Bridgestone to Build a Plant in Poland

Bridgestone will build a plant in Poland to produce rubber tracks for earthmoving equipment, the manufacturer announced today.

The plant is due to begin operating in July 2006 and will be located in the city of Zarow in the south western Polish province near Wroclaw. Production capacity is expected to reach about 26,000 tracks a year by 2007 and 12 million euros will be invested to achieve this.

The plant is to serve “rising European demand for rubber tracks amid continuing global growth in demand for construction machinery,” says the manufacturer.

The new plant will operate as Bridgestone Diversified Products Poland, a wholly owned Bridgestone Corporation subsidiary that was established on 29 December 2004. “It will enable the Bridgestone Group to serve European manufacturers of earthmoving equipment more responsively,” said the manufacturer in a statement.

Bridgestone Group companies presently produce rubber tracks at plants in Kumamoto, Japan; Shenyang, China; and Bilbao, Spain.