Audiobahn promoted Doug Parks to director of marketing. Parks will be in charge of the company's marketing initiatives related to advertising, branding, shows and events, web, licensing, sponsorship, public relations and cross-promotional opportunities. Prior to this promotion, he was vice president of sales for Xsite In-Car Entertainment and directed all of Audiobahn's consumer and trade shows. In addition to Audiobahn, Parks will also oversee the marketing operations for Alphasonik, Swiss Audio, Xsite and Ichibahn.
John Moulton was appointed vice president and general manger, North American operations for Johnson Controls Automotive Experience business. Moulton has been with Robert Bosch since 1978, most recently serving as executive vice president, engineering and manufacturing, Bosch North America and general manager, diesel systems division, North America.
Accuride Corp. hired Joel Mow as vice president and general manager of its Bostrom Seating business unit. Mow most recently served as vice president and general manager, control systems division, Europe, automotive sShifter systems, cables and stamped and machined products for Dura Automotive Systems.
The Wally Parks NHRA Motorsports Museum, presented by Automobile Club of Southern California, shipped the Mickey Thompson Challenger to England for the Goodwood Festival of Speed, June 22–24. Mickey Thompson's Challenger, the first American automobile to go 400 mph will be part of a display in the festival's cricket pitch. The Challenger will be returned to the Parks Museum as the centerpiece of its land-speed racing exhibit set for Wednesday, November 7. The display will celebrate the 70th anniversary of the forming of the Southern California Timing Association.
Creative Material Technologies Ltd. President, John C. Becker IV, delivered a second presentation to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) at the organization's Regional Consultants Meeting in May. His presentation included the market conditions for the growing spray-on bedliner market sector, which is presently gaining market share 20 times faster than drop-ins; and 72% of spray-on bed liners are aftermarket installed. The numbers add to a growing health and safety concern, which, in turn, increases OSHA's attention and focus to address this health issue. For information on the OSHA Regional Consultants Meeting or the Consultancy Program, visit http://www.clearbedliner.com/news.
KICKER announced that factory training and certification are now available online for all authorized KICKER Car Audio dealers. While the new exclusive online format will serve a growing segment of authorized dealers, sales staffs, and installers, KICKER will continue its live trainings across the country.
Thule Inc. announced that Quality Magazine ranked the company fourth in its recent Quality Leadership 100 report, a ranking position that bested more than 800 companies that participated in the survey. The survey was based on criteria such as scrap and rework as a percentage of sales, warranty costs as a percentage of sales, rejected parts per million shipped and contribution of quality to profitability and shareholder value. The top 100 companies were listed in the publication's March issue.