Bridgestone to build plant
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Amata City facility worth Bt19 bn
Bridgestone Corp plans to establish a Bt19-billion plant in Thailand, making the Kingdom the third country for production of its off-road radial (ORR) tyres for mining and construction vehicles after Japan and the United States.
The new plant will enable the group to respond to the increasing global demand for ORRs, it said in a statement released by the Tokyo headquarters. Entering Thailand in 1967, Bridgestone now operates in 44 countries.
“ORRs are used predominantly in mining, quarry, port and industrial, and construction applications all over the world,” the statement said.
“Until now, the Bridgestone Group has produced these tyres in Japan and the United States. The new plant in Thailand will allow Bridgestone to enhance global ORR capacity while responding with increased flexibility to changes in the market.”
In the initial phase of the investment project, a Bridgestone subsidiary in Thailand will start production of steel cord used in ORRs.
To be located in Amata City Industrial Estate, Rayong, construction of the new tyre factory will begin in the first half of 2015. Production capacity is expected to reach about 85 tonnes per day by the first half of 2019, when scheduled capacity increases are completed.
The company also announced that the new plant would incorporate advanced environmental technologies that would help conserve resources. These would include a system for processing wastewater while maximising water reuse during manufacturing, as well as a co-generation system.
“Moving forward, the Bridgestone Group will continue to evaluate global demand for ORRs in order to respond to changing market demand trends, and also supply our customers with high-quality products on a timely basis,” the company’s statement said.
On February 12, Bridgestone announced a ¥4.7-billion (Bt1.77 billion) investment to increase ORR capacity of its Kitakyushu plant in Japan by 20 tonnes to 165 tonnes per day.
The group has also determined that it will need to implement a further expansion of the Kitakyushu plant to meet customer demand promptly.
The company is also building a new plant in the US state of South Carolina to produce large and ultra-large ORRs, with tyre production scheduled to begin in the first half of 2014.
“Bridgestone’s large and ultra-large ORRs, which utilise the group’s advanced technical capabilities, are highly regarded in the marketplace, and demand is expected to be strong over the medium to long term due to increased mining production worldwide,” it said in the February statement.
