BRIDGESTONE Americas has begun serial production of passenger and light truck tyres at its expanded Aiken County tyre plant in Graniteville, South Carolina, US.
A Firestone Transforce was the first tyre made during the pilot production.
The US$346 million-worth expansion has boost the plant’s capacity by 50% from previous to 37,750 tyres a day and created nearly 300 full-time jobs, with hourly employment of more than 1,200.
The 20-month project has also increased floor space by 44% to 2.42 million sq ft and added more advanced tyre building machines , which according to Bridgestone will enable them to meet growing demand in key market segments, including UHP and light truck/SUV tyres.
The Aiken County facility has been cited with LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver Certification from the US Green Building Council in 2009; and recognised by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) as a Voluntary Protection Programme (VPP) Star site for meeting safety and health management systems and injury rates benchmarks.