Tibbetts turns spotlight on Rymec clutch range
Components provider Tibbetts Group has highlighted some of the development processes and features of its Rymec clutch brand, which it has says has been steadily growing over the past five years, and is now gaining significant traction in Europe.
Dave Randle joined the team in early 2020 as sales manager for the commercial vehicle channel, just before the Covid crisis hit – and has navigated a variety of challenges and changes over the past 12 months, including the issues posed by Brexit for the company, more than 75 per cent of whose revenue is from exports.
“The engineering facilities and standards that go behind the Rymec clutch range is second to none,” said Dave, who has now progressed to the role of global sales manager.
“We have a team of four in our engineering department ensuring all clutch kits and bearings launched meet the exacting standards that we benchmark to. Our starting point is OE, and this is the standard we work to for everything.”
When it comes to range, Dave emphasises the importance of balancing the need to get products to market quickly with ensuring all the quality checks and assurances are in place first.
“We tend to err on the cautious side,” he explained.
“We want to make sure the product is right before we release it to the market.
“Take our pneumatic bearing for Renault and Volvo applications. We have a huge depth and breadth of experience with concentric slave cylinders; in fact we are one of the world’s largest manufacturers. But although the technology is the same for a pneumatic bearing, we insisted on extra field tests and trials before launch.
“We have used the MIRA facilities, and had product on test in some of the toughest real-world environments such as the Amazon region, as well as short distance delivery trucks for hire, to really push the product to its limits.”
Dave points out how Rymec can fit into a ‘portfolio’ approach for some distributors.
“What’s great about the range is we also cover light commercial vehicles as well. So, fleets can be supported with a portfolio approach. For example, heavy commercial vehicles five years old and younger may have an OE replacement, but over five years may go to Rymec heavy duty clutch.
“But for light commercial vehicles, in the same fleet, it may be three years and younger for a dual mass flywheel and OE clutch kit replacement, but a Rymec solid flywheel and clutch kit replacement for anything four years old and on.”
While Rymec has been present in the UK for some time, the company says it expects the brand to be a UK export success story in the coming years.
Dave continued: “We are seeing a lot of interest and growth in Europe now. Once potential customers see what goes behind the Rymec name, they feel a lot more confident about it and see the benefits a matching quality range can give them.”
