December 17, 2008
Under Kontrol
Hankook looks to technology, capacity growth
By: Mike Manges
Hankook is packaging and presenting its Kontrol Technology to North American consumers. “We are in the first tier in the area of technology,” says Sang Ju Lee, vice president, research division, at Hankook Tire Co.’s R&D Center in Korea, and one of the architects of Kontrol Technology.
At Hankook Tire America Corp., control — or more accurately, “Kontrol” — is the new buzzword. The tire manufacturer used last month’s Specialty Equipment Market Association Show as a vehicle to introduce its Kontrol Technology to the North American market.
Hankook’s new Ventus R-S3 Z222 tire is the first product for the North American market that contains the technology, which is based on four pillars: performance, safety, comfort and environment.
Kontrol already has been available in a newer Hankook tire, the enfren, in South Korea, as well as in China.
“The Hankook proprietary technology within Kontrol Technology isn’t new,” says Bill Bainbridge, director of brand communications for Hankook. “It’s continuously developing.
“As a relatively young brand, Hankook needs to develop its identity and create brand equity. To this end, we want to be known as a technology-focused, market-driven manufacturer. Kontrol Technology is the ‘packaging’ as we go forward in communicating with dealers and consumers the essence of Hankook.”
Meanwhile, the company is making progress on several other fronts. Hankook’s newest distribution center in Aurora, Ill., a Chicago suburb, has helped the company achieve better supply. (The warehouse, Hankook’s sixth in the United States, opened last spring.)
Hankook also is working on several future original equipment fitments, including one with “a very popular brand name that has manufacturing plants in Mexico and will soon sell vehicles in North America,” says Bainbridge.
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