Yokohama Tire Corporation officially opened its new tire research and development facility--the Yokohama Development Center America in Cornelius NC. Local officials joined Yokohama executives for the ribbon-cutting festivities on October 1.
The high-tech, 25,000-sq-ft-building in Mecklenburg County, replaces the temporary R&D office Yokohama has utilized in Concord NC since 2016.
“In 1969--almost 50 years ago--Yokohama entered the US market and since then our name has been associated with quality, technology and innovation,” said Shinichi Takimoto, president and chief executive officer of Yokohama Tire Corporation of North America (YCNA), and chairman & chief executive officer of YTC. “This will continue with YDCA, which represents another major milestone for Yokohama in the United States.”
“The opening of YDCA is another example of our continued investment in North America,” said Tetsuya Kuze, executive vice president of YCNA. “We are committed to developing new products for this market across multiple segments.”
The Cornelius facility will consolidate separate R&D staffs currently operating at a number of locations throughout the United States and will be led by Shoichiro Matsuda, YCNA vice-president of corporate technical.
“Our primary focus here will be tire development,” Matsuda said. “We will also support other technical groups such as quality assurance and technical services.”