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By Dave Zielasko
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![](3D"http://www.tirebusiness.com/pictures/FederalTireMa.jpg"=20)
Organized around a drifting theme, the festival-like event featured = blaring=20 techno music, a stage with two dancers dressed in Federal=92s green and = white=20 colors and an appearance by drifting celebrity Daijiro Inada, also known = as the=20 =93godfather of drifting.=94
These were set to a backdrop of blue sky, 100-degree temperatures and = the=20 rolling brown hills of this south central California race track.
Even Federal President and CEO Jamie Ma got into the moment, piloting = a=20 Federal-sponsored drift car around Willow Springs=92s Horse Thief Mile = Track in a=20 demonstration of the 595EVO=92s performance characteristics.=20
It was Federal=92s first-ever ride-and-drive event in the U.S.
The launch of the 595EVO is part of an effort by Federal to build its = brand=20 image in the U.S.
The tire maker does not have an administrative presence in the U.S., = but that=20 soon could change, Mr. Ma said. The company is looking to open a = marketing=20 office with five or six employees in the next year, most likely in = California.
The office would provide Federal with help in branding, working with = media,=20 coordinating events and sponsorships.=20
Mr. Ma said Federal decided to hold a ride-and-drive event in the = U.S. to=20 give the company=92s tire customers and distributors a chance to fully = experience=20 the new tire, which it began shipping in the fourth quarter of 2007. It = also was=20 a way to try a marketing event before establishing a marketing office.
Federal said it is targeting the 595EVO at driving enthusiasts =93who = demand=20 consistent performance on the track or circuit.=94
The tire, the next generation in Federal=92s 595 line, has a = silica-infused=20 tread compound to reduce rolling resistance, improve wet handling and = reduce=20 heat build-up at high speeds, the company said. Other tread features = include a=20 center rib for constant and even surface contact, wide-angled grooves to = disseminate water and large shoulder blocks for added sidewall = protection and=20 improved handling response.
Federal said it designed the 595EVO with high tensile steel belts for = better=20 control at high speeds, a polyester carcass for overall strength and = stiffness,=20 jointless bead wire to prevent cracking upon road impact and a jointless = full=20 band for tire uniformity and to prevent uneven wear.
Production of the tire started in the fourth quarter of 2007, Mr. Ma = said.=20 Twenty sizes currently are offered in rim diameters from 17 to 20 inches = and=20 aspect ratios from 30 to 55 series. By the end of 2009, a total of 60 = sizes=20 should be available.=20
Joseph Turner, who works in sales for Trican Tire Distributors in = Edmonton,=20 Alberta, and attended the 595EVO launch, said his company recently = started=20 getting the new tire and the results =93have been good so far.=94
Drifting, he added, is not big in Canada but is starting to gain = popularity.
Trican, with nine branches across the country, has sold the full line = of=20 Federal tires for about a year, Mr. Turner said. The company also offers = Hankook, Delta, Jetzon, Nitto and Pirelli brand tires.
On the other side of the world, in Australia, drifting is =93very = big,=94 said=20 Brett Quodling, sales and marketing manager for National Tyre = Wholesalers Pty.=20 Ltd., in Canberra, Australia.
Invited by Federal to attend the U.S. tire launch, Mr. Quodling = brought along=20 a camera man to create a DVD of the activities at Willow Springs for use = in=20 information packets the company sends out after receiving inquiries from = its Web=20 site.
The event provided =93a great opportunity to spend time with other = dealers=20 (and) drifters, and it was especially good to see Jamie Ma again,=94 he = said.
National Tyre has sold the Federal line for 23 years, and is also = associated=20 with Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., offering the Cooper brand as well as = Cooper=92s=20 Mickey Thompson, Starfire, Mastercraft and Avon products.
Mr. Quodling said the dealership has received =93fantastic support=94 = from=20 Federal over the years and added =93the products are excellent.=94
=93Jamie Ma has been instrumental in bringing Federal to the modern=20 era=97patents, technology and new sizes,=94 Mr. Quodling said. =93He is = very=20 progressive and forward thinking.=94
Mr. Ma, 34, is the third generation of his family to lead Federal = Tire. The=20 company was founded 54 years ago in Chungli City, Taiwan, by his = grandfather, Ma=20 Chi San, and one year later was registered officially as Tayfeng Rubber=20 Industries Co. Ltd., manufacturing and marketing rubber belts, = transmission=20 V-belts and related products.=20
Richard Ma, Jamie Ma=92s father, is the company=92s chairman.
In 1958, the company began making tires, starting with bias truck, = light=20 truck, passenger, motorcycle and farm tires.
In 1986, the company changed its name to Federal Corp. and 11 years = later it=20 took over Hero Tire Factory in Nanchang, Jiangxi, China, now known as = Federal=20 Tire (Jiangxi) Co. Ltd.
Federal operates two plants, one in Taoyuan, Taiwan, which focuses on = producing high-performance tires in sizes ranging from 12- to 26-inch = rim=20 diameters, and the factory in Jiangxi, which makes tires in 12- to = 20-inch rim=20 diameters, primarily for the domestic Chinese market.
The company=92s sales mix is 45 percent performance tires and 55 = percent=20 broadline, Mr. Ma said.
Besides passenger and light truck tires, Federal also produces = industrial=20 tires, according to the company=92s Web site. The company offers two = tire brands,=20 Federal and Hero.
Federal=92s products are sold in 80 countries around the globe. In = the U.S.,=20 the company sells primarily through distributors, including Hercules = Tire &=20 Rubber Co.=92s Tire Dealers=92 Warehouse unit, Dunlap & Kyle Inc. = and Somerset=20 Tire Service Inc. as well as tire retailer Les Schwab Tire Centers Inc. = The=20 company also has distributors across Canada, Mr. Ma said.=20
Sales in 2007 were $261.1 million, ranking Federal as the 44th =
largest tire=20
maker in the world, according to Tire Business=92 rankings.
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