Bridgestone christens Firestone race tire plant

AKRON—For Firestone Racing Akron is, and will always be, home.

The city that saw the launch of the iconic Firestone brand in 1900 still will house its Firestone race tire manufacturing—namely the Firestone Firehawk race tire—for the NTT IndyCar Series in a new factory.

Bridgestone Americas on June 22 christened the $21 million, 80,000-sq.-ft. facility, which involved both new construction and renovations. The manufacturing site, located across the street from one of Bridgestone's three major global R&D centers, features the latest manufacturing technologies to advance the innovation around race tires.

The facility is the first new tire plant to open in Akron in more than 70 years. It will employ 60 and manufacture all of the more than 25,000 Firestone Firehawk race tires Bridgestone supplies each racing season.

Firestone has been the exclusive tire supplier for the premier open-wheel racing series in North America for the past 23 seasons.

"For more than a century, Akron has been where our most advanced tires have been conceived, designed and built," Paolo Ferrari, Bridgestone Americas president and CEO, said in a statement. "And now we are furthering this legacy in a more sustainable production environment where the world's best engineers, technicians and master tire builders will shape the future of tires and racing."

Ferrari also sees the facility shaping the future of sustainable tire production.

ATPC uses 60-percent less energy than the company's previous race tire manufacturing facility, which was located down Main Street in a portion of one of the Firestone legacy tire plants in Akron. It's compact building footprint, efficient boiler system, insulated roofing and high-mounted LED light all contribute to its efficiency.

The facility is just one part of Bridgestone's broader Akron investment. The tire maker, in November, said it would invest $6 million for the construction of a new passenger tire test track that is slated to be completed this fall.

The race tire manufacturing facility christened June 22 will be equipped to produce prototype tires for testing and development of race tires and on-road applications.

Both the new manufacturing facility and the test track are said to be indicative of Bridgestone's commitment to Akron, once heralded as the Rubber Capital of the World. Together, they represent $27 million of the $125 million that Bridgestone has invested in Akron since 2012.

"I'd like to thank Bridgestone for their ongoing commitment to the city of Akron," Dan Horrigan, the city's mayor, said in a prepared statement. "Akron's history is undoubtedly intertwined with Bridgestone's and I'm honored to help open the new Advanced Tire Production Center here. I look forward to Bridgestone's continued success in Akron."