ArvinMeritor's Commercial Vehicle Systems business has announced signing a long-term agreement with Liteflex LLC to be the exclusive distributor of Liteflex truck, trailer, and specialty vehicle composite mechanical springs. The agreement is effective immediately for North America and several other global markets and extends the existing agreement, which originated in 2003.
"We are pleased to extend this agreement with Liteflex to a long-term arrangement, not only for ourselves but more importantly for our customers," said Sergio Carvalho, vp & gm of ArvinMeritor Trailer Products.
"Continuing this agreement is a win-win scenario not only for our companies, but particularly for fleets and end-users that will gain from lightweight composite technology," said Daniel Chien, vp of sales & engineering for Liteflex.
Going forward, the two companies will jointly develop integrated composite suspension modules and systems to address the need for lighter weight and better riding suspensions. A prime example of this is the SimilAir composite trailer spring, which has been successfully field-tested in over 100 trailers since August 2004, and will be launched early next year, said ArvinMeritor.
According to ArvinMeritor, the collaboration with Liteflex will also provide the opportunity to pursue the use of composite technologies in components beyond springs.
"We've already seen the wide-ranging benefits composite mechanical springs can offer fleets and end-users," commented Carvalho. "Our combined expertise will allow us to build on what exists today to take composite technologies to the next level."
These heavy-duty springs will be manufactured at Liteflex facilities in Dayton, OH. Liteflex LLC is a privately held company since 2001. It has its world headquarters and four manufacturing sites located in the Dayton area. The company said it boasts a 25-year heritage of GM, Inland and Delphi composite technology.
For more information, go to www.arvinmeritor.com.
