Contributions for this year’s Tire Industry Association (TIA) Foundation fundraising drive are being sought to further augment industry training efforts.
Like this article? Sign up for our enews blasts here.
“TIA’s educational programs are best-of-breed and truly help elevate both the professionalism and safety of tire technicians,” says TIA President Larry Brandt.
“Servicing tires, whether in the garage or on the road, can be a dangerous undertaking,” he points out, “but with the proper training and tools, we protect both our dedicated employees and our customers from unnecessary risks.”
Money raised through the Foundation has aided in the development of several important training initiatives over the last decade, according to Brandt.
Most recently it helped fund the Spanish translation of TIA’s Commercial Tire Service (CTS) program. Without the Foundation, TIA would not have been able to produce this much-needed OSHA-compliant training for the Spanish-speaking workforce in the U.S., he notes.
“With this new Spanish CTS program, it will enable Pomp’s Tire Service to accomplish our goal of having over 85 percent of our technicians certified,” reports Larry Lampe, the director of human resources, training and safety at the Green Bay, Wis.-based company.
“Because TIA is recognized by the industry as the leader in tire/wheel related certified training, this is very important to the major fleets that partner with Pomp’s Tire Service to ensure that all services are performed properly and in a safe manner,” he adds.
The TIA Foundation began in 2001. “And in the last five years the Foundation has invested $772,000 on training program development, and that is actually almost a million dollars once staff time is factored in,” observes TIA Executive Vice President Dr. Roy Littlefield.
Bridgestone, Cooper, Goodyear and Michelin have already made donations this year, and Brandt says he “looks forward to others stepping-up to vigorously support the association’s fundraising drive for the industry’s educational effort.”
The TIA Foundation is a nonprofit, tax-deductible entity of TIA. Individuals and businesses can make a donation by sending a check payable to “TIA Foundation” to: TIA Foundation, Tire Industry Association, 1532 Pointer Ridge Place, Suite G, Bowie, MD 20716. All contributions are tax-deductible.
For more information, visit www.tireindustry.org.
Have articles like this sent to you weekly by signing up for our enews blasts here.
