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Michelin



 
 
Michelin (full name: ) based in Clermont-Ferrand
Clermont-Ferrand

Clermont-Ferrand is a city and commune in France of France, in the Auvergne regions of France, with a population of 140,700 . Its metropolitan area had 409,558 inhabitants at the 1999 census....
 in the Auvergne
Auvergne (région)

Auvergne is one of the 26 administrative regions of France of France.The current administrative region of Auvergne is larger than the historical provinces of France of Auvergne , and includes provinces and areas that historically were not part of Auvergne....
 région
Region

Region is a geographical term that is used in various ways among the different branches of geography. In general, a region is a medium-scale area of land or water, smaller than the whole areas of interest , and larger than a specific site A region may be seen as a collection of smaller units or as one part of a larger whole ....
 of France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
, is primarily a tyre
Tire

Tires, or tyres , are ring-shaped parts, either pneumatic or solid , that fit around wheels to protect them and enhance their function....
 manufacturer, currently the world's second largest. It is also famous for its Red and Green travel guide
Michelin Guide

The Michelin Guide is a series of annual guide books published by Michelin for over a dozen countries. The term refers by default to the Michelin Red Guide, the oldest and best-known European hotel and restaurant guide, which awards the Michelin stars....
s, for the Michelin stars that the Red Guide awards to restaurants for their cooking, for its road maps, and for its emblem, the Michelin Man.

The tyre manufacturing subsidiary is officially called , "Michelin tyre manufacturing company of France." The company headquarters is in Clermont-Ferrand, 424 km south of Paris
Paris

Paris is the Capital of France and the country's largest city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the ?le-de-France Regions of France ....
, France.

Michelin is currently ranked second in the global tyre market, with Bridgestone
Bridgestone

is a multinational rubber Conglomerate founded in 1931 by in the city of Kurume, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The name Bridgestone comes from a literal translation and transposition of ishibashi, meaning "stone bridge" in Japanese language....
 first, Goodyear
Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company was founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling. Today it is the third largest tire company in the world after Bridgestone and Michelin....
 third, and Continental
Continental AG

Continental Aktiengesellschaft , internally often called Conti for short, is a worldwide leading manufacturer of tires, brake systems, vehicle stability control systems, engine injection systems, tachographs and other parts for the automotive and transport industries....
 fourth.

brothers, Édouard
Edouard Michelin

?douard Michelin was a French people industrialist. He was born in Clermont-Ferrand, France. ?douard was co-director of the Michelin company, along with his brother Andr? Michelin....
 and André Michelin, ran a rubber factory in Clermont-Ferrand
Clermont-Ferrand

Clermont-Ferrand is a city and commune in France of France, in the Auvergne regions of France, with a population of 140,700 . Its metropolitan area had 409,558 inhabitants at the 1999 census....
, France.






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Encyclopedia


Michelin (full name: ) based in Clermont-Ferrand
Clermont-Ferrand

Clermont-Ferrand is a city and commune in France of France, in the Auvergne regions of France, with a population of 140,700 . Its metropolitan area had 409,558 inhabitants at the 1999 census....
 in the Auvergne
Auvergne (région)

Auvergne is one of the 26 administrative regions of France of France.The current administrative region of Auvergne is larger than the historical provinces of France of Auvergne , and includes provinces and areas that historically were not part of Auvergne....
 région
Region

Region is a geographical term that is used in various ways among the different branches of geography. In general, a region is a medium-scale area of land or water, smaller than the whole areas of interest , and larger than a specific site A region may be seen as a collection of smaller units or as one part of a larger whole ....
 of France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
, is primarily a tyre
Tire

Tires, or tyres , are ring-shaped parts, either pneumatic or solid , that fit around wheels to protect them and enhance their function....
 manufacturer, currently the world's second largest. It is also famous for its Red and Green travel guide
Michelin Guide

The Michelin Guide is a series of annual guide books published by Michelin for over a dozen countries. The term refers by default to the Michelin Red Guide, the oldest and best-known European hotel and restaurant guide, which awards the Michelin stars....
s, for the Michelin stars that the Red Guide awards to restaurants for their cooking, for its road maps, and for its emblem, the Michelin Man.

The tyre manufacturing subsidiary is officially called , "Michelin tyre manufacturing company of France." The company headquarters is in Clermont-Ferrand, 424 km south of Paris
Paris

Paris is the Capital of France and the country's largest city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the ?le-de-France Regions of France ....
, France.

Michelin is currently ranked second in the global tyre market, with Bridgestone
Bridgestone

is a multinational rubber Conglomerate founded in 1931 by in the city of Kurume, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The name Bridgestone comes from a literal translation and transposition of ishibashi, meaning "stone bridge" in Japanese language....
 first, Goodyear
Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company

The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company was founded in 1898 by Frank Seiberling. Today it is the third largest tire company in the world after Bridgestone and Michelin....
 third, and Continental
Continental AG

Continental Aktiengesellschaft , internally often called Conti for short, is a worldwide leading manufacturer of tires, brake systems, vehicle stability control systems, engine injection systems, tachographs and other parts for the automotive and transport industries....
 fourth.

Tyres and wheels


History

Two brothers, Édouard
Edouard Michelin

?douard Michelin was a French people industrialist. He was born in Clermont-Ferrand, France. ?douard was co-director of the Michelin company, along with his brother Andr? Michelin....
 and André Michelin, ran a rubber factory in Clermont-Ferrand
Clermont-Ferrand

Clermont-Ferrand is a city and commune in France of France, in the Auvergne regions of France, with a population of 140,700 . Its metropolitan area had 409,558 inhabitants at the 1999 census....
, France. One day, a cyclist whose pneumatic tyre needed repair turned up at the factory. The tyre was glued to the rim, and it took over three hours to remove and repair the tyre, which then needed to be left overnight to dry. The next day, Édouard Michelin took the repaired bicycle into the factory yard to test. After only a few hundred metres, the tyre failed. Despite the setback, Édouard was enthusiastic about the pneumatic tyre, and he and his brother worked on creating their own version, one which did not need to be glued to the rim. Michelin was incorporated on 28 May 1888. In 1891, it took out its first patent for a removable pneumatic tyre.

Michelin has made a number of innovations to tyres, including in 1946 the radial tyre
Radial tire

A radial tire is a particular design of automobile tire . The design was originally developed by Michelin in 1946 . Because of its advantages, it has now become the standard design for essentially all automotive tires....
 (then known as the "X" tyre). It was developed with the front-wheel-drive Citroën Traction Avant
Citroën Traction Avant

The Citro?n Traction Avant is an automobile produced by the France manufacturer Citro?n. About 760,000 units were manufactured from 1934 to 1957....
 and Citroën 2CV
Citroën 2CV

The Citro?n 2CV is an economy car produced by the France automaker Citro?n from 1949 to 1990. It is considered one of their most cultural icon cars....
 in mind. Michelin had bought the then bankrupt Citroën in the 1930s. As of August 2008, this tyre is still available for the 2CV.

In 1988, Michelin acquired the tyre and rubber manufacturing divisions of the American B.F. Goodrich Company
Goodrich Corporation

Goodrich Corporation , is an United States aerospace manufacturing company based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Founded in Akron, Ohio, Ohio in 1870 as Goodrich, Tew & Co....
 founded in 1870. Two years later, it bought Uniroyal, Inc., founded in 1892 as the United States Rubber Company
United States Rubber Company

The United States Rubber Company was founded in Naugatuck, Connecticut in 1892. It was one of the original 12 stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, and became Uniroyal Inc....
. Uniroyal Australia had already been bought by Bridgestone in 1980.

As of 1 September 2008, Michelin is again the world's largest tyre manufacturer after spending two years as number two behind Bridgestone. Michelin produces tyres in France, Germany, USA, Brazil, Thailand, and several other countries.

Formula One

Michelin first competed in the 1977 Formula One season
1977 Formula One season

The 1977 Formula One season included the 28th FIA Formula One World Championship season, which commenced on January 9, 1977, and ended on October 23 after seventeen races....
, when Renault started development of their turbocharged
Turbocharger

A turbocharger, or turbo, is a gas compressor used for forced induction of an internal combustion engine. Like a supercharger, the purpose of a turbocharger is to increase the mass of air entering the engine to create more power....
 F1 car. Michelin introduced radial tyre technology to Formula One and won the Formula One Drivers' Championship
List of Formula One World Drivers' Champions

The Formula One World Drivers' Championship is awarded by the F?d?ration Internationale de l'Automobile to the most successful Formula One Auto racing over a season, as determined by a List of Formula One World Championship pointscoring systems based on Grand Prix results....
 with Brabham, before withdrawing in 1984.

The company returned to Formula One in 2001
2001 Formula One season

File:Schumacher brothers 2001 Canada.jpgThe 2001 Formula One season was the 52nd season of FIA Formula One racing. It featured the FIA Formula One World Championship which commenced on March 4, 2001 and ended on October 14 after seventeen races....
, supplying Williams, Jaguar
Jaguar Racing

Jaguar Racing was a Formula One team that competed in the FIA Formula One World Championship from 2000 Formula One Season to 2004 Formula One season....
, Benetton
Benetton Formula

Benetton Formula Ltd., commonly referred to simply as Benetton, was a Formula One constructor that participated from 1986 to 2001. The team was owned by the Benetton family who run a worldwide chain of clothing stores of the Benetton Group....
 (renamed Renault
Renault F1

Renault F1 is the Renault company's Formula One racing team. Renault has a long if intermittent history of involvement in motor racing, including Ferenc Szisz winning the 1906 French Grand Prix French Grand Prix, usually regarded as marking the birth of Grand Prix motor racing....
 in 2002), Prost and Minardi
Minardi

Minardi was an automobile racing team and constructor founded in 1979 by Giancarlo Minardi. It competed in the Formula One World Championship from 1985 until 2005 with little success, nevertheless acquiring a loyal following of fans....
. Toyota
Toyota F1

Toyota Racing is a Formula One team owned by Japanese car manufacturer Toyota and based in Cologne, Germany. Toyota announced their plans to participate in F1 in 1999, and after extensive testing with their TF101 initial car, the team made their debut in 2002....
 joined F1 in 2002 with Michelin tyres, and McLaren also signed up with the company. Michelin tyres were initially uncompetitive but by the 2005 season were totally dominant. This was partly because the new regulations stated that tyres must last the whole race distance (and qualifying), and partly because only one top team (Ferrari) was running Bridgestones, and so had to do much of the development work. Michelin in contrast had much more testing and race data provided by the larger number of teams running their tyres.

Following the debacle of the 2005 United States Grand Prix
2005 United States Grand Prix

The 2005 United States Grand Prix was one of the most controversial Formula One motor races in modern history. It was held on June 19, 2005 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway....
 where, because of safety concerns, Michelin would not allow the teams it supplies to race, Michelin's share price fell by 2.5% (though it recovered later the same day). On 28 June, Michelin announced that it would offer compensation to all race fans who had bought tickets for the Grand Prix. The company committed to refunding the price of all tickets for the race. Additionally, it announced that it would provide 20,000 complimentary tickets for the 2006 race to spectators who had attended the 2005 event.

Michelin has had a difficult relationship with the sport's governing body (the FIA
Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile

The F?d?ration Internationale de l'Automobile, commonly referred to as the FIA, is a non-profit association established as the Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus on June 20, 1904 to represent the interests of motoring organisations and motor car users....
) since around 2003, and this escalated to apparent disdain between the two parties during the 2005 season
2005 Formula One season

The 2005 Formula One season was the 56th FIA Formula One World Championship season. It commenced on March 6, 2005, and saw fierce battles, as Fernando Alonso and the Renault F1 team brought home the World Drivers and Constructors Championships, ending five years of dominance by Michael Schumacher and Scuderia Ferrari....
. The most high profile disagreement was at the United States Grand Prix and the acrimony afterwards. Michelin criticised the FIA's intention to move to a single source (i.e. one brand) tyre from 2008, and threatened to withdraw from the sport. In a public rebuke FIA President Max Mosley
Max Mosley

Max Rufus Mosley is president of the F?d?ration Internationale de l'Automobile , a non-profit association that represents the interests of motoring organisations and car users worldwide....
 wrote "There are simple arguments for a single tyre, and if [Michelin boss Édouard Michelin] is not aware of this, he shows an almost comical lack of knowledge of modern Formula One". Another bone of contention has been the reintroduction of tyre changes during pit-stops from 2006. Michelin criticised the move claiming "this event illustrates F1's problems of incoherent decision-making and lack of transparency."

In December 2005, and as a result of the difficult relationship with the sport's governing body, Michelin announced that it would not extend its involvement in Formula One beyond the 2006 season. Bridgestone
Bridgestone

is a multinational rubber Conglomerate founded in 1931 by in the city of Kurume, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The name Bridgestone comes from a literal translation and transposition of ishibashi, meaning "stone bridge" in Japanese language....
 has since then been the sole supplier of tyres to Formula One.

The last race won on Michelin Tyres in Formula One was the 2006 Japanese Grand Prix
2006 Japanese Grand Prix

The 2006 Japanese Grand Prix was the seventeenth race of the 2006 Formula One season. It was held between 6 October?8 October at Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka....
, Fernando Alonso
Fernando Alonso

Fernando Alonso D?az is a Spain Formula One racing driver and a two-time World Champion.On September 25, 2005 he won the List of Formula One World Drivers' Champions title at the age of 24 years and 58 days, thus breaking Emerson Fittipaldi's record of being the youngest World Drivers' Champion ....
 benefitting after the Ferrari
Scuderia Ferrari

Scuderia Ferrari is the name for the Gestione Sportiva, the division of the Ferrari automobile company concerned with racing. Though the Scuderia and Ferrari Corse Clienti continue to manage the racing activities of numerous Ferrari customers and private teams, Ferrari's racing division has completely devoted its attention and funding to its...
 engine of Michael Schumacher
Michael Schumacher

Michael Schumacher is a former Formula One driver, seven-time world champion, and current advisor and occasional test driver for Scuderia Ferrari....
 failed during the race. This gave Michelin a second consecutive Constructors' Championship
List of Formula One World Constructors' Champions

The Formula One World Constructors' Championship is awarded by the F?d?ration Internationale de l'Automobile to the most successful List of Formula One constructors over a season, as determined by a List of Formula One World Championship pointscoring systems based on Grand Prix results....
 win, with the 2005 and 2006
2006 Formula One season

The 2006 Formula One season was the 57th FIA Formula One World Championship season. It began on March 12, 2006 included 18 races, and ended on October 22....
, after Bridgestone's seven-year winning streak, and brought to a total of four the number of wins for Michelin since this event's inception back in the 1958 Formula One season
1958 Formula One season

The 1958 Formula One season included the 9th FIA Formula One World Championship season, which commenced on January 19, 1958, and ended on October 19 after eleven races....
; Michelin's other wins were in the 1979
1979 Formula One season

The 1979 Formula One season included the 30th FIA Formula One World Championship season, which commenced on January 21, 1979, and ended on October 7 after fifteen races....
, and 1984
1984 Formula One season

The 1984 Formula One season was the 35th FIA Formula One World Championship season. It commenced on March 25, 1984, and ended on October 21 after sixteen races....
 seasons.

Recent developments

  • Pax System
    Pax System

    The Michelin PAX is an automobile run-flat tire system that utilizes a special type of rim and tire to allow temporary use of a wheel if its tire is punctured....
  • Tweel
    Tweel

    The Tweel is an experimental tire design being developed at Michelin. The tire uses no air and therefore cannot burst or become flat. Instead, the Tweel's hub connects to flexible polyurethane spokes which are used to support an outer rim and assume the shock-absorbing role of a traditional tire's sidewall....
  • X One


ActiveWheel


ActiveWheel from Michelin includes in-wheel electric motors to free up space in the front or rear of the vehicle. This model also eliminates the need for other notorious space hogs like transmissions and exhaust systems. The wheels, already have a vehicle ready to receive them, the Heuliez
Heuliez

Heuliez is a France company that works as a production and design unit for various automakers. It specializes in producing short series for Niche marketing, such as convertibles or station-wagons....
 Will from Opel and are also expected to come standard on the Venturi Volage sometime in 2012 .

Other products


Tour guides

Michelin has long published two guidebook series, the Red Guides to hotel
Hotel

----A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including Bathroom#Types of bathroomss and air conditioning or clima...
s and restaurant
Restaurant

A restaurant prepares and serves food and drink to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and Delivery ....
s, and the Green Guides for tourism. It now publishes several additional guides, as well as digital map and guide products. The city maps in both the Red and the Green guides are of high quality, and are linked to the smaller-scale road maps.

Maps

Michelin publishes various series of road map
Map

A map is a visual representation of an area?a symbolic depiction highlighting relationships between elements of that space such as Object , regions, and topic-comment....
s, mostly of France but also of Europe
Europe

Europe is, conventionally, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural , the Caspian Sea, and by the Caucasus Mountains to the southeast....
an countries, Africa
Africa

Africa is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km? including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area....
, Thailand
Thailand

The Kingdom of Thailand is an independent country that lies in the heart of Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Laos and Myanmar, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the west by the Andaman Sea and Myanmar....
 and the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
. It has recently embarked on e-commerce selling Michelin maps and guides directly to the public through for example, their UK website

Online mapping

ViaMichelin
ViaMichelin

A wholly owned subsidiary of the Michelin Group, ViaMichelin designs, develops and markets digital travel assistance products and services for road users in Europe....
 is a wholly owned subsidiary of Michelin Group, and was started in 2001, to represent Michelin’s digital mapping services. As of August 2008, ViaMichelin generates 400 million maps and routes per month on its main website.

ViaMichelin provides mapping and travel solutions for internet, mobile and satellite navigation products with street level coverage of Europe, USA, Australia
Australia

Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
, and parts of Asia
Asia

Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent. It covers 8.6% of the Earth's total surface area and, with over 4 billion people, it contains more than 60% of the world's current human population....
 and South America
South America

South America is the southern continent of the Americas, situated entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere....
.

Bibendum

Michelinmanrunning
The company's symbol is Bibendum, (aka "Bib the Michelin Man", "Bibelobis", or simply the "Michelin Man"), introduced in 1898, by French artist O'Galop (a pseudonym of Marius Rossillon), and one of the world's oldest trademark
TradeMark

TradeMark is a tall, primarily residential, skyscraper in Charlotte, North Carolina. It was completed in 2007 and has 28 floors. There are 200 hundred residential units....
s. André Michelin apparently commissioned the creation of this jolly, rotund figure after his brother, Édouard, observed that a display of stacked tyres resembled a human form. Today, Bibendum is one of the world's most recognized trademarks, representing Michelin in over 150 countries.

The 1898 poster showed him offering the toast ("Cheers!" or "Now is the time to drink" in Latin), to his scrawny competitors with a glass full of road hazards, with the title and the tag ("That is to say, to your health: The Michelin tyre drinks up obstacles"). It is unclear when the word "Bibendum" came to be the name of the character himself. At the latest, it was in 1908, when Michelin commissioned Curnonsky
Curnonsky

Maurice Edmond Sailland , better known by his pen-name Curnonsky , and dubbed the Prince of Gastronomy, was the most celebrated writer on gastronomy in France in the 20th century....
 to write a newspaper column signed "Bibendum".

The name of the plump tyre-man has entered the language to describe the appearance of someone obese or wearing comically bulky clothing: "How can I wrap up warm without looking like a Michelin Man?".

In Spain, Michelín has acquired the meaning of the "tyres", or folds of fatty skin around the waist.

Bibendum's shape has changed over the years. O'Galop's logo was based on bicycle
Bicycle

The bicycle, bike, or cycle is a pedal-driven, human-powered transport with two bicycle wheel attached to a bicycle frame, one behind the other....
 tyres, and wore period-appropriate pince-nez
Pince-nez

Pince-nez are a style of spectacles, popular in the nineteenth century, which are supported without earpieces, by pinching the bridge of the nose....
 glasses with lanyard, and smoked a cigar
Cigar

A cigar is a tightly rolled bundle of dried and fermented tobacco which is ignited so that its smoke may be drawn into the smoker's mouth. Cigar tobacco is grown in significant quantities in Brazil, Cameroon, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Indonesia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Sumatra, the Philippines, and the Eastern United States....
. By the 1980s, Bibendum was being shown as a running Bib, and in 1998, his 100th anniversary
Anniversary

An anniversary is a day that commemorates and/or celebrates a past event that occurred on the same day of the year as the initial event. For example, the first event is the initial occurrence or, if planned, the inaugural of the event....
, a slimmed-down version became the company's new logo; his vision had improved, and he had long since given up smoking. The slimming of the logo reflected both lower-profile, smaller tyres on sport compact automobiles and a more athletic, slimmer and trimmer Bib. Bib even had a similar-looking puppy as a companion when the duo were CGI animated for recent American television advertisements.

Bibendum made a brief guest appearance in the Asterix
Asterix

The Adventures of Asterix is a List of Asterix volumes of France comic strips written by Ren? Goscinny and illustrated by Albert Uderzo . The series first appeared in French in the magazine Pilote on 29 October 1959....
 series, as the chariot-wheel dealer in certain translations, including the English one, of Asterix in Switzerland
Asterix in Switzerland

Asterix in Switzerland is the sixteenth volume of the Asterix List of Asterix volumes, by Ren? Goscinny and Albert Uderzo . It was originally serialized in Pilote issues 557?578 in 1970 and translated into English language in 1973....
. (The original French version used the Gaulish warrior mascot of French service-station company Antar
Antar

The term Antar can refer to several articles:*Antarah ibn Shaddad, a 6th century celebrated pre-Islamic Arab warrior and poet.*Antares, the star that marks the heart of the Scorpio constellation and which Arab culture associates with Antar, the warrior-poet....
.) The image also plays a key role in William Gibson's novel Pattern Recognition. Michelin sued the performance artist Momus
Momus (artist)

Nick Currie , more popularly known under the artist name Momus , is a songwriter, blogger and former journalist for Wired . Most of his songs are self-referential or postmodern....
 for releasing a song about the trademarked Michelin Man.

French reggae band Tryo
Tryo

Tryo is a France language 'unplugged' reggae acoustic band, popular in Europe and in Quebec, consisting of 3 French guitarists, a Latin American percussionist, and a producer : Guizmo, Christophe Mali, Manu Eveno, Daniel "Danielito" Bravo and Bibou....
 have sung about Bibendum on their album Grain De Sable
Grain De Sable

Grain de sable is the third album by Tryo, it was released in June 2003. It is worth noting that there should have been another song on this album which in the end was taken off, the song "COGEMA" did not appear on Grain de sable....
. - 'Mr Bibendum, he is truly enormous, Mr Bibendum; happiness in person'.

Michelin Challenge Bibendum

The Michelin Challenge Bibendum
Michelin Challenge Bibendum

The Michelin Challenge Bibendum is a major annual sustainable mobility event, sponsored by the French tire company Michelin. The next event is scheduled for 25-29 April 2009, in Rio de Janero Brazil....
 is an annual major sustainable mobility event.

Management

From 1999, the company was headed by CEO
Chief executive officer

A chief executive officer or chief executive is typically the highest-ranking Corporate title or Administration in charge of total management of a corporation, company, non-profit organization, or government agency, reporting to the board of directors....
 Édouard Michelin
Édouard Michelin (born 1963)

?douard Michelin , was managing partner and co-chief executive of the Michelin Group. He was the great-grandson of ?douard Michelin , a co-founder of the company....
. On 26 May 2006, Édouard drowned while fishing near the island of Sein
Île de Sein

The ?le de Sein is a France island in the Atlantic Ocean, off Finist?re, 8 kilometres from pointe du Raz , from which it is separated by the Raz de Sein....
, off the coast of Brittany
Brittany

Brittany is a former independent Celtic nations monarchy and duchy, now incorporated into France. It is also, more generally, the name of the cultural area whose limits correspond to the historic province and independent duchy....
. His death brought a non-member of the Michelin family, Michel Rollier
Michel Rollier

Michel Rollier is a France industrialist in the automobile industry. On May 26, 2006, he succeeded ?douard Michelin , as chief executive officer of the Michelin tire company....
, to the head of the company.

Trivia

  • Michelin owned the automobile manufacturer Citroën
    Citroën

    Citro?n is a France automobile manufacturer, founded in 1919 by Andr? Citro?n, it was the world's first mass-production car company outside of the USA....
     between 1934 and 1976.
  • Allied forces relied heavily on Michelin maps to plan the invasion of Normandy
    Normandy

    Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is situated along the coast of France south of the English Channel between Brittany and Picardy and comprises territory in northern France and the Channel Islands....
     during Operation Overlord
    Operation Overlord

    Operation Overlord was the code name for the invasion of Western Front during World War II by Western Allies forces. The operation began with the Normandy Landings on 6 June 1944 , among the largest amphibious warfares ever conducted....
     in the Second World War.
  • Michelin is a founding partner with the Clemson University
    Clemson University

    Clemson University is a state university , coeducational, Land-grant_university, research university located in Clemson, South Carolina, South Carolina, United States....
     International Center for Automotive Research
    Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research

    The Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research is a automotive and motorsports research campus currently under construction in Greenville, South Carolina....
    , located near Michelin of North America's headquarters in Greenville, South Carolina
    South Carolina

    South Carolina is a U.S. state in the Southern United States of the United States. It borders Georgia to the south and North Carolina to the north....
    .
  • Michelin is the Original Equipment Manufacturer
    Original Equipment Manufacturer

    OEM stands for "Original Equipment Manufacturer".An original equipment manufacturer, or OEM is typically a company that uses a component made by a second company in its own product, or sells the product of the second company under its own brand....
     (OEM) supplier to Volvo
    Volvo

    The Volvo Group is a Sweden supplier of commercial vehicles such as trucks, buses and construction equipment, drive systems for marine and industrial applications, aerospace components and financial services....
    's Mark II vehicles. Michelin is also OEM supplier to General Motors
    General Motors

    General Motors Corporation , founded in 1908, is the world's second-largest automaker after Toyota, ranked by 2008 global unit sales. GM was the global sales leader for 77 consecutive calendar years from 1931 to 2008....
    , Volkswagen Group
    Volkswagen Group

    Volkswagen Group, or Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft , is a German automotive industry group, currently the automotive industry#World's largest vehicle manufacturing groups , and the largest in Europe....
    , and many other marque
    Marque

    A marque is a brand name, especially in the automobile industry. For example, Chevrolet and Pontiac are marques of their maker, General Motors Corporation ....
    s of vehicles.
  • The "Bibendum Chair" was a design by Eileen Gray
    Eileen Gray

    Kathleen Eileen Moray Gray was an Irish furniture designer and architect and a pioneer of the Modern Movement in architecture....
    .
  • Marcel Michelin, the son of the founder André Michelin
    André Michelin

    Andr? Michelin was aFrench people industrialist who, with his brother ?douard Michelin , founded the Michelin in 1888 in the French city of Clermont-Ferrand....
     started the local rugby team, ASM Clermont Auvergne
    ASM Clermont Auvergne

    Association Sportive Montferrandaise Clermont Auvergne is a France rugby union club from Clermont-Ferrand in Auvergne that currently competes in Top 14, the top level of the Ligue Nationale de Rugby....
    , and was a pioneer of skiing in the Massif Central
    Massif Central

    The Massif Central is an elevated region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus.Subject to volcano that has subsided in the last 10,000 years, these central mountains are separated from the Alps by a deep north-south cleft created by the Rh?ne River and known in French language as the sillon rhodanien ....
    . An early member of the French Resistance
    French Resistance

    File:Croix de Lorraine2.svgThe French Resistance is the collective name used for the French resistance movements which fought against the Nazi Germany German occupation of France in World War II and the collaborationist Vichy Regime during World War II....
    , he died in a German concentration camp in 1945.
  • Cayce Pollard, the protagonist of William Gibson
    William Gibson

    William Gibson is an American-Canadian science fiction author.William Gibson may also refer to:*William Gibson , English Catholic martyr...
    's 2003 novel Pattern Recognition
    Pattern Recognition (novel)

    Pattern Recognition is a novel by science fiction writer William Gibson published in 2003. Set in August and September 2002, the story follows Cayce Pollard, a 32-year-old marketing consultant who has a psychological sensitivity to corporate symbols....
    , exhibits a phobic reaction to the Michelin Man.
  • In 2007 the Michelin Store opened in Downtown Greenville, South Carolina. There is also a smaller gift shop in the Michelin Main building.
  • Michelin tyre baby syndrome
    Michelin tire baby syndrome

    Michelin Tire Baby Syndrome , is characterized by multiple, symmetric, circumferential skin creases, or bands, on the forearms, lower legs, and often the neck that are present at birth....
     is a disease named after the Michelin Man.
  • Tecticornia bibenda
    Tecticornia bibenda

    Tecticornia bibenda is a species of plant of the Salicornioideae family from Western Australia. Its segmented stem gives it an appearance similar to the Michelin Man....
    , a newly discovered plant species of Western Australia, is named after Bibendum.


See also

  • Pirelli
    Pirelli

    Pirelli & C. SpA is a diverse multinational company based in Milan, Italy....


External links



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