First UK Bus Rolling on Bridgestone Through £5M Contract

A £5 million contract awarded to Bridgestone UK will result in the company supplying new and remould tyres for 3,500 vehicles in the First UK Bus fleet. Bridgestone UK began supplying tyres and service provision to sites in Yorkshire in July, and this was followed by supply to the Midlands and East Anglia regions commencing in August. Supply to sites in Bristol, Somerset and Avon begin in late September. The new arrangement is directly supported by 35 Bridgestone staff, of which 29 were transferred from the previous supplier under the Transfer of Undertakings Regulations (TUPE) employment regulations.

“We are looking forward to working with First UK Bus over the contract term,” said John McNaught Bridgestone UK managing director. “The deal establishes Bridgestone as a key player within the UK public service vehicle market and going forward, we hope to build a long term partnership with the First UK Bus team.” Greg Ward, Bridgestone UK commercial director, added: “We are very happy that First UK Bus has chosen Bridgestone to be one of its supply and service partners. We have been working closely with First for some time to identify the best opportunity to work together.”

Glen Lovett, UK commodity manager of First UK Bus said: “The deal evolved after Bridgestone undertook a successful single depot trial at First in Leicester at the end of 2007. We are delighted to award the contract to Bridgestone. The company has demonstrated a fresh approach to our business by proactively focusing on innovative tyre management solutions.”