Bridgestone/Firestone (BFS) Inc. is reducing the amount of tire cord fabric made at its Firestone Fibers & Textile Co. plants in Kings Mountain and Gastonia, N.C.
The two facilities supply BFS' tire manufacturing plants in both North and South America.
"This action is intended to remedy the current excess inventory levels that are due to the company's slowdown in production of passenger radial and light truck radial tires, recent industry-wide downturns in agriculture and off-road tire sales and the overall slowing in the ecomony," say BFS officials.
BFS will lay off 100 employees as part of the cutback. The tiremaker expects to call them back throughout the year "as tire sales increase and as excess inventories of tires and tire cord fabric are depleted."
