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NORTH AMERICA NEWS
Obituary: Doug Conley Sr.
25 years as Darrell’s wife. “Gloucester is ideal for us, as there are truck fleets close by and it’s central. We have the OK Tire store in Port Kells and do the retreads for Fountain Tire — all of B.C. is our territory.”
Their 15,000 square foot plant in Gloucester is capable of putting out 120 retreaded tyres per daily shift. They currently employ four and will have a workforce of six at capacity. There is also room to double
this production at the plant. Darrell says their Port Kells tyre store is currently making about 75 per cent of its sales to commercial users, truckers, and this aspect will grow.
“We will be in Prince George in three to five years, and are aggressively aiming for five stores in five years, in Kamloops, Prince George and the Lower Mainland,” said Darrell.
Doug Conley, Sr., founding partner and CEO of Shamrock Marketing, Inc. passed away on April 21, 2017 at age 69.
Born December 31, 1947 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Doug attended Seneca College to study Business and started his career at the Toronto Star Newspaper. Pursuing what would become his lifelong passion in advertising and marketing. He joined Ogilvy & Mather before entering the Tire Industry in 1970 with General Tire as Marketing Manager for Canada.
A bona-fide entrepreneur Doug founded and owned several businesses and holding companies. In 1980 Doug was a founding partner in Pilote Marketing, Inc. a wholesale distributor of inner tubes, specialty tyres, curing tubes, and curing envelopes, that was headquartered in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. In 1992, he was a founding partner and owner in Shamrock Marketing Inc. of Louisville, Kentucky, supplying Bulldog curing envelopes and rubber products,
consumables, and equipment to the tyre retread industry.
Doug also played an active role in the tyre retread industry including several years of service on the Board of Directors of the Tire Retread & Repair Information Bureau. In 1993 Doug was commissioned a Kentucky Colonel. He was a loyal Harley-Davidson enthusiast and collector of motorcycles and classic cars.
He is survived by his wife, Janice (Desautel) Conley; Sons, Douglas Conley, Jr. (Leigh-Ann) and their children Claire Conley and Noelle Conley; Patrick Conley and his child Payton Conley; Daughter, Heather Hickling (Duane) and their children Gwyneth Hickling and Charles Hickling.
Memorials can be made to one of Doug’s favourite charities: Toys for Tots (https://www.toysfortots.org/), Home of the Innocents (https://www.homeoftheinnocen ts.org/), or Dare to Care Food Bank ( https://daretocare.org/).
B&J Rocket America Appoints New Sales Management
B&J Rocket America, headquartered in Middlebury, Indiana, has announced the appointment of Caitlin M. Smith as General Manager Sales with immediate effect. In her new job function Smith will take over from Ben Graham, who has left the company at his own request. Smith joined B&J Rocket America, Inc. in 2010, and has extensive knowledge and sales experience in the field of tyre retreading. As General Manager Sales, she will report
directly to Andreas Müller, President of B&J Rocket.
Continental’s First B.C. Retread Plant Opens
Darrell Armstrong and his wife Vangie have invested in the first Continental Tire retread plant in British Columbia.
Canada and the United States, the Armstrong couple officially cut the ribbon for their new venture on June 12.
Bridgestone Aircraft Tire Expanding
The ContiLifeCycle Retread Plant is located in Gloucester, B.C.. In the company of representatives from Continental Tires from across
“We are getting in on the ground floor, which is where we like to be,” said Vangie, who has worked in the tyre industr y for many years, including the past
Bridgestone Aircraft Tire USA will expand its warehouse space in Mayodan, N.C. thanks in part to another local industrial leader. The aircraft tyre retread plant has plans to soon occupy a 36,000- square-foot warehouse located in the Madison Shell building, which is part of the Madison Business Park developed by Pine Hall Brick in Madison.
According to a county economic development release, the manufacturer of face-brick has spent over $600,000 to renovate the building for Bridgestone’s needs.
“This project is a great collaboration between two of our existing industries. It’s good news to see Bridgestone’s need for additional warehouse capacity outside its Mayodan plant. It’s even better news to have the
Madison Shell Building now occupied,” said Jan Critz, director of the Rockingham County Center for Economic Development, Small Business and Tourism.
The retread plant has seen growth and success since in late 2007. The Mayodan location is one of five Bridgestone aircraft retreading plants around the world – and the only one located in the Americas.
“Business growth demanded more space for inventor y needs, and the close proximity of the warehouse to our base operation facilitates a smooth flow of resources into our manufacturing process,” said Joe Rayna, president of Bridgestone Aircraft Tire USA.
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