- Competition Cams
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Competition Cams, Inc. 
Type Private Company Industry Automotive aftermarket Founded Memphis, Tennessee, USA (1976) Founder(s) Ronald L. Coleman Headquarters Memphis, Tennessee Key people Ronald L. Coleman, CEO & President (1976-present) Products Automotive parts Employees 100-250 (2004)[1] Divisions Automotive
Motorcycle
Go-kartWebsite www.compcams.com Competition Cams, Inc., or COMP Cams, is a specialty performance automotive, motorcycle, and kart aftermarket parts manufacturer. The company has five US locations including headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee.
Contents
History
Although founded in 1976,[2] Competition Cams wasn't incorporated until 1977, when it began by selling valve train products through satellite distribution stores. The company has acquired manufacturers of transmissions, electronic fuel injection, and nitrous oxide through its holding group, COMP Performance Group, consisting of 13 companies.[3]
In the late 1980s, the company contributed to the Specialty Equipment Market Association, and its annual trade show in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Competition Cams was started by John McWhirter, Ivars Smiltniks, Tom Woitesek, and Bob Woodard. Current owners, Ron Coleman, and Paul Brothers were inducted into the SEMA Hall of Fame.[4][5]
Industry contributions
COMP Cams created the Spintron engine testing system, which involves outfitting an engine with high-speed sensors and cameras to record data, and using an electric motor to drive the engine. The test observes valve-spring seat pressure, coil dynamics, camshaft/ pushrod flex, and lifter movement to identify problems in the engine's performance.[6]
A partnership between Richard Childress Racing, Okuma, and COMP Cams was established to develop the process for grinding a camshaft for a NASCAR engine, with an Okuma GC34NH cylindrical grinding machine; a CNC grinder.[7]
COMP Cams most recent development is the process of ion nitriding for camshafts, or Pro Plasma Nitriding. This is a 36-hour process that uses pulsed nitrogen plasma in a vacuum controlled environment to imbed chains of nitrogen ions into the camshaft surface approximately .008” - .010” deep, significantly hardening the surface.[8]
Sponsorship
Competition Cams does not sponsor a NASCAR team directly, but has access to advertising through a deal with NASCAR where the COMP Cams contingency sticker is placed on every NASCAR race car.[9] Contingency is a common form of 'after the fact' sponsorship whereby racers place stickers on their vehicles from companies that post monetary awards to racing teams for winning, in exchange for visibility and the right to use images of the driver and their car in promotional literature and advertising. Similarly, COMP Cams also posts contingency awards to drag racers and various other classes of auto racing.
References
- ^ "compcams.com Site Infromaton". Alexa.com. Alexa Internet Inc.. http://www.alexa.com/data/details/main/compcams.com. Retrieved 2008-09-29.
- ^ "Competition Cams Inc. - Private Company Profile". Business Week. The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=1065179. Retrieved 2008-09-29.
- ^ "COMP Performance Group". http://compperformancegroup.com/. Retrieved 18 December 2008.
- ^ "Ron Coleman - 2000 Inductee". SEMA Hall of Fame. Specialty Equipment Market Association. http://semahof.com/profile.aspx?id=105. Retrieved 2008-09-29.
- ^ "Paul "Scooter" Brothers - 2005 Inductee". SEMA Hall of Fame. Specialty Equipment Market Association. http://semahof.com/profile.aspx?id=5. Retrieved 2008-09-29.
- ^ Steele, Lance (2007-06-01). "High Technology Helps COMP Cams Deliver Performance". Off-Road Business. Advanstar Communications. http://offroadbusinessmag.off-road.com/offroadbusinessmag/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=432470&sk=&date=&pageID=2. Retrieved 2008-09-29.[dead link]
- ^ Lorincz, Jim (2008-09-01). "NASCAR Is All About Teamwork". Manufacturing Engineer (Society of Manufacturing Engineers) 141 (3). http://www.sme.org/cgi-bin/find-articles.pl?&ME08ART70&ME&20080901&&SME&#article. Retrieved 2008-09-29.
- ^ Fisher, Rob. "Engine Lubricants - Solving The Flat-Tappet Puzzle". Circle Track. Interlink Media. pp. 3. http://www.circletrack.com/enginetech/ctrp_0807_flat_tappet_cam_lubricants/pro_plasma_nitriding_synthetic_oil.html. Retrieved 2008-09-29.
- ^ "Contingency stickers fill front fenders and help with bottom line". ESPN. 2008-04-11. http://sports.espn.go.com/rpm/nascar/icons/news/story?id=3315850. Retrieved 2008-09-29.
External links
Categories:- Companies established in 1976
- Companies based in Memphis, Tennessee
- Auto parts suppliers
- Automotive motorsports and performance companies
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