Goodyear Names Werner Vice President of Manufacturing, North American Tire

AKRON, Ohio, June 7 -- The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company has named Christopher T. (Chris) Werner Vice President of Manufacturing for its North American Tire (NAT) business unit. Werner was most recently Senior Vice President, Global Operations for GST AutoLeather, Inc., a supplier of automotive leather for luxury vehicles from Toyota/Lexus, Acura, Ford, Chrysler and others.

  
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Werner, 42, will report to Jon Rich, President of North American Tire, and Chris Clark, Senior Vice President of Global Sourcing.

Prior to joining GST AutoLeather, in 2003, Werner held senior positions with Hubbell Corp. and Black & Decker. He was with Black & Decker from 1993 through 2000, rising to the position of Director of Manufacturing. He started his 11-year career at General Electric (GE) in 1982 as an engineer in the company's Lighting Division. He went on to hold several management positions at GE, culminating with his role as Operations Manager at its Circleville, Ohio, plant.

Werner is a Six Sigma Black Belt and has a strong background in Lean Manufacturing, continuous improvement and total quality management.

"Chris brings a wealth of experience at world-class companies that are leaders in continuous improvement and operational excellence," said Rich. "Goodyear's North American manufacturing organization will greatly benefit from his background and expertise. We believe the keys to our success in North America will be innovation, productivity and speed and we expect Chris will have a positive impact in all of these areas."

Werner was raised in Arkansas where he earned his bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. Werner and his wife Lorraine have two children, Kellyn and Peyton, ages six and two.

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