Yokohama Tire makes executive changes

The Japan-based Yokohama Tire Corp (YTC), which has North American headquarters in Santa Ana, California, has announced three organizational promotions effective at the beginning of 2018.

• Hideto Katsuragawa has been named chairman of YTC. Katsuragawa, a Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. (YRC) board member and senior managing corporate officer, remains president and CEO of Yokohama Corp. of North America (YCNA), which oversees operations in North America and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tokyo-based YRC.
• Shinichi Takimoto, also a YRC corporate officer, has been named CEO of YTC, Yokohama Tire Canada (YTV) and Yokohama Tire Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V. (YTMX).
• Jeff Barna (pictured above), who joined YTC in January of 2017 as chief operating officer, has been named president of YTC. Barna’s expanded role will include oversight of the company’s original equipment sales, export sales and human resource functions, designed to complement his current responsibilities of sales, marketing, product management, supply chain/logistics, project management and business analytics.

With a sales network throughout the U.S., YTC’s product line includes tires for high-performance, light truck, passenger car, commercial truck and bus and off-the-road mining and construction applications.