Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. has announced a number of personnel changes at its Mexico joint venture, including the appointment of Jim Smith to general director.
Smith most recently served as plant controller at Cooper's Texarkana, Ark., tire manufacturing facility.
Chris Barbara and Hugo Ybarra will assist Smith as director of marketing and director of sales, respectively.
Cooper's joint venture in Mexico, Cooper Tire & Rubber Company de Mexico, was formed Oct. 1. It is responsible for marketing the Cooper and Pneustone tire brands. Pneustone is the house brand of Llanti Systems, a Mexican company.
In related news, Kerry Barnett, Cooper's director of financial planning and commercial analysis, has been named controller of the Texarkana plant. Craig Durliat replaces Barnett.
Tim Albertson has joined Cooper as director of global costs, replacing Durliat, who served as manager of operations accounting. Meanwhile, Chuck Scarlett has been hired to serve as Cooper's director of supply chain accounting and Dan Wurth joins Cooper as lead commercial analyst.
Albertson comes to Cooper from Toledo, Ohio-based Great Lakes Window. Scarlett most recently worked for Owens Corning Fiberglass. Wurth previously worked for DaimlerChrysler Corp.
