11/02/2011 Hanover, 2 November 2011. Effective January 1, 2012 Christian Koetz has been elected Vice President of the European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers Association (ETRMA). Mr. Koetz (41) succeeds Patrick Lepercq (Michelin), who was elected President of the association as the successor to Francesco Gori (Pirelli).

The ETRMA is the European umbrella organization for tyre and rubber manufacturers and is the highest-level interest group for this industry in Europe. Its activities include, for example, informing, explaining issues and offering expert advice to various interest groups in discussions regarding topics such as EU tyre labeling and the winter tyre obligation.

“In a politico-economic environment that is becoming increasingly characterised by legal regulations for tyres, it is in our interests to have a strong industry presence in Brussels. We want to ensure that future legal initiatives are always based on the correct technical parameters and I, with my technical background in tyre development, am committed to this aim", explained Mr. Koetz. German tyre and rubber manufacturers are represented by the German Rubber Manufacturers Association (wdk), which is also a member of the ETRMA.

Christian Koetz has worked for Continental since 1997. Upon joining the company, the trained industrial engineer initially held various positions in the original equipment business for the Passenger and Light Truck Tires division, before becoming head of R&D for passenger tyres in 2006. Since 1 July 2011, he has been responsible for Continental’s passenger and light truck tyres replacement business in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).