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Featured Story from the November/December 2003 Today's Tire Industry
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Tire Industry Hall of Fame Welcomes Two New Members

The purpose of the Hall of Fame is to honor, preserve and perpetuate the names and outstanding accomplishments of personalities who have brought lasting fame to the tire, rubber and transportation industries. Past inductees include Harvey Firestone, Charles Goodyear, Andre Michelin, John Dunlop, Les Schwab and Ernest Zielasko. The Hall of Fame is open to all in the tire industry, including manufacturers, inventors, publishers, equipment suppliers, tire dealers and retreaders.

Thomas J. "Tom"; FoordTom Foord is the founder and president of Kal Tire, the largest independent tire dealer in Canada with sales exceeding US$280 million annually. He started the company in 1953 with a single location in Vernon, British Columbia, Canada. There are now 113 corporate-owned stores, 50 associate dealers, 15 retread plants, 5 distribution centers, a subsidiary operation in Chile and associated operations in Ontario.

Kal Tire serves all market segments, including passenger and light truck, commercial truck, earthmover, agricultural, and underground and open pit mining. It retails and wholesales new and retreaded tires.

Under Tom's leadership, the company was an innovator in the Canadian tire industry. Kal Tire was the first dealer in Western Canada to:

• use service trucks to make runs to customer sites;
• aggressively use credit as a means of gaining customers and increasing sales;
• invest in a distribution system to provide stores with a source for certain supplies of product at terms that allowed them to sell at solid margins;
• offer employees a defined training program and career path;
• offer employees 50 percent of store profits.

Tom's service to the industry and his community are notable. He was a founder of the Western Canada Tire Dealers Association and a dealer counsel for various manufacturers. He was chairman of the United Way for several years and built and donated People Place-a complex that provides offices and administrative support for charitable and non-profit organizations in the Vernon area. His company and family make major charitable contributions throughout Western Canada on an annual basis.

In addition to numerous local awards by various chambers of commerce, local charitable organizations and business organizations, Tom has also received the Order of British Columbia, the highest recognition of a citizen in the Province of British Columbia; an Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree for entrepreneurship awarded by Royal Roads University in Victoria, British Columbia; and an Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree for community service and entrepreneurship awarded by Okanagan University College in Vernon, British Columbia.

Marvin F. Bozarth

Forty-five years ago, Marvin Bozarth embarked on a career in the tire industry that eventually led to the top position with an international association and worldwide recognition of his tire knowledge and retreading expertise.

Marvin's involvement in the industry began in 1958 with a seven-year stint as plant manager of the Missouri Farmers Association Oil Company. Retreading of passenger, truck, farm and off-the-road tires became his specialty. In 1965, he hired on with Community Tire Company in St. Louis, Missouri, where he served as general manager of the Retread Division. After five years, Marvin moved to Purcell Tire Company in Potosi, Missouri. He served as plant manager for five years and vice president of manufacturing for 15 years with responsibility for six retread plants, two of which produced earthmover retreads.

In 1990, Marvin accepted the position of Technical Director of the American Retreaders Association (ARA) in Louisville, Kentucky. His first major assignment was overseeing the design and construction of the organization's state-of-the-art Headquarters & Training Center. He was promoted to the Executive Director position in 1991 and, as such, was accountable for the Association's membership and educational activities worldwide. During his tenure, he served as editor of the legendary TIre Retreading/Repairing Journal and managed the organization's name change transition from ARA to the International TIre and Rubber Association (ITRA).

Marvin resigned his position in 2002 as ITRA merged with the Tire Association of North America. He now serves as senior technical consultant of the new organization - The Tire Industry Association (TIA) - and operates Bozarth Tire Industry Consultants, LLC providing tire and wheel failure analysis; expert witness testimony; equipment evaluation; plant surveys; troubleshooting; plant analysis; and fleet surveys.

Marvin also specializes in tire sales and service; retread product sales and service; machinery and mold design for retreading; tire service, retreading and sales personnel training and supervision; tire delivery truck fleet management; electrical, steam and air systems; retread facility fire and explosion investigation; retread industry equipment installation; tire industry training program development and implementation; United States government agency tire training program development and implementation; and products liability court cases.

The tire industry has been the beneficiary of Marvin's volunteer service. He served on the American Society for Testing and Materials F9 Committee and as a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers on the Off-the-Road Tire & Rim Committee. He was a member of the Society of Automotive Engineers J2014 Committee for Tactical Military Tires and a board member of the Tire Retread Information Bureau. Marvin is past chairman of the Retread Industry Government Advisory Council and a past member of the ITRA Advisory Council. In 1991, he was the recipient of the ITRA Industry Recognition Award.

Tom Foord and Marvin Bozarth were inducted into the TIA Tire Industry Hall of Fame on November 4, 2003, during the International Tire Expo/SEMA Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. Nominations are accepted annually by September 1.

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