Yokohama to combine R&D efforts into new center

CORNELIUS, N.C.—Yokohama Tire Corp. has opened a new research and development facility in Cornelius, designed to bring together its R&D efforts into one location.

Yokohama Development Center America will become the firm's R&D hub throughout North America and represents its largest overseas R&D center in both functions and number of employees.

The firm intends to consolidate its staffs operating throughout the U.S. to the new center, including sites in California, Michigan, Virginia and Mississippi. Thomas Kenny, Yokohama Tire director of consumer tire development, said in an email that the firm expects to move in its staff and be fully operational in the fourth quarter of 2018.

The center will employ 25 initially, but Kenny said that number will more than double in the future. Yokohama did not disclose financial details of the project.

He added that the site will consist of several state-of-the-art tire characteristic machines that will be used on-site for testing. The facility will encompass both office space, tire labs and a garage.

"The North American market has always been important to Yokohama and the new Yokohama Development Center America represents another major milestone for Yokohama in the U.S.," Kenny said in the email. "We've been established here since 1969, almost 50 years. Our goal with YDCA is to create a world-class R&D center where we can develop new products for this market across multiple segments, as well as being able to expand into new markets such as original equipment fitments."

The 25,000-sq.-ft. building will also replace the temporary R&D office Yokohama has utilized in Concord, N.C., since 2016.

Kenny said the firm looked at many other sites, but Cornelius emerged as the winner for a number of reasons, highlighting its proximity to the airport and skilled local work force.

The facility will be led by Shoichiro (Sho) Matsuda, Yokohama Tire Corp. North America's vice president of corporate technical. Dan Steltmann, director of commercial tire development; Jeremy Kahrs, director of technical service; and Kenny will also be based out of the new location.

"We're here for the long run," Kenny said. "Consolidating our R&D activities will strengthen our R&D structure and further accelerate our ability to deliver new products that meet the demands of the market in a timely manner. YDCA's focus is on designing tires for passenger cars and other consumer applications, as well as conducting testing and evaluation, engineering tires for industrial and construction machinery, plus providing technical services and quality assurance. We will develop new products in this facility for consumer and commercial tire markets, but we will also support other technical groups such as quality assurance and technical service."

Yokohama Tire Corp. is the North American manufacturing and marketing arm of Tokyo-based Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd.

The firm operates two U.S.-based tire manufacturing plants in Salem, Va., and West Point, Miss.