Newspapers / Firestone News (Gastonia, N.C.) / May 16, 1955, edition 1 / Page 3
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may 13, 1S55 PAGE 3 Twenty Years of Constant Progress T am very glad to be with you tonight and to be able to join in the 20th Anniversary celebration of Fire stone Textiles, here in Gastonia. At such times as this, an important anniversary, it is Usually a good thing to look back in order that we may look ahead intelligently and with some certainty to what lies in the future. I think it is safe to say that our operation here has completed twenty years of constant progress. It has been progress not only in terms of increased production, quality and service, but on many other fronts as well. And tonight I would like to review these with you. As you know. The Firestone Tire & Rubber Company Was a worldwide organization, known and respected in every quarter of the globe, when we began our operation here in Gastonia in 1935. The Company, at that point, Was thirty-five years old, and it occupied a well-earned position of leadership in the tire industry. In 1935, even though the country was pulling itself out of the depths of the depression, the management of r’irestone was planning to expand. One move in that direction was the purchase of the Gastonia mill. The Company did this for the purpose of obtaining cotton lire cord and other fabrics for the exclusive use of its own tire manufacturing plants. Changing Needs Since that time, however, the changing needs of the tire industry have imposed changes on our production here. But these same needs have likewise caused us not only to change our production but to improve and increase it constantly. It is an interesting sidelight on the character of the Firestone Company that when the change from cotton to synthetic cord had to be made, the Company selected what you might say was the hard way to meet this change. Quite a bit of cotton production was not needed. The Company therefore had to make a choice between shut ting down the cotton facilities or developing new markets m competition with other textile plants for what these ^Scilities could produce. There were many factors involved in the Company’s •decision to develop new markets. And, I would like to point out, one of the basic considerations was the fact that if the facilities had been shut down, hundreds of Employees, yes, about 1,000, would have been thrown out of work. During the period when the change was taking place, ^he Company spent a substantial sum of money to niodernize machinery for the production of cotton yarns ^nd fabrics in order to maintain cotton production. And m doing so the jobs of many were saved. In the more recent past, that is since the end of World II, we have gone forward with a program of im- Provement and expansion. The installation of new equip- *^ent during that period has made us the most com plete, the most modern textile operation anywhere in United States. _Our new electronic Safety-Tensioning and Gum-Dip- ^^ng unit makes us the only cord treating factory in the Wori(j_ ^ith all these improvements, made during the last Wenty years, we have here in Gastonia today, one of finest plants in America. Friendly Community . far, I have confined myself to the advances and Improvements in the physical characteristics of our plant. °w, let us look at other things. This community and its good people have made pos- our success here in Gastonia. Let none of us have doubt about that. Without the friendliness and co- l^^^^^tion of the community as a whole, from the very ginning of our enterprise, we could have gotten no Place. Without that most valuable ingredient in any business ^jl ®^Prise—the loyalty of its employees—Firestone Tex- *^ight just as well never have opened its doors. Our nored guests tonight are a symbol of that. And on the oject of loyalty I will have something more to say ^ little tQ ® sre grateful for the part the community of Gas- has played in the advancement of Firestone Tex- But in our gratitude we should not overlook the ^ that our Company has played in the advancement ^he community itself and of the people in it. f- is not to beat our own drum too loudly. It is, sho *^®rely to look as both sides of the coin. One side sh Gastonia helping Firestone. And the other side firestone helping Gastonia. That is the way it be. That, as a matter of fact, is the only way a *^^*iity and a business enterprise can operate with Semblance of success. Wa fortunately, for everyone concerned, that is the things have gone here in Gastonia. te later. J. E. Trainer, Executive Vice-President But, to take a look at the details in the picture which show how Firestone in Gastonia has been of benefit to this community. Today we are giving employment to about twice as many people as we were twenty years ago, and during the twenty-year period since we started our operations here we have given continual employment to our people. The average work week has been about 43 hours for the entire period of time—twenty years. Our payroll, to gether with extra benefits, supplies and the cost of utilities, puts into the community more than $3,000,000 a year. That is a sizable economic shot in the arm! And it helps to make possible a thriving business community. Business activity has greatly increased here during the last twenty years. There have been improvements straight across the board, in terms of living standards, and in the social and cultural life of the city and its people. I don’t have to tell you about the sale of our houses to employees, so that now all 622 are owned by in dividuals. It is a pleasure to ride through this village and see how the homes have been improved and how well kept they are. The Company and its employees can be proud of the fact that they have made substantial contributions to the religious life of the city. I have often thought that the character of a hamlet, a town, a city, even the char acter of an entire country, could be revealed by the number of churches in it, and by the support they re ceived from their communicants. In this case, Firestone employees and the Company itself have played an important part. Contributions by Firestone employees and assistance by the Company in helping with building plans and furnishing land, have made possible the construction of many churches here. In order to discharge its responsibility as a corporate citizen of Gastonia, Firestone has always given strong support to the civic activities of the city. The Company, as all of you know, is active in helping the United Fund, the Red Cross Blood Program and the educational efforts of schools. Assistance to youth activities, such as the Boy Scouts, has only been part of our regular activity. Good Place To Work Now, I do not think I have to tell this group that Firestone Textiles is a good place to work. The record speaks for itself. Our treatment of our employees speaks for itself. But let it be clearly understood that Fire stone Textiles is part of the textile industry and don’t allow anybody to tell you anything different. As part of the textile industry Firestone Textiles has to compete with other textile plants and must stand on its own feet, just as our Steel Products Division must compete with other steel fabricating plants and as our Plastics Divi sion must compete with other plastics companies. The same thing can be said of the other divisions of our Company or any other company. But, just to make the record complete, I would like to say that we pay excel lent wages and that we have the best and safest working conditions in the industry. And while I am on the subject of safety, one of my pet subjects, I want to compliment you on your fine safety record. You can be justifiably proud of it. And I assure you that I am. Firestone has always felt that the welfare of its em ployees was a vital concern of the Company's. The evi dence of this concern is to be found in our group in surance plan, in our pension plan, in the paid vacations that are granted, and in numerous other benefits—all of which were put into effect voluntarily by the Company. And at this time we have already formulated plans to further improve our pension and insurance program. The latest indication of the Company’s concern for the well-being of not only its employees, but the mem bers of their families as well, is our Scholarship Pro gram. Under this program sixty deserving and fortunate young people will receive a college education which, in some instances, they might not otherwise receive. That is a wonderful thing. And the Company is extreme ly happy that it is able to put a large group of young sters through college. Our plans are to add fifteen to twenty more scholarships each year so that we will have between sixty and seventy students in college at all times. What, you might ask, does all of this mean? What does it add up to? What bearing does it have on us as indi viduals? What does it mean in terms of our future? Well, what I have said adds up to many things. We have a fine plant. We have a fine organization. We are operating according to the keystone of Firestone policy, which is to provide the public with products of the high est quality at the lowest possible prices, thereby con tinuing the demand for our products, which means con tinuing our jobs and adding more jobs. The Gastonia plant is doing its part because of its modern equipment and the fine operating climate that exists in Gastonia. What do I mean by operating cli mate? Perhaps I can best describe it by telling you that in the past we have closed down textile mills because the over-all operation resulted in a cost of finished product exceeding the price at which this material could be bought in the open market. This was the combina tion of many things: The attitude of the community, costs such as taxes, low productivity on the part of the workers and other indirect costs. Typical examples of plants we were forced to close down were the plant in New Bedford, Massachusetts, which we closed once in 1938 and finally in 1949. The same thing happened in our textile plant in Roanoke, Virginia, in 1954, and in our plant at Fort Worth, Texas, in 1946. It may be of interest to you to know that a few years ago we decided to expand our textile facilities. We bought land in Tennessee with the intention of building a plant there. But, when the final decision to build, or not to build, had to be made, we decided to expand our facilities here in Gastonia and not to build in Tennessee. And we based that decision on the fact that the busi ness climate here in Gastonia was a healthy one. After twenty years in Gastonia it is an accepted fact that we are well thought of by the community. And we, as a corporate enterprise, like the community and are happy to be a part of it. Important To Company What I have said means that after twenty years we can safely say that we, as a Company in Gastonia, have most certainly arrived, that we are a well-established organization, an integral and important part of the Firestone Company. What I have said means that our products, our policies and our practices are the best in the industry. For the future we must keep them that way. And that brings me to the subject of loyalty, loyalty as typi fied in the service of our guests of honor tonight—those who have been with the Company since 1935. Loyalty is a basic virtue. It is not a matter of edu cation. It has nothing to do with a person’s station in life. Loyalty is rooted in a strong belief in the ideals for which a person or an organization stands. It is found only in men and women who possess great strength of character. As a people, we Americans are by nature loyal, not only to our jobs and our families but also to our country and the ideals for which it stands. We have demonstrated this fact many times. We have defended our country against attacks of its enemies, some of us on the pro duction line and others in the armed forces. In times of peace we have been steadfast in defending our country against subtle, but dangerous alien philosophies. Be cause of our loyalty we have rejected the false reasoning of foreign theorists who promise in some distant future the standards of living we all enjoy today. Loyalty to one’s country, to one’s family, to friends, and to one’s job and the organization for which one works, is a priceless virtue. It is a precious treasure to those who receive it. It is a priceless gift from those who give it. Loyalty Valued Possession We of the Firestone organization regard the loyalty of our men and women as our most valued possession. One of the regrettable things is that when companies get large we lose the opportunity to know every em ployee personally and meet employees' families too. But Mr. Firestone and I did have the great pleasure of going through the plant here during the morning and after noon shifts to shake hands with many of the people and to wish them well on this twentieth anniversary. What is more, as we leave this meeting tonight we intend to go back to the plant tonight to meet those on the night shift. And on behalf of the organization, I want to pay tribute to you, who for twenty years have, because of your loyalty and proficiency, made vital contributions to the progress of Firestone Textiles. Your loyalty is an in spiration to all of us. I congratulate you on your twenty years of service. As I have already said, we have a fine plant and fine organization. We operate on the key Firestone principle, that of providing the public with products of the highest quality at the lowest possible prices and once again protect our jobs by creating a demand for our products by the buying public. Our products, policies and prac tices are the best in the industry. With these factors and the continuation of the loyalty of our employees, I feel safe in saying that the next twenty years will see even greater progress in Firestone Textiles than we have made during the last twenty years. We are part of a great expanding industry that is continuing to grow. ' Our future is bright. Our future is secure.
Firestone News (Gastonia, N.C.)
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May 16, 1955, edition 1
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