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With a shared history in motorsports and a common vision for a more sustainable future, Penske and Bridgestone continue to travel similar paths to drive change in the mobility industry. In this episode live from CES 2024, THRIVE host Keith Cawley chats with Bill Combs, Vice President of Sustainability at Penske, and Mark Metoki, Executive Director of Sustainability Enabling Solutions for Bridgestone, about areas of collaboration, co-creation, and shared learning where these two historic companies are working closely together to advance operations and innovation both within their own businesses and across the mobility ecosystem. 

THRIVE kicks off season 7 at CES 2024 by exploring the rapid advancement of autonomous vehicle technologies with Don Burnette, CEO and founder of Kodiak Robotics, and Cassiano Polycarpo, Director of Original Equipment Account Management for Bridgestone Mobility Solutions. Don shares his journey from the early days at Google's self-driving team to founding Kodiak Robotics, while Cassiano explains how Bridgestone is making an impact on these technologies. Between current breakthroughs and a critical role to be played by tires, the future is now for both Kodiak and Bridgestone when it comes to bringing driver-less vehicles to the road.

In October 2023, Bridgestone introduced the next chapter in its global strategy with the formation of Bridgestone West. In this episode of THRIVE, CEO Paolo Ferrari sits down with Keith Cawley to explain the drivers of this dynamic integration, which is bringing together Bridgestone businesses and functions across the Americas, Europe, Middle East, and Africa. Paolo shares how this new global structure will accelerate business opportunities, expand synergies, and foster best practice sharing across the regions to help deliver Bridgestone’s vision to become a sustainable solutions company.

Bridgestone introduced the concept of ENLITEN in 2022 and is moving quickly to demonstrate the impact it can make in both its product strategy and operations. Already in 2023 Bridgestone has launched two new ENLITEN products that are changing the game through advanced materials and design, including the breakthrough PeakLife polymer. In this episode, host Keith Cawley is joined by Jess Placke and Dale Harrigle, two engineers from the Bridgestone Americas Technology Center in Akron, Ohio, who played pivotal roles in delivering the company’s first tire designed exclusively for EVs and an ultra-high performance all-season tire with longer wear life than ever before.

Quality is a word that carries immense importance at Bridgestone, but it can mean different things to different people. Join THRIVE host Keith Cawley as he quizzes quality leaders about the crucial role their team plays in fulfilling Bridgestone's mission. Chris Lasko, Chief Quality Officer, and Nick Turk, the Executive Director of Quality Operations, join Keith to discuss how quality spans the enterprise, sets the tone for customer experience, and connects the dots across a massive enterprise to ensure Bridgestone’s unyielding standards are achieved at all times.

Hi there, and welcome to THRIVE, a Bridgestone Americas podcast exploring our company through compelling conversations with the people moving us forward every day. Our conversations dive deep into the different areas of our business and how they support our strategic vision. We also unpack our history, highlight our culture, and connect the dots on tangible efforts we're driving to deliver our commitment to help create a better world for future generations. At Bridgestone, we believe that today, tomorrow, together, we thrive. We hope you’ll join us on the ride.

From humble beginnings in Akron, Ohio, the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company grew to become a global powerhouse in the transportation industry. Now the history of the company and its pioneering founder, Harvey Firestone, lives on through the Firestone Archives – one of the most robust corporate archives ever assembled. More than 120 years of chronicled history includes correspondence with U.S. Presidents, detailed journals of intimate friendships with innovation icons like Henry Ford and Thomas Edison, photos and memorabilia from extreme glamping adventures, and a whole lot more. Join Gloria Caples, Firestone’s brand manager, Jennifer Andreola, lead archivist from History Factory, and THRIVE host Keith Cawley to learn about the importance of the Firestone Archives and what interesting items have been preserved.

Season six of THRIVE takes off with a reconnect on our Bridgestone purpose. Join host Keith Cawley for a conversation with Sara Correa, Chief Marketing Officer at Bridgestone Americas, and Wade Munday, Director of Corporate Philanthropy and Social Impact, as they explore how the Bridgestone Americas Trust Fund, brand partnerships, local community initiatives, and more are helping address what really matters in our communities and society.

Teams across Bridgestone are increasingly focused on helping the company advance toward its long-term sustainability goals, but one group in particular has this pursuit more explicitly outlined in its name. From developing new demo tires with 75% recycled and renewable materials to forging partnerships that seek to unlock new possibilities for end-of-life tires, the Sustainable Business Office is tasked with identifying, innovating, evaluating, and incubating exploratory opportunities that can drive value for society and our customers. Erik Seidel, Vice President of the Sustainable Business Office, and Marcela Castaño, Lead Applied Researcher of Sustainable Materials and Circular Economy, join host Keith Cawley to break it all down.

Bridgestone is doubling down on ensuring both its processes and products make a positive environmental impact as it continues its journey to become a sustainable solutions company. In addition to advancing smart manufacturing with cutting edge technologies, Bridgestone is driving innovative environmental projects in manufacturing to make further progress against its bold long-term sustainability  goals. This episode features Greg Harris, Vice President of Manufacturing Engineering, and Nick Ramos, Executive Director of Environmental Affairs, two leaders leaning into cross-functional collaboration to push plans related to energy, ecology, and beyond that can help make a lasting impact on our planet.

The base concept of the newly-introduced term ENLITEN is the same for everyone at Bridgestone: a complete focus on maximizing both performance and sustainability. However, it can mean something different depending on the audience, serving as an internal operational mindset that influences end-to-end activities across our entire company, as well as an external designation for premium products and solutions that feature our most innovative materials and technology. In this episode, Bridgestone Americas COO Scott Damon offers enlightenment to help simplify the world of ENLITEN and beyond.

At Bridgestone, how we operate is just as critical as what we produce. In pioneering sustainable solutions for a digital world, we’re making investments that accelerate smart manufacturing and make our operations safer, more efficient, and more data driven. In this episode, host Keith Cawley chats with Andy Warren, Senior Manager of Engineering Services Support, and Joe Wilson, Director of Maintenance and Plant Support, about a world of new technologies in our manufacturing plants that include robot dogs, extended reality, 3D mapping and more.