Bridgestone to Build New Japanese Facility

Bridgestone Corporation has announced its intention to construct a facility in Japan for producing large and ultralarge radial tyres for fitting to mining and construction vehicles. This decision comes in response to increasing worldwide demand for such tyres, fuelled by escalating global mineral resource production.
The new facility will be built in the southern city of Kitakyushu, on a 20 hectare site within the Hibikinada Industrial Area. Requests for building permits have already been made, and following negotiations with city officials Bridgestone hopes to conclude an agreement during the first half of 2007.

This facility will be the first new tyre plant Bridgestone has constructed in Japan for more than 30 years. Bridgestone’s original intention was to boost production at its Shimonoseki facility, at present the only plant producing radials for mining and construction equipment, by the beginning to 2008. However demand for this type of tyre has been growing at such a rate that Bridgestone believes projected growth patterns justify an all-new plant. Approximately ¥32 billion (£137,478,600) has been earmarked for this new construction project and for increased steel cord production capacity at Bridgestone’s Saga plant, necessary for supporting the new facility.

Construction of the plant will commence in the second half of 2007, with the first tyres set to come off the production line during the second half of 2009. Production capacity is projected to reach approximately 30 tons of new rubber per day by the second half of 2010. The Kitakyushu plant will be the Bridgestone Group’s 52nd, including four plants currently under construction in China, Hungary, Mexico and Poland.