Mitas supplying CNH with tire/wheel units

CHARLES CITY, Iowa (May 15, 2015) — Mitas Tires North America Inc. has garnered an original-equipment tire-wheel supply agreement with CNH Industrial N.V.'s NAFTA group for the vehicle maker's New Holland Air Cart seed spreaders.

Mitas will assemble Mitas-brand premium ag tires and GKN-brand wheels at its Charles City factory for delivery to CNH's Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, plant, for mounting on the Air Carts, which are towed vehicles mated to “air drill” seed planters.

The tire maker said it will deliver tires in six different tread designs and eight dimensions and various wheels and colors to support CNH's new Air Cart product offering. Air Carts can carry up to 580 bushels of seed, depending on size. Fully loaded the largest Air Cart weighs more than 50,000 pounds, CNH said.

Gregory Gilland, OE key accounts director, put the size of contract at “thousands” of tires and said, “We are diversifying our portfolio with CNHI by engaging other platforms outside of motorized vehicles, such as tractors or combines where our tires can continue to deliver a major performance difference.”

Mitas said one size — 800/70R38 178D/181A8 CHO SFT —will comprise a significant volume of the assemblies, which weigh almost 1,500 pounds.

The Mitas CHO (Cyclic Harvesting Operation) product line addresses the increasing need for soil protection, the company said, by providing more load-carrying capacity at lower inflation pressure. For example, the 800/70 R 32 CHO allows a reduction in inflation pressure of up to 31 percent at the same load compared to the standard tire. This lower inflation pressure results in the larger footprint of up to 24 percent.

Steve Timmons, senior director global marketing at Case New Holland, cited Mitas' superior product performance, quality, service and competitive pricing as reasons for securing the contract.

CNH Industrial produces agricultural and construction equipment, trucks, commercial vehicles, buses and specialty vehicles under the brands Case, Iveco, New Holland, Steyr and others.

CNHI Air Carts with Mitas tires are intended mainly for the North American market, Mitas said, but also will be exported to markets where large-scale small-grain operations take place.

Besides assemblies, Mitas will be responsible for managing the sourcing of the wheels, color selection for the Case IH and New Holland brands, wheel position, and timely delivery to meet CNHI's production needs.

In addition to the 800/70R38, Mitas will be delivering the following sizes:

• 900/60R32 176A8/173B CHO SFT TL MI

• 800/70R38 176A8/173D SFT TL MI                                                              

• 650/75R38 169D/172A8 SFT TL MI                                                              

• 800/65R32 167A8/164B AC70H TL MI                                         

• 600/40-22.5 TR12 16PR 160A8/148A8 TL MI                

• 18.4-38 8PR TD-19 TT MI (143A6/135A8)                                 

• 500/50R17 IMP 149D Multi-Service TL                           

Mitas Tires North America is a subsidiary of Mitas a.s. of Prague, Czech Republic, which in turn is part of CGS Holding a.s.