Kal Tire’s Mining Tire Group, the global mining tyre management and supply company, has acquired the tyre services business of Klinge & Co in Australia. Kal Tire has been operating in Western Australia for approximately six years and it has long been a goal of the organisation to expand to Eastern Australia where the majority of major mines operate. “Even though our reputation is strong and recognised in many countries, it has been a challenge convincing customers of our credibility inside of Australia as our experience there has been limited.” says Dan Allan, Senior Vice President, Kal Tire’s Mining Tire Group. “With Klinge, Kal Tire aligns with a well-respected, trusted company known to the Australian mining industry and secures our presence as a national tyre service provider.”
Klinge & Co., co-owned by Tom and Dianne Klinge, is very similar to Kal Tire, which is also a family-owned organization started by Tom Foord in 1953 in Western Canada. Their cultural alignment is strong, both earning the respect of customers, and both regarding team members as part of the family. “Kal Tire and the Klinge tire services business is a strong comfortable fit for Dianne and I,” says Tom Klinge, co-owner, Klinge & Co. “We share many of the same values and objectives, in particular when it comes to looking after customers and team members. And after much heart-felt thinking, we feel it is time to focus on the Klinge software business going forward.”
Klinge & Co will be a software company going forward focused on tyre management systems, training, and tools. They have a proven tyre management tool called ‘TotalTyreControl’, which has become an industry standard for tire management software. Klinge will continue to develop its software business in Australia and provide software training in other parts of the world.
Kal Tire began its move east when they recently established themselves in the area of Muswellbrook, NSW, with the opening of a new mining tyre repair facility. Kal Tire will now be able to offer this valuable repair service, including its Ultra Repair™ technology and a number of other value-added offerings, to Klinge’s customers. “We are excited to welcome Klinge’s 200 skilled personnel to the Kal Tire family,” says Robert Foord, president, Kal Tire. “They bring invaluable experience with Australian miners. We’ve known Tom and Dianne Klinge for many years and we share the same commitment when it comes to how we think about our people and about our customers.”
When it comes to training and safety, the two organisations are once again strongly aligned. “Kal Tire’s focus on Journey to Zero is a commitment to every team member going home safely every day. Kal Tire also believes that every team member is the key to their success and extensive training and learning opportunities are provided. Their online Learning Management System contains both the international training standards set by the Tire Industry Association (TIA) as well as the company’s collective experience from 45 years of operations around the world.”
Kal Tire said it is very fitting that the TIA recognised Tom Klinge in 2015 for his contributions and the impact he has had on the industry. The important training material he developed and provided to the TIA, remains a part of Kal Tire’s training portfolio. “Kal Tire will now be working with some of the best tyre people we’ve had the pleasure of knowing and working with,” says Tom Klinge. “I know Kal Tire will embrace our team members and take care of them the same way we did.”
“This is an important milestone for our organisation,” says Allan. “With Klinge, Kal Tire aligns itself with a trusted, service oriented company, well established with Australian mining customers. It provides us with that missing piece of a proven performer on customer sites. “We look forward to providing current Klinge customers with the same high standards they are used to, and introducing them to additional capabilities we can offer.”