Yokohama Tire Corporation has announced plans to locate a research and development center in Concord’s International Business Park. Until that facility is ready, the company will house up to 22 workers on UNC Charlotte’s campus in the PORTAL Building.
“UNC Charlotte is committed to being an economic development partner in the Charlotte region. We continue to play an active role in growing the region’s economy by attracting businesses interested in partnering with us on research and development,” said Vice Chancellor of Research and Economic Development Robert Wilhelm. “We welcome Yokohama Tire as our newest business partner at PORTAL. Our goal is to help them be successful as they continue investing capital and hiring people in the Charlotte region.”
This is the first North Carolina facility for Yokohama and the third international tenant in PORTAL, which sits on the Charlotte Research Institute campus near North Tryon Street. The company has signed a one-year lease but could stay in the space longer depending on its needs.
The Motorsports Research Laboratory, a part of the William States Lee College of Engineering, played a role in securing the company’s presence at UNC Charlotte. The lab houses the fifth-largest water channel in the United States. The channel has a flow rate of more than 1,000 liters per second and is used for everything from vehicle aerodynamic research to power generation research.
It also has the only Tomographic Particle Image Velocimetry (TomoPIV) experimental system in the United States and is one of only 10 in the world. TomoPIV provides three-dimensional flow measurements for analyzing turbulence. The lab also contains a wind tunnel with a rolling road for aerodynamic measurements around a tire in excess of 100 miles per hour.
When the space in Concord is ready, Yokohama will move off campus, but the company could still remain a business partner with UNC Charlotte.
Yokohama Tire joins GOM, a German global manufacturer of optical measurement solutions and technologies, and Redecam, an Italian manufacturer of pollution control equipment as PORTAL tenants.