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 Selectâ„¢: 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
June 12, 2006 02:00 AM

Edouard Michelin led firm to new heights

Bruce Davis
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print

    PARIS-Tire giant Michelin lost the primary architect of its transformation into a leaner, more globally active company May 26 with the death of CEO Edouard Michelin.

    The great-grandson of the company´s co-founder-with whom he shared his first name-died in a boating accident in the Atlantic Ocean off the French Brittany coast. He was 42.

    Michel Rollier, co-managing partner with Edouard Michelin since 2005, became the head of the company.

    Edouard Michelin was buried May 31 in Clermont-Ferrand, France, home of the tire maker and the Michelin family.

    Michelin, son of former managing partner Francois Michelin, had worked for the company since 1985 in a variety of positions-including general manager of manufacturing and truck tire distribution in North America-before being named a managing partner in 1991. He succeeded his father as chairman in 1999.

    He is survived by his wife, Cecille, six children, his father, three brothers and two sisters.

    The young Michelin is credited with spearheading a number of changes at the company that have helped drive the firm forward, especially in the face of growing international competition.

    Among the changes was a restructuring of the company along product lines instead of geographic regions. Parallel to this, he was involved in decisions to expand the tire maker into new and emerging markets in Asia, central and eastern Europe and South America.

    One such change was cutting the firm´s work force in 1999-2000 by 7,500. That move was met with vocal opposition by the firm´s labor representatives-especially those in France-but embraced by the financial community because of the potential impact on the bottom line.

    Michelin was involved in the company´s decision in 1999 to return to Formula 1 racing competition and had been a guiding force behind Challenge Bibendum, the company´s effort to promote better use of the world´s resources by the vehicle industry.

    The firm also adopted a new corporate identity-"Michelin: a better way forward"-during his watch. This tagline was chosen to reflect the tire maker´s vision of impacting society positively.

    The most senior executive position at Michelin often is referred to as "patron," a French term meaning literally "head" or "boss." It combines most, if not all, the duties normally associated with the chairman, CEO and president functions.

    Born in 1963, Edouard Michelin was the youngest of Francois Michelin´s four sons.

    He earned an engineering degree from Ecole Centrale de Paris and joined the family company in 1985 at age 22, spending time in a variety of posts in the fields of research, production and sales.

    In 1987 he moved to the U.S. to work at the Michelin Americas Research and Development Center in Greenville, S.C., though he returned to France later that year to serve a year in the French navy, principally in the submarine corps.

    Michelin returned to the tire maker in 1988, to take over as production manager at its Puy-en-Velay, France, plant.

    He came back to the U.S. in May 1991 as head of Michelin Americas Truck Tires and later that year was named co-managing partner with his father and Rene Zingraff.

    During the next two years Michelin served as CEO of Michelin North America Inc., where he was involved in the integration of the BFGoodrich and Uniroyal brands as part of the unit´s overall growth.

    In 1993 he headed back to France to work on several international organizational projects before being named CEO in 1999.

    Responding to Michelin´s death, Carlos Ghosn, president and CEO of Nissan Motor Co. and former chairman, president and CEO of Michelin North America, called his "tragic disappearance" a great loss for the automotive industry. "Edouard Michelin was a courageous corporate leader, true to his past and open to the world. He constantly endeavored to balance economic and social constraints and to ensure the continuity of his company."

    Ghosn noted that in the years he and Michelin worked together, "he proved a great professional and a man of conviction. The Renault-Nissan Alliance has lost an exceptional partner, one who was always loyal and clear-sighted."

    Robert J. Keegan, Goodyear´s chairman and CEO, said the industry "has lost a good friend and a great leader with the tragic and untimely death of Edouard Michelin.

    "Not only was Edouard a strong competitor, but also a great collaborator in a variety of initiatives to further the contribution of our industry to society. He was a man of total integrity and, above all, a man who loved his family."

    France´s president, Jacques Chirac, hailed his countryman for modernizing the tire maker, "making it a universally recognized French industrial champion."

    Jacques Bajer, founder and owner of Tire Systems Engineering Inc. in Grosse Pointe, Mich., and the engineer who worked in the 1960s and ´70s on getting Michelin radials specified original equipment at Ford Motor Co., was "shocked and saddened" by the news of Michelin´s death but said he wasn´t worried about the "future well-being" of the company.

    "The philosophy of the company for generations has centered on producing consistently high-quality durable products at the best price for the consumer," Bajer said. "This philosophy-what I call the Michelin DNA-has passed from one generation to another. I´m convinced Michelin will continue to prosper and be innovative in all aspects of business."

    Bajer´s work put him in close contact with the Michelin family, and he said Edouard shared his father´s "passion for technology and innovation for tires, and most importantly the process by which tires must be manufactured to be affordable and trouble-free."

    The company has established a fund in his honor to assist the families of sailors lost at sea. Contributions from the U.S. may be sent to: Carolina First Bank/ Help Fund for Sailors Lost at Sea (MNA Inc.), 102 South Main St., Greenville, S.C. 29601.

    Contributions will be transferred from there to the European fund. Make checks payable to: Help Fund for Sailors Lost at Sea (MNA Inc.).

    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 © 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