Manufacturer of rubber tracks and tires.

Torrance, CA, July 1, 2009

Even though there are some estimates that the US economy may have reached the bottom of the recession, the fact is that we are still living in very tough times. The construction industry has been severely affected and independent construction contractors around the nation have been forced to scale back on investments in their businesses. But it is well known in the construction business that without the proper equipment a contractor can hardly remain competitive and offer the kind of quality work that is required in order to remain in business and grow a company. A lot of business owners have been struggling with the temptation to purchase cheaper lower quality products and tools, while knowing that that would compromise the quality of their work.

When it comes to rubber tracks for compact equipment, such as track loaders and mini excavators, the dilemma typically is whether to save by purchasing cheaper tracks, usually made in China or Korea, or to invest in a slightly more expensive set of McLaren tracks, which come with guaranteed quality and many years of positive feedback from the field. For the most part serious contractors and rubber track customers have chosen quality over discounted tracks. However, there are still those who would need a “middle of the road” solution – a more economical track, which still has good quality and, most importantly, comes from a reliable company.

McLaren’s Val-U-Trak™ was created in response to a number of customer inquiries for such a product – reliable quality, moderately priced. To manufacturer a more economical quality product, McLaren product designers looked at the rubber compound, as well as the steel hardware inside the track - forged steel links and steel cables. Essentially, these are the main components of a rubber track, which also contribute to the majority of the production cost.

After a thorough analysis, McLaren engineers developed a more cost effective but still capable rubber compound. They also refined the forged links by redesigning the links to save weight without compromising critical stress points. To ensure that the product quality is not compromised, they have used the same McLaren SpoolRite™ belting technology, which is typically used for the manufacturing of the premium NextGen TDF series track loader rubber tracks. Val-U-Trak rubber tracks are manufactured under the same strict process guidelines and production consistency as all other McLaren rubber tracks, and they come with a warranty against manufacturer’s defects. McLaren’s reliable Customer Service team is available for product support, and customers can feel confident in their cost effective investment, as well as the unique for the industry McLaren customer service.

To learn more about Val-U-Trak, or to place an order, please call McLaren Industries at 1-800-836-0040 or click here to request a quote .

It is not uncommon for industrial manufacturers to burn heavy oil, coal or diesel in their daily production process. The result is high carbon emissions and air pollution. With what’s best for the environment in mind, McLaren now uses highly efficient natural gas heating of the molds for the manufacturing of all its rubber tracks.

Because of the strategic location of the manufacturing facility near the Gulf of Thailand, McLaren receives natural gas straight from a major gas pipeline, instead of trucking it in from gas suppliers. That additionally reduces air pollution by eliminating the diesel emission from the tanker trucks.

The benefits of natural gas as an energy source, as opposed to diesel, coal or heavy oil, are undisputed. Burning natural gas produces no sulfur dioxide emissions, and has far lower levels of greenhouse gasses emissions than oil, diesel and especially coal. In addition, natural gas produces no solid waste.

McLaren has implemented additional measures to increase the energy efficiency of its manufacturing process. A good example is the factory boiler system, which is upgraded with “economizers”. Even though this raises the initial cost of the system by as much as 25%, the burning efficiency is as high as 97%. The long term results are lower energy costs and further reduction of the overall gas emissions from the factory.

Industrial waste water is another common polluter in the manufacturing industry worldwide. To eliminate the polluting effect of waste water McLaren Industries utilizes a waste water treatment plant for the washing and cooling water that has been used throughout the manufacturing facility.

When it comes to protecting the environment, certain manufacturers like McLaren are contributing simply by choosing to use the right kind of raw materials. With its consistent and growing utilization of natural as opposed to synthetic rubber, which is often cheaper, McLaren directly contributes to the planting and growing of hundreds of thousands rubber trees each year.

The production of rubber is an ecologically clean farming process, characterized with minimum environmental damage. Tapping the rubber trees to extract latex, the raw material for natural rubber, does not kill the trees. A properly harvested rubber tree can live for over 25 years. The production of just one McLaren rubber track requires the annual rubber output of 14 rubber trees. And, since it takes 7 years for a new tree to be ready for tapping, tens of thousands of new trees have to be planted and harvested each year to support McLaren production!

To learn more about McLaren Industries and its line of products please call 1-800-836-0040 or visit www.mclarenindustries.com.

McLaren USA expects continued sales growth in 2008. With a downturn in the market, and recession on the horizon, McLaren has managed to outpace the industry and its own New Year expectations. McLaren CEO Richardson Doyle explains, "We are really happy but not really surprised!  Over the last three years we've increased our R&D budget, expanded our international coverage, and invested heavily in improved manufacturing.  The truth is that more and more customers are choosing quality over price, and quality is what McLaren is best known for."  

McLaren's biggest boost in sales comes from customers who have been unsatisfied and disappointed with other suppliers. As Mr. Doyle explains, "Too many skid steer, track loader and excavator owners have been burned by a number of rubber track distributors selling poor quality products with poor customer service support, and they are tired of it! A great rubber track and a bad rubber track both look fabulously the same when new, but after use for a few hundred hours the customers understand what they've really purchased. And many are bitterly disappointed. We simply provide an alternative."

Over the past 3 years McLaren moved the majority of its production from China and Korea to its new facility in Thailand. This decision was based upon quality and production limitations. Thailand was chosen because of its abundance of natural rubber, modern industrial estates, and access to a very detail oriented workforce. "McLaren took a big step forward when it decided to open its new, state of the art manufacturing facility in Thailand," Mr. Doyle adds.

The new facility is located in a large modern industrial estate alongside US giants such as GM and Ford, which gives McLaren access to better utilities at a very competitive price.  The new location allows for the production of better quality rubber products at a lower cost, with less impact to the environment. Mr. Doyle elaborates, "One of our major benefits is the access to natural gas pipelines. While most of our competitors are burning coal and heavy oil, we're keeping our carbon footprint to a minimum by using highly efficient natural gas boilers. It’s environmentally friendly and cheaper!"

McLaren's new Next Generation TDF rubber track, designed specifically for track loaders, is a major success for the facility in Thailand. TDF stands for Technology, Design, and Formulation.  The sales of NextGen TDF, as the track is also called for short, have significantly increased even though the pricing is 15%- 20% more than rubber tracks offered by competing suppliers or by using McLaren's older technology. McLaren's CEO Richardson Doyle explains, "NextGen TDF costs 20-30% more to produce than the competition's products from Korea and China, but you are really getting a 100% better track. Better technolgy, design and rubber compound formulation are the key for our success! Customers who have used TDF are coming back after the first set, and buying more TDFs for their entire track loader fleet, that's telling you something!"

McLaren hopes to continue its success in 2008 based on the foundation of quality products and service and on the realization that all customers eventually realize who offers the best value.

Sunbelt Rentals, the second largest equipment rental company in the U.S. with a network of over 450 branches, including 100 Sunbelt at Lowe’s, in 35 states and the District of Columbia has chosen McLaren Industries as a preferred vendor for rubber tracks for mini-excavators and track loader machines.

In excellence, McLaren Industries has serviced for many years the rental industry with products designed to reduce maintenance costs. McLaren's nationwide presence and next-day delivery capabilities have allowed the company to surpass the service expectations of the largest rental chains. The unique footprint of our dense distribution network allows us to service hundreds of chain locations equally well.

“We know that rental customers sometimes abuse the equipment. Typically that results in increased maintenance costs for the rental companies. McLaren is built on the concept of fighting downtime. Our product philosophy to reduce downtime and maintain cost makes us the perfect fit for the rental industry”, says George Zafirov, McLaren’s Marketing Manager. “Our success with the rental companies is a direct result of our concentrated effort to service that industry. We have established a designated Rental Team within our organization, whose responsibility is to focus on the needs of the equipment rental businesses.”

For more information on how McLaren reduces downtime in the rental industry, call the McLaren Rental Team at 1-800-836-0040, Ext. 1800.