Double Coin might not be the first name that comes to mind when one thinks of tires, but the Chinese company is trying to boost its recognition

by offering more products, pointing out the depth of its manufacturing, development, distribution and service, and seeking more attention from the trucking press and public.

This week, executives from China and the U.S. showed off several new truck and off-road machinery tires as well as their two-year-old distribution center in Memphis, Tenn.

"We're differentiating ourselves from being a 'Chinese manufacturer'" of cheap tires, said Aaron Murphy, who heads Double Coin's North American marketing and sales, in explaining the purpose of the Memphis event. "We manufacture tires in China and do business globally." The company makes many types of quality tires and has an active research and development program in China, and it provides substantial backing through scores of dealers and distributors in the U.S. and Canada, he added.

The event included introduction of six new truck tires. Three heavy-duty models save fuel through special casings and rubber compounds that lower rolling resistance, and are in the process of being certified by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's SmartWay program. Three new medium-duty tires have designs specific to pickup and delivery operations. They join 11 truck-tire models already in Double Coin's data book.

Murphy and other former Bridgestone Firestone executives are guiding Double Coin's expansion in the U.S. and Canada. They work at China Manufacturers Alliance (CMA), the North American marketing arm of Double Coin Holdings Ltd. of China. CMA is based in Monrovia, Calif., and its managers sell to truck manufacturers, fleet managers and to dealers who cater to commercial truck operators. They also sell tires for agricultural implements and earth-moving and mining machinery. These efforts began in 1992 in the U.S., Murphy and others said.

Double Coin itself started out in China in 1927 by making rubber overshoes. It began producing bias-ply tires in 1934 and by the 1960s was building radial tires for trucks, buses and automobiles. Its whimsical-sounding name is actually very business oriented and was adopted early in the company's history, said Chungchen Yue, chairman of Double Coin Holdings, who was among four China-based executives in Memphis for the event.

"If the bus wheels go round and round reliably, you make money," he said of the reasoning behind the name. "And you can soon turn one dollar into two dollars" and double your coins.

Double Coin now claims to be China's dominant tire maker with an annual capacity of 6 million units in three plants that supply tires to 40 original-equipment manufacturers there. It makes 2.7 million truck and bus tires a year, and among its enterprises is a joint venture with Michelin of France that produces passenger car tires.

About 60 percent of production is for China and the other 40 percent is exported to 60 countries. The company designed and built its own tire-making machinery and a new plant near Shanghai is among the largest and most modern in the world, Yue and his colleagues said.

Double Coin's fuel-efficient tires for heavy trucks introduced at the Memphis event are:
* FR605 steer position - A five-rib design with extensive siping and side-shoulder decoupling grooves for long-haul tractors;
* FD405 drive position - Has closed-shoulder tread design for even wear and good traction; and
* FT105 trailer position - Tread siping fights irregular wear and a durable casing promotes multiple retreads.
New medium-duty radial tires are:
* RR680 regional all-position - Five ribs and wide shoulders for durability, enhanced siping for good traction on wet pavement, and 19/32-inch-deep tread for long original wear;
* RT600 low-profile regional all-position - Has the 680's features, plus sidewall protection to resist curbing damage and a highly retreadable casing; and
* RR202 mixed service - Five-rib tread, 10,000-pound capacity for heavy loads and durable, retreadable casing.