Good Year Tires: Tough Quality Standards

Good Year Tires is one of the foremost tire manufacturers in the United States. They make quality tires, which sell for a reasonable price. They work hard to ensure their tires are the best possible tires on the road. Their testing standards are higher than those put into place by the government. This ensures every product they make delivers a high quality performance.

In 1898 the founder of Good Year Tire and Rubber Company was 38-year old Frank Seiberling who purchased the first plant of the company with a $3500 down payment borrowed from a brother-in-law. The raw materials used in the making of the tires had to travel halfway around the world to a landlocked town with limited rail transportation. The raw materials were rubber and cotton and were the lifeblood of the tire making process. Even the man whose name the company bears died 30 years earlier, penniless after his search and discovery of vulcanization.

The Horseless Carriage

The beginning of Good Year was unintentionally timed to enter the industry during the bicycle craze of the 1890's and the beginning of the horseless carriage was still a wide-open challenge. The depression of 1893 was beginning to fade. So on August 28, 1898 Good Year was incorporated with $100,000 worth of stock.

With just 13 workers production began on November 21, 1898 with a product line of bicycle and carriage tires, horseshoe pads and poker chips. Only $217.86 was the total of the first recorded payroll. That total is based on a pay rate of 13 to 25 cents per hour for a 10-hour a day. Their first month of business the sales grossed at $8,246. Good Year continued until they became the largest tire company in 1916. In that year, they adopted their slogan "More people ride on Good Year tire than any other kind". They became the world's largest rubber company in 1926.

Multi-Billion-Dollar Company

Today Good Year's sales amount to over $18 billion, however it took them 53 years to reach that first one billion dollar high point. This company has expanded to all the corners of the world: they have over 70,000 associates worldwide and many plants in various locations throughout the world. It is amazing when you realize this company started in a renovated strawboard factory on the banks of the Little Cuyahoga River in Akron, Ohio.

During those years in the beginning, it was the integrity and foresight of George Stadelman, and the gamble of Frank Seiberling with his vision and hard-driving manner, and the conviction and leadership of Paul Litchfield who all did their part in bring this company through those years. It was Frank Seiberling who chose the name of the company and decided on the distinctive winged-foot trademark, which is a symbol to the Good Year Tire and Rubber Company.

Continued Excellence

Many years have passed since those early days, but one thing remains the same: Good Year still strives for excellence in their product. Good Year still make quality tires and to ensure the quality of their tires. They test, test and retest their tires in performance, durability, and longevity. So when you go to buy your next set, just look at the Good Year tires and think of all the hard work that has gone into the production of that tire.