|
Hoosier
began manufacturing new race tires at its own facilities in
1979, after 16 years of having them produced at Mohawk Rubber
Company in Akron, Ohio. The original production plant was
the world's first facility dedicated to the exclusive production
of racing tires. Over the years, Hoosier's manufacturing operation
has developed into the world's leading producer of race tires.
Manufacturing capabilities have been a primary marketing tool
for Hoosier, based on constant innovation, flexibility, responsiveness,
and quality.
Hoosier's manufacturing process is a high tech, multi-plant
operation employing some of the best and brightest people
in the industry. It is through the efforts of these devoted
"behind the scenes" people that Hoosier has been
so successful.
The
manufacturing side of Hoosier Racing Tire is located in Plymouth,
Indiana just south of the Corporate Headquarters in Lakeville,
Indiana, and operates under the name Hoosier Tire & Rubber
Corp. It is here that Hoosier race tires are produced 24 hours
a day.
The
process of producing a race tire is quite different than most
people imagine. Most people think we push a button and material
is injected into a mold and....... voila', a tire is created.
This couldn't be farther from the truth. Producing tires,
particularly race tires, requires a highly trained and skilled
staff as well as a great deal of specialized high tech equipment.
As this
technology was conquered, the company set its sights on producing
the first new tire specifically designed for racing. And so,
in 1962, Bob Newton did just that at Mohawk Rubber Company.
For the next 16 years, Bob drove from northern Indiana to
Akron to design, engineer and compound his tires as well as
oversee their production.
Hoosier employs a full time Training Coordinator, as well
as a complete staff of trainers on each shift to ensure our
new hires are trained in our current procedures. Veteran employees
are also provided the latest training in new methods and technology.
All new hires go through an extensive training program while
paired up with a trainer who works alongside them, helping
them and answering their many questions. Working together
with our production labor force, Hoosier has complete staffs
in the areas of Engineering and Maintenance, Quality Assurance,
Scheduling, Purchasing, Shipping and Receiving, Human Resources,
Clerical and Administrative, and Information Technology.
The process of manufacturing a Hoosier tire is not only fascinating
but unique to Hoosier and central to our success. We can only
explain in general terms how tires are manufactured due to
the sensitive nature of our highly competitive business, but
the following will give you a good picture of the process
used in the manufacture of a race tire.
First the raw materials necessary to produce the rubber needed
for every tire are received. At this time, samples are taken
from every lot. These samples are then sent to our on site,
high-tech testing laboratory for testing. Once the raw materials
pass our in-house testing, they are placed into storage until
an order is received for their use. Hoosier's in-house scheduling
process has developed over the years and currently is a sophisticated
system utilizing programs developed by our own in-house computer
programmers. Having our own staff of computer experts enables
us to quickly and easily modify our systems to better satisfy
our unique needs.
Once
an order to produce rubber is received, the raw materials
are collected and individually weighed using a computerized
weighing system that consists of a "go, no-go" feedback
loop that assures all rubber batches are made to exact specifications.
The raw materials are then transported to the mixer where
they are loaded in and mixed according to a mixing spec. The
rubber is then dropped onto a mill where it is made into sheets.
Each batch of rubber produced has a small sample cut off and
sent to the testing lab for further analysis. Not until the
rubber passes this final test is it allowed to be sent on
to the production facilities.
Next,
more raw materials are needed to make the body or "carcass"
of a tire. To produce the material needed to construct a tire
carcass, we have another facility called the "calender"
plant. We take the rubber produced in the mixing plant and
place it into an extruder where it is "plasticized."
Specially woven textile (tire cord) is then fed into a calendering
machine where the rubber is pressed into the cord. Different
rubber and cords are assembled per a computerized order depending
upon the application of the tire scheduled to be produced.
The thickness of this material is controlled using a series
of computers and nuclear scanning devices to monitor and maintain
a thickness tolerance of 1/10,000th of an inch. The rubber
and tire cord combination, now called "fabric,"
has a sample removed and sent to the lab for testing. The
material is then wound into rolls and placed into storage.
If the material passes testing, it is released for use to
build a tire.
With
this fabric we are ready to begin the process of assembling
a race tire. First, plies are cut from the rolls of calendered
tire cord according to computerized specifications. These
plies are assembled by highly skilled tire builders. When
finished assembling components according to the specifications,
the builder removes the product and places a white sticker
called a "builder's code" on the inside of every
tire he/she produces. This code is unique to each builder
and is a source of pride among all the builders. Radial tires
also have a second sticker, a yellow one, identifying that
builder as well. This is one of the methods used as part of
the meticulous quality control tracking system Hoosier utilizes.
This tells us who assembled the body and/or belt package of
that tire.
The next
phase is when round wire rings called "beads" are
installed on each end of the carcass. The beads are what hold
the tire on the rim. Next, the tread of the tire is applied
to the beaded carcass. This is done in one of two ways: either
using a one piece slab tread, or a continuous 1" strip
of rubber is applied around the tire carcass to form the tread.
At this point, the tire (called a green tire) moves into the
curing stage. Each tire has a material sprayed onto the inside
that assists in processing. Once sprayed, the tire moves to
a pre-assigned press set up to run that particular tire. The
press contains a specific mold heated to a specific temperature
as determined and maintained by computerized controllers.
(This temperature was determined by thermocouple testing when
the tire was still in the research and development stages,
prior to the spec being released to production.) Once the
press opens, the tire is inserted into the press and the press
is closed. Once closed, the green tire is placed under high
pressure using special gases. After the tire spends a specific
amount of time curing in the press, the press will automatically
open and the "hot" tire is removed.
Hot tires are then placed on a machine called a "post-cure
inflator" where a specified air pressure is injected
into each tire for a set period of time. It is here that the
tire cools and it's properties begin to stabilize. After a
set time period, the tire is measured and the circumference
is recorded. Then a press operator writes the size in yellow
chalk on the side of treaded tires and on the tread of slicks.
This is another way Hoosier has set itself apart from it's
competitors. Racers using our competitor's products either
measure a tire before mounting to get an idea of it's circumference,
or have to purchase and mount a tire to see what size it will
be, then decide whether it is a size they can use. Hoosier
adds chalk marks to our bias tires to give customers a guideline
or a reference which can be used to their advantage. If a
racer had an 86" chalk mark on the right front of their
car which produced a roll out of 85 1/2" at racing pressure,
and they were satisfied with the stagger, they would select
another 86" tire to replace the right front. However,
if they wanted more stagger, they would select a tire with
a chalk mark greater than 86". The chalk mark does not
relate to the size the tire will be when mounted and set to
racing pressure, nor does it indicate the size it will grow
to when racing. The chalk mark does however, assure customers
of size consistency prior to mounting tires. Radial tires
are measured at the factory but no size is written on the
tires since radial circumferences do not vary as they do on
bias tires.
After the tire is removed from the post-cure inflator, tires
not having raised letters on the sidewalls have the Hoosier
name stenciled onto the sidewall of the tire. Tires then pass
through final inspection where x-ray technology can be utilized.
Tires are then scanned into inventory and loaded onto trailers
and shipped to the warehouse each day.
The manufacturing process is all about consistency. The goal
of Hoosier's manufacturing process is to maintain a supply
of consistent, high quality race tires that the consumer can
rely on, at an affordable price. A tire, that the consumer
can rely on. We feel with our dedicated and talented staff,
our continuous testing and re-testing of raw materials and
the product in the field, and our high-tech, climate controlled
environments where each step of the process is carefully monitored,
charted and controlled, the product we produce will be consistent,
affordable, and available to all our valued customers. So,
regardless whether a tire was made in June or January, Monday
or Friday, noon or midnight, our customers can expect consistency
and reliability to be built into all our products. We at Hoosier,
are proud that all of our tires are "Made in the USA"
and truly are "Tires Designed for Champions."
Any
questions about kits, parts, installations or services are
welcome. Contact Bishop by phone at 866-867-8324 or
e-mail bishop@bishopsales.com
and we will respond promptly. If you're in the neighborhood,
then drop by the shop at 1130 West 15th Street North Vancouver
BC and we will gladly give you a tour of our facilities, but
beware – there may be a Monster and ferocious horsepower
beasts in our shop when you visit! We really love to share
the fun with other performance enthusiasts who want to take
their cars to the next level of performance, appearance and
handling!
Home
| Contact | About
| Store | Lines
| Links | Back
| Top
|
HOOSIER
MANUFACTURING
