Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • European Rubber Journal
  • Plastics News
web
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • ITEC
    • Automotive
    • Tire
    • Non-Tire
    • Suppliers
    • Silicone
    • Latex
    • Coronavirus
    • Executive Action
    • Government/Legal
    • Opinion
    • Technical Notebooks
    • International Elastomer Show
    • Women in Tire & Rubber
    • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • Goodyear recognized by Lockheed Martin as 'elite supplier'
      EV tire advancements to help secure future
      Lambillotte: Only question on AVs is timing
      CAR official says EV future brighter than autonomous
    • ETRMA: COVID-19 pummels European tire markets in 2020
      New systems solutions advance the sustainability of automotive weatherseals
      3D mapping, navigation from Conti, others on cusp of mainstream
      The new One: Nokian unveils all-season passenger tire
    • ETRMA: COVID-19 pummels European tire markets in 2020
      R&D, Group 1 oils shift keeps Nynas busy
      The new One: Nokian unveils all-season passenger tire
      USW opposes Taiwan tire makers' dumping counterproposal
    • 3D mapping, navigation from Conti, others on cusp of mainstream
      R&D, Group 1 oils shift keeps Nynas busy
      Motion Industries rebrands as 'Motion'
      Proto Labs to buy e-commerce company 3D Hubs for $280 million
    • New systems solutions advance the sustainability of automotive weatherseals
      Arburg: 2021 Technology Days in June will run for 6 days
      R&D, Group 1 oils shift keeps Nynas busy
      Arburg boosts electric machine business with AMK acquisition
    • Proto Labs to buy e-commerce company 3D Hubs for $280 million
      Ace Products & Consulting partners with Wallace Instruments
      Safic-Alcan extends distribution agreement with Momentive
      Momentive aims to grow silicone presence in Asia-Pacific region
    • WCCO task force navigates pandemic, expands communications
      ASTM cancels April meetings as COVID-19 continues impact
      Paycheck Protection Program funding reopens Jan. 15
      Detroit Auto Show canceled; alternative event being planned for September
    • Tero Peltomaki named Cimcorp CEO
      Synthomer CEO MacLean to step down by early 2022
      ARP Materials adds technical sales manager
      Jack Murphy joins Akron Dispersions
    • USW opposes Taiwan tire makers' dumping counterproposal
      India decides against extending carbon black duties
      Hot topics at virtual CES: AVs, air taxis and drones
      Paycheck Protection Program funding reopens Jan. 15
    • Editorial: Against a backdrop of turmoil, M&A deals give glimpse of normalcy
      Column: Pandemic looms over everything in life, business in 2020
      Column: Lessons from the 2020 Best Places to Work
      Editorial: Silicone hit hard by pandemic, expected to bounce back
    • Advancements in synchronous drive belt design for industrial and consumer markets
      Effects of multiple repurposed materials for reinforcements of standard rubber compounds
      Impact of peroxide blends on the cure rate and aged properties in HNBR
      Techniques to detect long chain branching in polymers
    • Rubber Division seeks abstracts for 200th Technical Meeting
      WORD panelists say evolution, authenticity keys to success
      IEC keynote: Communication key to logistics
      IEC speaker: Specialized elastomers may reduce spread of life-threatening pathogens
    • WORD panelists say evolution, authenticity keys to success
      New video celebrates women in rubber industry
      ITEC panelists say women can thrive in tire industry
      Rubber Division planning second Women of Rubber event
    • Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Faster Access to Your Polymer Compounding Experts Around the World
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Take a walk thru a HEXPOL Lab
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      HEXPOL offers a unique selection of High Performance Elastomers to match your application requirements
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      It’s what you can’t see that makes the Difference at HEXPOL
  • Blogs
    • Products
    • Wacky World of Rubber
    • New Products: Nova thinks outside the box with sealing tech
      New Products: MonTech introduces 1,500 kN lab press
      New products: 3M introduces new durable, pliable medical adhesive
      New Products: Lanxess launches energy-efficient PU elastomer
    • Wacky World of Rubber: How Trelleborg, teens sealed a spot in the world record book
      Wacky World of Rubber: Of chicken and feet, but not chicken feet
      Wacky World of Rubber: Time to go mattress shopping
      Wacky World of Rubber: Because nothing says football like 'frunk' shrimp
  • Newsletters
    • Rubber in Automotive
    • Silicone News
    • Latex News
    • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • ETRMA: COVID-19 pummels European tire markets in 2020
      New systems solutions advance the sustainability of automotive weatherseals
      3D mapping, navigation from Conti, others on cusp of mainstream
      The new One: Nokian unveils all-season passenger tire
    • Proto Labs to buy e-commerce company 3D Hubs for $280 million
      Ace Products & Consulting partners with Wallace Instruments
      Safic-Alcan extends distribution agreement with Momentive
      Momentive aims to grow silicone presence in Asia-Pacific region
    • Bridgestone bets on guayule as alternative natural rubber source
      Synthomer CEO MacLean to step down by early 2022
      Jack Murphy joins Akron Dispersions
      Synthomer optimistic, raises earnings forecast
  • Multimedia
    • Videos
    • Photo Galleries
  • Directory
  • Resources
    • Classifieds & Mold Mart
    • Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Sponsored By HB Chemical
      The Company Behind the Inventory
      Sponsored By French Oil Mill Machinery
      Process Improvement, Cost Reduction with Custom Press Systems
    • Sponsored By Uncountable Inc.
      Cooper Standard deploys lab informatics platform to synchronize R&D
      Sponsored By Elkem
      LSR Selectā„¢: A solution to improve your financial impact in molding applications
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Peroxide Cureable Silicone Injection Molding
      Sponsored By HEXPOL Compounding
      Understanding and Selecting Performance Additives for Rubber Compounding
  • Data
  • Events
    • RPN Events
    • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
    • Industry Events
    • Past Events
    • ITEC Library
    • International Silicone Conference Library
    • 2021 Healthcare Elastomers Virtual Edition
      2021 Rubber in Automotive Virtual Edition
      2020 International Silicone Conference Virtual Edition
      2020 ITEC Virtual Edition
  • Advertise
  • DIGITAL EDITION
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
January 10, 2006 01:00 AM

Toyo tire modules steal show

Bruce Meyer
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    WHITE, Ga.—There´s no doubt the star of Toyo Tire North America Inc.´s grand opening of its first U.S. tire plant was the manufacturing process itself.

    Japanese parent Toyo Tire & Rubber Co. Ltd. dubs its highly automated proprietary tire production system the Advanced Tire Operation Module, or ATOM.

    The roughly 350 visitors at the December opening were given a peek—albeit from a distance—at the system, where no one touches the tire until after the first inspection after curing. The company said the process is designed for multiproduct, small-lot production and enables Toyo to reduce its space needs and manufacturing lead times.

    Toyo invested about $180 million in the factory´s first phase, which will give the firm the capacity to make up to 2 million passenger and light truck tires a year under the Toyo and Nitto brands. Two future phases could bring capacity at the plant—located about 50 miles from Atlanta in the rural town of White—up to 6 million tires a year.

    Toyo developed ATOM internally over the past five years and already is using it at one of its Japanese facilities.

    "We´re trying to get as close to ´made to order´ as possible," said James L. Hawk, senior vice president and plant manager.

    Hawk is a veteran of nearly 35 years in the tire industry and he said this technology is far beyond anything he´s seen. "I can remember being an engineering student at the University of Akron and in my wildest imagination I could have never imagined this," he said.

    Self-contained modules

    With ATOM, Hawk said there are no tire builders. Each tire assembly module is self-contained, with 12 extruders built into each module. Belts are made in one area, beads and inner plies in another, and sidewall and tread in yet another. Green tires are then taken by overhead conveyors directly to curing.

    "Everything is being extruded in-place," Hawk said, "so the belts are cut to length and width in place."

    Hawk previously worked for Continental General Tire Inc. and later with Yokohama Tire Corp. He was familiar with Toyo because he was plant manager at the GTY Tire facility in Mount Vernon, Ill., in which the three companies are partners.

    But Hawk said he was more familiar with Toyo having expertise in materials technology, not tire making machinery.

    He credits Shozo "Carlos" Kibata, Toyo Tire North America president, and Yoshio Kataoka, president and CEO of the Japanese parent company, for having a dual vision. First, he said the two took Toyo into the large-diameter, ultra-high-performance market, and then committed the resources to research and development to make the high-quality tires that are a must in that arena.

    "Frankly, I was expecting to see a high-speed, semi-automated tire machine, like I saw at competitors," he said. "Not even close. They have virtually eliminated the whole preparation extruding department."

    With ATOM, Hawk said tire uniformity improves dramatically because everything is precise and the process eliminates splices. "Uniformity´s not 5 or 10 percent better," he said. "It´s in the range of 50 to 75 percent better."

    Phil Nussbaum, president of A to Z Tire & Battery Inc. in Amarillo, Texas, and a longtime Toyo dealer, said it was wonderful to see the advancements in technology. "The ATOM module, in particular, is where I believe manufacturers have to go in the future because of size proliferation," he said.

    Why ´Made in the USA´?

    While many manufacturers are looking at areas outside the U.S. to locate production facilities, Kibata said the state-of-the-art technology at this new facility allowed it to be built here.

    "Our ATOM plant is very automated so we don´t need lots of labor. We need high-skilled labor," he said. "Another reason is that the American tire market is the biggest tire market in the world. It´s better to have a facility in the biggest market."

    Kibata said Toyo visited about 15 locations, including some in Alabama, Tennessee and Kentucky. In the end, Bartow County provided the 150 acres in a site that is near auto makers in the South and near Interstate 75 for easy transport.

    And Toyo is working hard to become part of the rural Georgia community. A citizens group had sought to block the firm´s plans to locate the plant in Bartow County, but later dropped the action. As part of its opening, Toyo announced monetary and volunteer contributions to Bartow County Schools and the Margaret & Luke Pettit Environmental Preserve.

    "To make Toyo Tire North America the No. 1 plant, we must ensure good communication with the local community, so that we may be recognized as a good corporate citizen," Kibata said.

    Despite wanting to be close to the transplant OEMs, production for at least the first two to three years will be dedicated to the replacement market, according to Kibata. He said Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America Inc. has requested that Toyo supply some tires, but the two firms are working together on development.

    Toyo also moved a distribution center earlier this year from Austell, Ga., to the White site, where it will occupy about 400,000 square feet.

    The tire maker said having the center at the plant will enhance distribution and inventory availability for Toyo´s expanding network of independent dealers facing an increased demand for high-performance tires. The White location gives proximity to rail, air and interstate highway transportation, which will streamline distribution to dealers by expediting shipments and reducing supply-chain costs.

    Initially, about 60 percent of production will be for Toyo-brand products and 40 percent for Nitto tires, though that may fluctuate based on market demands, Kibata said.

    He said the firm has no current plans to move its sales organization—Toyo Tire (U.S.A.) Corp.—from its Cypress, Calif., headquarters, but that it can´t exclude that possibility in the future.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Rubber & Plastics News wants to hear from its readers. If you want to express your opinion on a story or issue, email your letter to Editor Bruce Meyer at [email protected].

    SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Rubber & Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe Today

    Subscribe to Rubber & Plastics News to get the best coverage and leading insights in the industry.

    SUBSCRIBE
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    MISSION

    To serve companies in the global rubber product industry by delivering news, industry insights, opinions and technical information.

    web
    Contact Us

    2291 Riverfront Pkwy, Suite 1000
    Cuyahoga Falls,
    OH 44221

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1726

    Resources
    • About Us
    • Digital Edition
    • Contact the Staff
    • Advertise
    • Order Reprints
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    • Terms of Service
    • Careers
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Partner Sites
    • Tire Business
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Plastics News
    • Plastics News China
    • Urethanes Technology
    • Automotive News
    • Crain Brands
    Copyright Ā© 1996-2021. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • ITEC
      • Automotive
      • Tire
      • Non-Tire
      • Suppliers
      • Silicone
      • Latex
      • Coronavirus
      • Executive Action
      • Government/Legal
      • Opinion
      • Technical Notebooks
      • International Elastomer Show
      • Women in Tire & Rubber
      • HEXPOL Sponsored Content
    • Blogs
      • Products
      • Wacky World of Rubber
    • Newsletters
      • Rubber in Automotive
      • Silicone News
      • Latex News
      • Sign Up for Newsletters
    • Multimedia
      • Videos
      • Photo Galleries
    • Directory
    • Resources
      • Classifieds & Mold Mart
      • Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
    • Data
    • Events
      • RPN Events
      • RPN Livestreams/Webinars
      • Industry Events
      • Past Events
      • ITEC Library
      • International Silicone Conference Library
    • Advertise
    • DIGITAL EDITION