News - 2013

Ceremony Held to Celebrate Opening of Bridgestone Park

2013/01/22

Tokyo (January 22, 2013) - Bridgestone Corporation today announced that its subsidiary, Bridgestone Middle East & Africa FZE. (BSMEA), has opened Bridgestone Park, a multipurpose facility located in the Jebel Ali Free Zone in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The facility will be used for training company employees and distributors throughout the Middle East and Africa in the areas of sales and technical support for passenger, truck and bus and retread tires. The facility also has a passenger tire retail shop and a truck and bus tire service center.

A grand opening celebration and ribbon-cutting ceremony were held at the location on January 21. Local dignitaries on hand included Ibrahim Al Janahi, Deputy CEO - Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority (JAFZA), and Talal Al Hashimi, Managing Director - JAFZA. Attending on behalf of Bridgestone Corporation were Kunitoshi Takeda, Vice President and Officer, Asia Pacific, China, Middle East, Africa and Russia Tire Business Operations, Bridgestone Corporation, and Shoichi Sakuma, President, BSMEA.

An overview of Bridgestone Park and its facilities is provided below:

1.Location	Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
2.Plant site	21,678 square meters
3.Number of employees	20 employees

1.Training facility	·facility for training employees and distributor staff members in areas related to sales and technical service
2.Passenger tire retail shop	·Retail shop that will serve as a model for shops in the Middle East and Africa that handle passenger tires and car maintenance ·Expansion of the FirstStop brand, which is the retail brand in Europe
3.Truck and bus tire service center	·Service facility for sales and maintenance of truck and bus tires
4.Bandag learning center	·Facility for training in such areas as technical skills needed in the manufacturing of Bridgestone's Bandag brand retread tires

This facility is an example of Bridgestone's continuing commitment to building a global sales and marketing support network that will respond quickly to the needs of our customers and changes in market demand.

Ibrahim Al Janahi, Deputy CEO - JAFZA (fourth from the left),
Kunitoshi Takeda, Vice President and Officer, Bridgestone Corporation(fifth from the left),
Talal Al Hashimi, Managing Director - JAFZA (sixth from the left)
and Shoichi Sakuma, President, BSMEA (seventh from the left)

1.Company name	Bridgestone Middle East & Africa FZE.
2.Location	the Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai, UAE
3.Business operations	Overall responsibility for sales, marketing, and operational management activities in the Middle East and Africa
4.Representative	Shoichi Sakuma
5.Start of operations	October 1, 2006
6.Ownership	Bridgestone Corporation - 100%
7.Capital	17 million AED (UAE dirhams)

About Bridgestone Corporation:
Bridgestone Corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, is the world’s largest tire and rubber company. In addition to tires for use in a wide variety of applications, it also manufactures a broad range of diversified products, which include industrial rubber and chemical products and sporting goods. Its products are sold in over 150 nations and territories around the world.