Firestone Tire and Rubber Company
The Firestone Tire & Rubber Company is an American tire manufacturer since 1988 under the name of Bridgestone Firestone, LLC was founded in 1900 by Harvey Samuel Firestone ( 1868-1938 ) in Akron, Ohio, and a subsidiary of Bridgestone Tire Company.
History
The company was founded on August 3, 1900 by Harvey Samuel Firestone in Akron, Ohio, as a 12- man operation for the production of air-filled tires. The company founder 's family came from Germany from Alsace from named Flint, who had emigrated in 1753 to America. Originally tires were for the then usual means of transportation ( wagons, carts, etc. ) made . With the advent of automobiles began but early on to produce automobile tires. Firestone pioneered the mass production of tires.
Is also based in Akron was ( and still is ) the main competitor Goodyear. The two rival firms in Akron were more than three quarters of a century, the biggest tire supplier for the automotive industry in North America. Through personal and family connections to the family Ford succeeded Firestone in 1906 to become the original equipment supplier for the cars of the Ford Motor Company. William Clay Ford Jr., to September 2006, President and CEO of Ford Motor Company is a descendant of the family bond Ford / Firestone. He is born as the great-grandson of Henry Ford, his father was William Clay Ford Sr., and his mother was Martha Parke Firestone, granddaughter of Harvey Samuel Firestone.
In 1919, a Canadian affiliate in Hamilton, Ontario Province, was launched. From 1926 Firestone founded in the Republic of Liberia in West Africa's largest rubber plantation in the world. This soon got into fierce criticism because Firestone was accused register there child labor and other human rights violations, but what the company rejected. The Firestone plantation is next to iron ore mines still the largest business enterprise and the largest employer in Liberia. From 1928 Firestone joined as a sponsor of the radio show "The Voice of Firestone " on, brought which mainly classical music, and later a focus on documentaries producing broadcast television series called "The Voice of Firestone Televues " was financially supported by Firestone.
In the 1970s, the basis of manifest massive quality issues millions of tires had to be recalled. 1981 Firestone achieved worldwide annual sales of 3.25 billion U.S. dollars, was for Michelin and Goodyear 's third largest tire manufacturer with a global market share of 10.8 percent. Firestone became more and more financial difficulties and made heavy losses. Since 1988, the company is trading under the name Bridgestone Firestone, LLC, a U.S. subsidiary of Japan's Bridgestone Tire Company.
In 2000, there was due to lack of quality and an accumulation of accidents to a further large -scale recall of Bridgestone / Firestone tires ( brand Wilderness AT, Firestone ATX and ATX II), which notably the Ford Explorer was equipped. As part of this recall 6.5 million tires of said brands should be replaced. Firestone stopped 2001, the tires shipped to Ford and blamed extensive breach of trust charge. This established that Firestone engineers have defects in the chassis design of the Ford Explorer already displayed early on, Ford has this not taken sufficient notice.