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Treadco and Bridgestone/Firestone Announce Marketing Arrangement

1 April 1998

Treadco and Bridgestone/Firestone Announce Marketing Arrangement

    FORT SMITH, Arkansas, April 1 -- Treadco, Inc.
and Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. announced today a marketing arrangement
whereby Bridgestone/Firestone will operate an Oncor retreading facility in
Hazelwood, MO, and Treadco will market the Oncor retread tires produced at the
plant.
    Treadco, headquartered in Fort Smith, AR, has operated the Hazelwood plant
since its inception two years ago, with technical assistance and retread
materials provided by Bridgestone/Firestone.  The facility, which is more
closely related to a new tire manufacturing plant than any other retread
facility in the U.S., has produced thousands of retreaded truck radials using
the Bridgestone-licensed Oncor Tread Renewal System.
    Effective immediately, Treadco has turned over operation of the plant,
with a production capacity of 225 tires per day, to Bridgestone/Firestone so
the product and plant can be further enhanced with Bridgestone/Firestone's
advanced process and product technologies.
    John R. Meyers, President and CEO of Treadco, said, "This new arrangement
will allow us to continue to promote the Oncor tire to existing customers who
have adopted the process as their primary source of retreading.  The
requirements to continually upgrade the equipment to stay abreast of
technological advancements and the process itself are more closely aligned
with Bridgestone's new tire manufacturing capabilities."
    Bridgestone/Firestone Tire Sales Company President John Lampe said, "We
look forward to building on our solid relationship with Treadco.  One of our
company's strong points is our manufacturing excellence, and much of the
equipment in the Oncor retread facility is identical to equipment in a new
tire facility.  We can achieve significant economies of scale and synergies by
owning and operating both the new and retread production."
    Nashville-based Bridgestone/Firestone is the largest subsidiary of
Bridgestone Corporation, the world's largest tire and rubber company.
    Treadco is the nations' largest independent truck tire retreader and the
fourth largest commercial truck tire dealer.

SOURCE  Treadco, Inc.