OREANDA-NEWS. Since its acquisition of Veyance Technologies Inc. at the beginning of 2015, ContiTech has significantly expanded its business in the U.S.A., the partner country of this year's Hannover Messe industry trade fair. From 25 modern production sites in North America, the technology leader supplies solutions to local and international customers in a variety of industries, including mining, construction, machine and plant engineering, energy, and the automotive sector. With more than 8,000 employees in NAFTA including more than 4,000 employees the U.S.A., the rubber and plastics specialist produces components and systems such as hoses, vibration control elements, air springs, surface materials, conveyor belts, drive belts, and technical materials.

Growth Opportunities in New Industries
“We offer high-tech rubber and plastic products that help our North American industrial partners find solutions for their mobility, safety, energy generation, and energy efficiency challenges,” says Jim Hill, CEO ContiTech NAFTA. “Our customers benefit from the expertise we’ve gained from many years of local knowledge, our production facilities in the markets, and our local sales and service organizations. What's more, we have now brought new products to market too. This is a win-win situation for us and for our customers, as our goal is to branch out into new industries with our solutions,” explains Hill. In the U.S.A. and across the entire NAFTA area, the food and beverage industry is an example of one of these new markets. The sector has seen relatively constant growth and is not as strongly affected by market fluctuations as other industries. A marketing program for this sector is currently in development.

Solutions for Off-Highway Segments
ContiTech also supplies a range of smart solutions for the off-highway segments, such as the agricultural sector. These products are of particular interest to agricultural machinery manufacturers such as John Deere, Case New Holland, and AGCO. ContiTech offers scratch-resistant surface materials for agricultural vehicle interiors, electrically conductive fuel hoses that prevent static charge to protect the vehicle against sparking and self-ignition, and many different types of drive belts. In agricultural machinery, these belts transmit very high loads very reliably – particularly the Synchrochain Carbon, a polyurethane timing belt with carbon. This highly wear- and abrasion-resistant high-performance belt is completely maintenance-free, which helps to reduce servicing and replacement costs.

New Products for Europe
ContiTech also sells some of its products from the North American market in Europe, for example Trackman rubber tracks. This solution is designed for heavy equipment and tractor units such as agricultural tractors, combines, heavy transporters, and road construction equipment. Compared to tires, these tracks distribute the vehicle's weight more evenly across a larger surface area. They also possess a number of advantages over steel tracks. They are significantly lighter, cause less damage to the surface, increase driver comfort, and improve ride and handling characteristics. Compared to other track types, they also boast significantly lower energy consumption. ContiTech rubber tracks are particularly useful in heavy and moderately heavy applications. Even at drive capacities of over 500 hp, they offer a completely secure grip on soft surfaces. ContiTech produces rubber tracks in St. Marys, Ohio; global sales are also managed from this site.

Added Value Innovations
One of the key factors driving ContiTech’s success in the region is the company's ability to innovate. With four outstanding research and development centers in North America and a full ContiTech R&D network in all relevant markets, the company has laid the foundations for success. For example, with the ContiAlert cover wear indicator ContiTech has developed an innovative service solution for conveyor belts. When the conveyor belt rubber reaches a specific level of wear and the belt needs to be replaced, a red strip appears on it. “The key to our success is this: We create individual, sophisticated, and tailor-made solutions to generate added value for our customers. And a single, expert source supplies it all – the product, the system, and the service. We want to lead the way in efficiency, technology, safety, and connectivity,” Hill concludes.