Introduction
Welcome to the Introduction section of the Bridgestone Americas Environmental report. The purpose of this section is to provide a brief history of our company and our environmental efforts. Conservation has long been a corporate focus at Bridgestone. We believe this report tells the conservation story of our company. It is a story we are proud of and one that will continue to progress.
Our Founders
Entrepreneur Shojiro Ishibashi began a family-run business producing footwear at the age of 18 in Japan, developing rubberized shoes to replace straw sandals for Japanese workers. His invention was phenomenally successful and formed the stepping stone to grander endeavors. In 1930, Ishibashi (which literally means “stone bridge”) created Japan’s first locally developed tires. With international aspirations for his business, he branded the company with an English-sounding name: Bridgestone. He hoped the new name would feel more familiar to people of all nationalities. Bridgestone soon became the largest manufacturer of tires in Japan and expanded its business in other markets.
Half a world away, a young American businessman was following a similar entrepreneurial path. Harvey Firestone grew up on a farm in Ohio, where the hardship of working the land instilled in him the characteristics of strength and perseverance. Active in horse and buggy racing, he observed the superior performance of rubber tires. Firestone was convinced that the horse and buggy era would soon be over and the automobile would be its replacement. In 1900, Firestone moved to Akron, Ohio and started The Firestone Tire & Rubber Company to make tires for the fledgling automobile industry. After a few difficult years, Firestone secured an order for 2,000 sets of tires from Henry Ford…and the rest, they say, is history.
Bridgestone acquired the Firestone Tire & Rubber Company in 1988 to become the largest company in the industry. Bridgestone Americas Holding Company is Bridgestone’s western-hemisphere subsidiary, and its largest. In addition to making tires for vehicles ranging from cars, buses and trucks to special agricultural, forestry, and mining equipment, Bridgestone Americas is also a world leader in the manufacture of building products, air springs for trucks and cars, industrial applications, metal products, synthetic & natural rubber, steel cord, and fibers & textiles. Through its retail company, Bridgestone Americas operates more than 2,200 stores, making it one of the world’s largest providers of tires and automotive services.
Through our retail company, Bridgestone Americas operates 46 production facilities throughout the hemisphere. Shojiro Ishibashi’s guiding principle to “serve society with superior quality” and Harvey Firestone’s motto of “best today – still better tomorrow” continue to resonate throughout all Bridgestone Americas activities and are apparent in every product that Bridgestone Americas brings to market.
The Bridgestone Way: Trust and Pride
We strive to make life safer, more fulfilling and more fun for people everywhere. This means pursuing the highest quality in products, in service, in technology, and in all our corporate activities. We take great pride in our customers trust - it is our greatest reward.
Trust and Pride extend to our corporate Environmental Policy Statement. The Fundamental Principle of the policy is as follows: “We, the Bridgestone group, work to achieve ever higher levels of society’s trust and employee pride. We will manage environmental, health and safety issues as integral and important parts of all our business activities, while working towards a sustainable society.”
To read our corporate Environmental Policy Statement in its entirety, please visit the following website:
http://www.bridgestone-firestone.com/about/BSJEnv_Policy_Stmt.pdf
Bridgestone Americas is committed to being a good corporate citizen globally, nationally, regionally, and especially in the communities where we have manufacturing plants, sales and service facilities, or corporate offices.
Our efforts have provided innumerable benefits including literary education, scholarships, chemical dependency rehabilitation, healthcare, civil rights support, housing, and support for public radio, television, libraries, and museums.
We are particularly proud of our efforts in environmental management, especially in the area of conservation. The remainder of this report focuses on four keys areas of our business where we are providing leadership in conservation practices through our products, our operations, our teammates and in our community.
To read our corporate citizenship commitment, please find a message from our CEO, Mark Emkes, at the following website:
http://www.bridgestone-firestone.com/images/citizenship/BRIDCORP-17997.pdf
We are delighted that our environmental programs are noticed and honored through awards. A few of the notable awards we have received over the past few years include:
- Green Partner Award from Honda of America Manufacturing
- Industrial Conservationist of the Year Award from the Tennessee Conservation League
- Kodak American Greenway Award from the National Geographic Society & Eastman Kodak
- National Heritage Conservation Award from the Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation
- National Stewardship Award from The Conservation Fund
- Outstanding Environmental Performance & Wildlife Enhancement Certificate from the US Environmental Protection Agency and the Wildlife Habitat Council
- Recognition for participation in the US EPA’s SmartWay Transportation program
- Tennessee Trails Awards from the Tennessee Trails Association
- Recognition of Achievement Award for Environmental Leadership from the Ford Motor Company
- National Performance Review (Hammer Award 33/50 Program) from the US EPA
To read press releases about Bridgestone Americas achievements and news, please visit the following website:
http://www.bridgestone-firestone.com/news/index.asp.
To read additional stories of Bridgestone's Environmental Achievements, please click here.
