Alcoa has named Kevin Kramer, formerly the president of the company’s transportation products business, to the newly created position of president of growth initiatives. He is responsible for supporting commercialization strategies for growth across Alcoa. Kramer joined the company in 2004 as president of its cast auto wheels business.
The Stater Bros. Route 66 Rendezvous 2009 Cruisin’ Hall of Fame Inductees are: Wanda Wells of Wanda’s Upholstery in the Builder/Designer Category; Airstream in the Manufacturer/Vehicle Category; Westways magazine in the Media/Entertainment Category; and the Grand National Roadster Show in the Historical/Misc. Category. The inductees will be honored at the Cruisin’ Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Saturday, September 19, at the San Bernardino County Government Center Rotunda, 385 N. Arrowhead Ave, San Bernardino, California, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Tickets are $30.00 per person and must be purchased in advance at the Route 66 Rendezvous office, 415 West 2nd Street, San Bernardino. For more information on the Stater Bros. Route 66 Rendezvous, visit www.ROUTE-66.org.
Covercraft Industries Inc. entered into an agreement to purchase most of the assets of Global Accessories Inc. The product lines in the agreement are Wolf Automotive, Powersports and Marine covers, LeBra front-end covers, DashMat dashboard covers, Premier Floor Mats and Spidy Gear cargo web product lines. Global's Downey Products and LeBra tonneau covers product lines were not included in the purchase. The transaction was concluded on Monday, June 15, and management is in the process of determining how and when production of the Global Accessories products will resume.
A Toyota Camry Hybrid will make its debut as a pace car at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale on July 4. The hybrid Camry will lead the starting field of the King Taco 200 NASCAR Camping World West Series race. A similar Toyota Camry Hybrid pace car made its NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut in May at Lowe’s Motor Speedway when it became the first hybrid vehicle to serve as the official pace car for an entire race.
The Automotive Communication Council (ACC) named its new officers and board of governors for 2009. The new officers are president Neal Zipser, NZ Marketing & Communications; first vice president David Kobuszewski, NASCAR; second vice president Tony Molla, National Institute of Automotive Service Excellence (ASE); treasurer Aaron Shaffer, KYB America; secretary Dawn Gagne, Exide Technologies; and immediate past president Katie Noga, SKF. Newly elected 2011 term board members are Ted Hughes, MAHLE Clevite Inc.; Tom Marx, the Marx Group; and Gary Molinaro, The Greensheet. For more information, visit www.acc-online.org.
The recipient of the 2009 Vic and Nancy Edelbrock Scholarship is Mathew Mitchell, a student at Torrance, California, High School. Edelbrock President Vic Edelbrock presented Mitchell with a check for $1,500. Mitchell, selected for the scholarship through an essay submission as a top performer in Torrance High’s automotive class, plans to pursuit a degree in business and has the career goal of turning his hobby into something that he can enjoy everyday.