Ahluwalia To Retire From Bridgestone Firestone Company announces successor

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Oct. 13, 2008) — Bridgestone Firestone North American Tire, LLC (BFNT) announced today that Singh Ahluwalia, a 32-year veteran of the Bridgestone group of companies and President of Truck and Bus Sales, Bridgestone Bandag Tire Solutions (BBTS), has elected to retire effective March 1, 2009. Ahluwalia, who will also retire from his position as member of the BFNT Board of Directors, will be succeeded by Kurt Danielson, Vice President of Marketing, BBTS. Danielson will assume Ahluwalia’s duties and move into the position of Vice President, Sales and Marketing, BBTS. To provide a smooth transition, Danielson’s appointment is effective Nov. 1.

Ahluwalia joined then-Bridgestone U.S.A. in 1977 as a Marketing Analyst in Torrance, Calif. Ahluwalia’s experiences have allowed him to hold many positions within the Bridgestone Americas family of companies during his more than 30- year tenure. He has worked in product sales, advertising, marketing and motorsports. Ahluwalia also served as Western Zone Manager of the Bridgestone Americas company-owned stores and moved to Nashville, Tenn., in 1993 to become Director of Corporate Commercial Accounts. Prior to being named President of Truck and Bus Sales, Ahluwalia served as Vice President of Truck Tire Sales. Ahluwalia graduated from the University of New Haven in Connecticut, where he received his master’s degree in business administration.

Danielson has a record of proven performance with the Bridgestone group of companies, starting with then-Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. in 1994 and taking on positions of increasing responsibility over the years including working as a District Sales Manager, Sales Manager and Executive Director of Marketing before assuming his role as Vice President of Marketing in 2006. In his new role, Danielson will report directly to Saul Solomon, President, BBTS, and will be responsible for all truck tire marketing and sales activities for both new and retreads.

“After 32 years of dedication to our company, Singh has certainly put in his time and earned the opportunity to retire and enjoy more free time,” Solomon said. “Singh’s contributions to our company are legion. Whether it was Singh’s experience in our store system or working in our OTR sales division, Singh always put the company and the team first. But by far, Singh’s greatest contributions came in the Truck and Bus business. Almost all of our major milestones in this business occurred during Singh’s tenure — the overall explosive growth in our TBR business, our long-standing relationship with Ryder and our partnership with Paccar. Above all, it was Singh’s vision that ultimately led to our merger with Bandag, a transaction that has given us so many opportunities across the globe. So, on a personal level, I’m certainly happy for Singh. On the business side however, we will miss his wisdom, knowledge of our business and steady hand in leading the Truck and Bus business.

“Fortunately, Singh has done a great job of developing strong leaders in his organization, and I am very pleased that Kurt Danielson will assume Singh’s duties and move into the position of Vice President, Sales and Marketing, BBTS,” Solomon added. “Kurt has a passion for our business and a great strategic vision. I’m confident he is the right person to successfully lead our Truck and Bus Sales and Marketing team into the future.”