Bridgestone to expand testing in Akron, lights Firestone sign

AKRON—Something old and something new. Bridgestone Americas Inc. has a little both planned for the city of Akron.

The tire maker announced Nov. 19 that it would expand its Americas Technology Center, adding a new vehicle dynamics test track designed to advance the development of new vehicle technologies.

Intended to complement Bridgestone's established testing operations in Texas, Ohio, Mexico and South America, the new vehicle dynamics track facility is slated for completion by Summer 2022. It will feature multiple vehicle dynamics courses that are designed to replicate the conditions of real-world driving. Tracks include a long straightaway to assess lane change performance; a noise, vibration and harshness course to test ride comfort and road noise; and a wet and dry weather handling course.

"We're excited to advance our leading-edge tire and technology development with the expansion of our testing capabilities in Akron," Nizar Trigui, Bridgestone Americas chief technology officer and group president of solutions businesses, said in a statement.

"As we continue to evolve our products and provide sustainable mobility solutions to our customers, we're confident that this new tire test track will support enhanced product education and improve agility in engineering decision making for our product development process."

The tire maker did not disclose how much it planned to invest in the testing facility, but did note that it was part of an ongoing investment plan to "solidify its Akron R&D campus as home to all its research, product development, technology, and core data systems throughout the Americas."

To that end, Bridgestone is nearing completion on its Advanced Tire Production Center, which is slated to open in the summer. The $17-million investment for the manufacturing of race tires for the NTT IndyCar Series also includes state-of-the-art production technology to support race tire manufacturing.

The facility will be capable of producing small batches of specialty, prototype tires for testing and development.

As the tire maker races toward the industry's future, it's also paying homage to the past.

On Nov. 19, Bridgestone flipped the switch on the iconic Firestone sign that now sits atop its Advanced Tire Production Center. The sign had been part of the Akron skyline for more than a century atop the Firestone Plant One building.

Bridgestone moved the sign to the ATPC in September.