Magazine for the professional tire industry
Issue link: https://mtd.epubxp.com/i/714120
MTD August 2016 News/views Purcell Tire buys Phelps Tire Purcell Tire & Rubber Co. has acquired Phelps Tire Co. Inc., an eight- store commercial dealership with stores in Washington and Alaska. The Phelps locations add Washington and Alaska to Purcell's geo- graphic coverage. Purcell Tire also serves Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Illinois, Texas and Nevada. Founded in 1947 by the grandfather of current company president Jim Phelps, Phelps Tire specializes in commercial, off-the-road and retread tire services. Phelps Tire provides tires and service to the Pacific Northwest and the I-5 Corridor through five Washington locations in Renton, Seattle, Mt. Vernon, Everett and Tacoma. The Phelps Tire stores in Alaska are in Anchorage, Fairbanks and Wasilla. All Phelps locations are Tire Industry Association-certified dealerships and are part of the Michelin Commercial Services network. "We are excited about the prospects that the Phelps expansion pro- vides and the markets that it opens to our retreading and commercial footprint," says Bob Purcell, owner of Purcell Tire. The first Purcell Tire location was opened in 1936 by Robert Purcell in Washington, Mo. Under the direction of Robert's son, Bob, and Bob's wife, Juanita, the company has expanded to nearly 80 locations and four retread plants and has a fleet of trucks that provides pickup and delivery service to 41 states. The merger of 80-year-old Purcell Tire and 69-year-old Phelps Tire combines two families and 149 years of experience in commercial, OTR, retail, retreading and tire and automotive service. Purcell Tire is No. 15 on the Modern Tire Dealer 100 list of indepen- dent dealers, eighth largest dealer on MTD's annual list of top com- mercial tire dealers in the U.S., and fourth largest retreader on MTD's ranking of retreaders in the U.S. T.O. Haas Tire earns safety award Two T.O. Haas Tire Co. Inc. stores in Lincoln, Neb., have been recog- nized for safety by the Nebraska Department of Labor and the Occupa- tional Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The stores at 640 West O Street and 8300 Dawson Creek Bay have earned Safety and Health Achieve- ment Recognition Award Program (SHARP) certifica- tion. SHARP is regulated by OSHA and recognizes small employers who oper- ate an exemplary safety and health management system. "We've been working hard on reaching SHARP certification status at all of our stores," says Randy Haas, owner and safety director. "We've identified hazards in the work- place, corrected them and significantly reduced job-related injuries." The company has total of 14 SHARP-certified locations in Nebraska and four more in Kansas and Iowa. TreadWright adds warranty Houston-based TreadWright Tires LLC has introduced a 24-month optional road hazard warranty program for all new tire purchases, including LT metric sizes. Hankook offers rebates Hankook Tire America Corp. is offering consumer rebates up to $100 on seven popular passenger and light truck tires in its 2016 Great Hit mail-in rebate program, which runs through Sept. 30. Vipal has Spanish partner Vipal Rubber Corp. is entering into a joint venture with Mezcla Caucho (Mezcla Rubber) of Spain to produce hot tire retreading products under the Vipal brand in Europe. Yokohama supports clinics Yokohama Tire Corp. is partnering with the Chelsea Football Club to hold free youth soccer clinics in the U.S. in conjunction with Chelsea's U.S. summer tour. Concept tire wins award An off-road concept tire by Hankook Tire Co. Ltd., the DynaSync, won a Red Dot Design Award 2016 for design concept. Garage Gurus is reaccredited The Automotive Training Managers Council and National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence have reaccredited Garage Gurus, Federal-Mogul Motorparts' technical education platform, to Continuing Automotive Service Education standards. Continental partners with MLS Continental Tire the Americas LLC is turning 14 Major League Soccer (MLS) players into competitive drivers for the third season of "What'Cha Got," which airs weekly on FOX and FOX Sports 1. Michelin expands warehouse Michelin North America Inc. is spending $8 million to increase warehouse capacity at its BFGoodrich plant in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Construction begins in August and is expected to be completed early next year. bites From left: Eldon Diedrichs, project manager of the OSHA consultation program, congratulates Chuck Holman, manager of the T.O. Haas Tire store at 640 West O Street, and Randy Haas, owner and safety director of T.O. Haas Tire, for workplace safety achievement. 10