at an average of about Dynamic’s involvement in the food in- of lines to five. The addition comes pre-tax charges associated with this plan 10-15 percent a year. It’s good dustry, which doesn’t go away during a partially to support a large new paper to be at least $135 million. growth,” Anderson said. recession. He credits customer service industry customer based in Sweden It expects to record about $90 million of As part of a smaller market, Dynam- as one of the major reasons the compa- that moved its business from a compet- these charges in the first quarter of 2019 and ic and its competitors have all seen ny has seen continued growth. itor to Dynamic, Anderson said. to make cash payments of about $30 million continued growth, Anderson said. His “A lot of people, because it’s a niche The investment also includes a new in 2020 and $40 million in 2021.