On the other side of the globe, Shojiro Ishibashi was transforming his small family business from making a traditional Japanese footwear called tabi, into a modern manufacturing enterprise. Ishibashi had established a viable business after patenting a rubber-soled tabi in 1923. In 1928, Ishabashi began research on tires with the ambition of becoming the first Japanese manufacturer.

The Bridgestone Tire Co., Ltd. was founded in 1931. Conscience of the Japanese consumer’s love of American products, and cognizant of the global market, Ishibashi came up with the company name by reversing the English translation

Ultimately the cost is expected to be high for Bridgestone/Firestone in the form of a tremendous loss to their reputation, financial status, and relationship to Ford and potential customers.

In the early stages of the Bridgestone/Firestone investigation Ford has continually denied knowing anything about the tire defect, however, a 1999 memo seems to prove otherwise. The memo from Ford surfaced, suggesting Bridgestone/Firestone tried to keep defective tire information in Saudi Arabia from U.S. the government. The document clearly shows Ford’s involvement with Bridgestone/Firestone and their knowledge of the tire problem in Saudi Arabia. It appears the motivation factor for Ford was to replace the defective tires and not totally involve Bridgestone/Firestone. The results obviously were to avoid triggering action by the Department of Transportation here in the U.S. Therefore, appearing that both companies new about the defective tires for two years before taking action.

In a 1996 Bridgestone/Firestone test, the reports showed problems with these same tires now under recall. In that same 1996 report, it was documented that eight of the eighteen tires pulled from production line had failed the speed test according to the report.

Bridgestone/Firestone claims to carry on a tradition of excellence established by its founders, blending Japanese and American methods to provide quality products. Their philosophy is summed up by the mottos of Bridgestone’s and Firestone’s former leaders. Ishibashi challenged his associates to “Serve Society with Products of Superior Quality”. Harvey Firestone’s constant goal for his company was to be “Best Today – Still Better Tomorrow. It is obvious that the mottos of yesterday were not being followed today or disaster would not have struck when Firestone/Bridgestone’s tires started literally falling apart on the highways.

Some topics in this essay:
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