TRC Customers to Benefit From One Roof Initiative

Technical Rubber Co. (TRC) says its One Roof Initiative will provide customers with faster lead times, insulation against tariffs and other benefits.

The multi-million-dollar effort, first envisioned more than a decade ago, will “consolidate our manufacturing, warehousing and office operations under a single, modern footprint in Johnstown, Ohio,” TRC’s home for more than 80 years, Brent Klomparens, global business line leader, Tech Tire & Wheel, told MTD before a recent tour of what will become the new facility.

Under its Tech brand, TRC manufactures and distributes tire repair materials and chemicals for a wide range of applications.

“For 86 years, as we kept growing, we simply continued adding onto our manufacturing plant,” Kyle Sinks, general manager, Americas, told MTD. “Over time, our building aged and that growth created an inefficient lay-out where products and people traversed multiple buildings to complete processes. One Roof is our opportunity to reimagine that footprint and innovate” by streamlining production, increasing automation “and improving cross-functional collaboration.” 

Major investments 

The One Roof Initiative will add 64,000 square feet to an existing TRC facility in Johnstown. More than half of what TRC manufactures in the United States is sold throughout North America. The rest are exported to more than 100 countries. TRC also has locations in Europe, China, Japan, Brazil and South Africa that serve customers within those geographies.

"We’ve taken some liberties to invest for more production and to enhance quality” in Johnstown, said Sinks. "We’re investing in state-of-the-art automation equipment for mixing, filling and packaging, which improves product consistency and throughput. Major tire repair material work centers are being upgraded. We’re also implementing smarter warehouse systems designed to deliver over 99% stock accuracy. This means customers can count on receiving exactly what they ordered, faster, with fewer errors.

"These are areas where we saw clear opportunities. Our legacy systems worked, but they required manual processes and didn’t scale as effectively with our growth.”

Investing in domestic production also will help insulate TRC and its customers from the impact of tariffs imposed on off-shore-made products, according to Sinks. 

“In today’s climate of tariffs, volatile shipping costs and supply chain uncertainty, our U.S.-based production isn’t just a point of pride. It’s a critical advantage that helps our customers every day. By manufacturing here, we can deliver faster lead times, more consistent inventory availability and greater supply chain resilience, while maintaining strict control over quality."

TRC employees also will benefit from the One Roof Initiative, said Sinks. (Nearly half of the company’s 500-person workforce is based in Johnstown.)

"We’ve increased natural lighting” within the new facility, which also is climate-controlled. “We’re incorporating experiential design elements ... to help us share our story with both employees and customers.”

Other enhancements include a modern cafeteria. All are designed “to help us compete for talent in a region where other major employers are expanding.” 

‘Central to our identity’ 

Demand for tire repair is closely mirroring “what (new) tire manufacturers are experiencing,” Klomparens told MTD. “One on hand, strong vehicle utilization and the rising cost of new tires have driven steady demand for repairs across the passenger, light truck and commercial segments. Fleet and consumers alike are focused on extending tire life and managing budgets more carefully.”

A the same time, he said, the popularity of less-expensive tires are convincing some customers to simply replace tires instead of repairing them “because the economics favor short-term replacement over repair. This dynamic has put pressure on repair volumes, even as the value of premium repairs remains clear for higher-quality and retreaded tires.”

Klomparens said TRC will continue to invest in its operations and capabilities, even after the One Roof Initiative wraps up near the end of first quarter 2026. "TRC has been dedicated to American manufacturing since our founding in 1939, when Charles Cornell invented the cold vulcanization tire repair process here in Johnstown. Over eight decades later, that commitment remains central to our identity.”