$2.8 Million Ohio Third Frontier Industrial Research and Development
Center Program (IRDCP) Grant Awarded to Cooper for Center in Findlay,
Ohio
FINDLAY, Ohio -- (Business Wire)
At an event today, Cooper Tire & Rubber Company officially announced its
upcoming Global Technical Center (GTC), a $35.5 million leading
worldwide center of excellence for tire science and technology, advanced
technology and innovation technology, that will ultimately employ 40
scientists and engineers, many of whom will be in highly specialized
technical roles. The GTC will be located in Cooper’s headquarters
community of Findlay, Ohio at the site of its existing North America
Technical Center (NATC). The GTC is expected to be fully operational by
the end of this year.
Cooper Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President Roy Armes and
Vice President, Global Research and Development Chuck Yurkovich
explained at today’s event that the GTC will have a dedicated R&D team
focused on exploring areas such as nanotechnology and new polymers and
compounds. The GTC, which is under the direct leadership of Cooper’s
Global Technical Center Director Curt Selhorst, will support Cooper’s
NATC as well as the regional technical centers of its subsidiaries
including Cooper Tire Asia's Technical Center (ATC) in Kunshan, China
and Cooper Tire Europe's Technical Center (ETC) in Melksham, England.
“Technology and innovation are critical in the tire industry,” Armes
said. “Technology drives the development of new products that deliver
improved performance, environmental advantages and safety benefits for
today’s drivers. At Cooper, we’ve seen how new products that resonate
with our dealers and consumers can give our companies a competitive
advantage, and with the GTC, we are building on our already strong
capabilities to pursue the newest technologies to drive our business—and
perhaps the tire industry as a whole—into the future.”
Yurkovich added that advanced technologies developed at the GTC will be
provided to the companies’ regional technology centers around the world
for final product development and industrialization. “Our focus is on
developing ‘ready to use’ advanced technologies that help us expedite
the product development cycle and allow Cooper to create innovations in
Findlay and deploy them to meet regional customer and market needs
around the world,” he said. “We are able to develop and launch
world-class products more rapidly each year, while continuing to place
an emphasis on enhanced tire performance, lightweight tire materials,
rolling resistance and fuel economy, wet and dry grip, and reduced tire
and vehicle noise. The GTC will help Cooper and its subsidiaries around
the world stay ahead of the curve in a very competitive tire industry.”
The State of Ohio has committed to supporting the project with a $2.8
million Third Frontier Industrial Research and Development Center
Program (IRDCP) grant to be paid over the next several years as Cooper
fulfills its GTC equipment, development and hiring goals. David Mustine,
Senior Managing Director of JobsOhio, who spoke at today’s event, said
that Cooper’s decision to locate the GTC in Ohio demonstrates the power
of public/private partnership. “Cooper could have located the Global
Technical Center anywhere in the world, and indeed heavily considered
its options as the company already has technology capabilities across
three continents,” Mustine said. “We were committed to understanding and
supporting the needs of this great Ohio company — now in its 100th year
— as it continues to grow, create jobs and remain competitive in a truly
global business."
About Cooper Tire & Rubber Company
Cooper Tire & Rubber Company (NYSE: CTB) is the parent company of a
global family of companies that specialize in the design, manufacture,
marketing, and sales of passenger car and light truck tires. Cooper has
joint ventures, affiliates and subsidiaries that also specialize in
medium truck, motorcycle and racing tires. Cooper's headquarters is in
Findlay, Ohio, with manufacturing, sales, distribution, technical and
design facilities within its family of companies, located in 11
countries around the world. For more information on Cooper, visit www.coopertire.com,
www.facebook.com/coopertire,
or www.twitter.com/coopertire.
About JobsOhio
JobsOhio is a private, non-profit corporation designed to drive job
creation and new capital investment in Ohio through business attraction,
retention, and expansion efforts. Learn more at jobs-ohio.com.
Contacts:
Cooper Tire Contact:
Anne Roman, 419-429-7189
alroman@coopertire.com
OR
JobsOhio
Contact:
Matt Englehart, 614-300-1152
englehart@jobs-ohio.com
Source: Cooper Tire & Rubber Company
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