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Goodrich Corporation

Type	Public (NYSE: GR)
Founded	1870 in Akron, Ohio
Headquarters	Charlotte, North Carolina
Key people	Marshall Larsen, CEO & Chairman
Industry	Aerospace
Products	Nacelles and Interior Systems Actuation and Landing Systems Electronic Systems
Website	www.goodrich.com

Goodrich Corporation (formerly the B.F. Goodrich Company) NYSE: GR, is an American aerospace manufacturing company based in Charlotte, North Carolina. Founded in Akron, Ohio in 1870 as Goodrich, Tew & Co. by Dr. Benjamin Franklin Goodrich. The company name was changed to the "B.F. Goodrich Company" in 1880, to BFGoodrich in the 1980s, and to "Goodrich Corporation" in 2001.

The company has a history of innovation. As B.F. Goodrich, the company became one of the largest tire and rubber manufacturers in the world, helped in part by the 1986 merger with Uniroyal (formerly the United States Rubber Company). This product line was sold to Michelin in 1988, and the company acquired Rohr (1997), Coltec Industries, and TRW Aeronautical Systems (formerly Lucas Aerospace) in 2002. The sale of the specialty chemicals division and subsequent change to the current name completed the transformation. In 2006, company sales were $5.8 billion dollars, of which 18%, 16% and 12% of total revenues were accounted for by the U.S. government, Airbus and Boeing, respectively.¹

In 1936 the company entered the Mexican market in a joint venture with Euzkadi (Now part of Continental AG) (named:Goodrich-Euzkadi). The Troy, Ohio plant was purchased in 1946 from WACO. Since then, Goodrich has manufactured wheels and brakes for a variety of aircraft. Among these are commercial, military, regional, and business programs. This successful operation lies at the core of Goodrich's business. Competitors include the aerostructures divisions of companies such as Honeywell, Messier-Bugatti, Aircraft Braking Systems, (Howmet/Huck) and SNECMA.

Even though B.F. Goodrich is still a popular brand name of tires, the Goodrich Corporation exited the tire business in 1988. The tire business and use of the name was sold to Michelin.

Prior to that point, Goodrich ran some TV ads trying to distinguish themselves from the similar sounding Goodyear tire company. The tag line was, "See that blimp up in the sky? We're the other guys!"

History

B.F. Goodrich Tires Logo. The Goodrich Corporation exited the tire business in 1988

Goodrich dealer's decorated car in Salt Lake City ca. 1913

By 1986 B.F. Goodrich had become an S&P 500-listed company in diverse business, including tire and rubber fabrication. B.F. Goodrich made high-performance replacement tires. ² In August 1986, one of its biggest competitors in the tire business, Uniroyal Inc., was taken private³ when it merged with the tire segment of the B.F. Goodrich Company, in a joint venture private partnership, to become the Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Company. B.F. Goodrich Company held a 50% stake in the new tire company.⁴

The new Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Company headquarters was set up at the former B.F. Goodrich corporate headquarters, within its 27-building downtown complex in Akron, Ohio which contained Goodrich's original factory. In the fall of 1987 B.F. Goodrich Company shut down several manufacturing operations at the site, and most of the complex remained vacant until February 1988, when B.F. Goodrich announced plans to sell the vacant part of the complex to the Covington Capital Corporation, a group of New York developers.⁵

In 1987, its first full year of operation, the new Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Company generated almost US$2 billion in sales revenue, with profit of about US$35 million.⁴

However, the merger soon proved to be difficult.² In June 1988 B.F. Goodrich sold its 50% stake for US$225 million. The buyers were a group of investors led by Clayton & Dubilier, Inc. a private New York investment firm.^{4 6} At the same time, B.F. Goodrich also received a warrant to purchase indirectly up to 7% of the equity in Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Company.⁷

As part of the June 1988 sale deal, the new privately-held tire company acquired publicly-held debt of $415 million.^{8 9 10}

Also in 1988, Michelin Group, a subsidiary of the French tire company Michelin et Cie (Euronext: ML) proposed to acquire the Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Company, and began acquiring a stake.²

By May 1990, Michelin Group had completed its buyout of Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Company from Clayton & Dubilier of New York. The deal was valued at about US$1.5 billion.¹¹ B.F. Goodrich surrendered its 7% warrant to Michelin Group, and received US$32.5 million additional revenue from the sale.⁷

B.F. Goodrich then exited the tire business entirely, and later changed its name to Goodrich Corporation, in line with its plan to build its chemicals and aerospace businesses through reinvestment and acquisitions.⁶

Environmental Record

The B.F. Goodrich site is a 2-acre (8,100 m²) industrial landfill, located about 2 miles (3.2 km) northeast of Calvert City, Kentucky and lies on the southern bank of the Tennessee River. The B.F. Goodrich Company disposed of wastes on the site from the years 1969 to 1972 and used a former creek channel for landfilling. Workers disposed of about 54,000 tons of construction waste and plant trash. Buried 370 cubic yards (280 m³) of salt-brine sludge, and burned over 2 million gallons of liquid chlorinated organics in several burn pits at the site.¹² From 1973 to 1980, the only waste disposed of at the site was excavation dirt. In 1980, an inspection by the Kentucky Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection disclosed a leaking problem along the river side of the landfill.¹³ The landfill was closed under a State approved closure plan in 1980. Groundwater, soil, and sediments are contaminated with volatile organic compounds including benzene and toluene from the former waste disposal activities.

Businesses

Actuation and Landing Systems

• Actuation Systems
• Aircraft Wheels and Brakes
• Aviation Technical Services
• Landing Gear
• Engine Components

Electronic Systems

• Sensors and Integrated Systems
• Engine Control and Electrical Power Systems
• ISR Systems

Nacelles and Interior Systems

• Aerostructures
• Interiors
• Customer Services

Platforms

Civil

• Boeing 737
• Boeing 747-400
• Boeing 757-200
• Boeing 767
• Boeing 777
• Boeing 787
• Airbus A320 series
• Airbus A330/A340
• Airbus A380
• Cessna Citation
• Bombardier Global Express
• Bombardier Dash-8 Q400
• Canadair Regional Jet
• Lear Jet
• Handley Page Jetstream

Military

• Airbus A400M Flaps and transmission
• F-14 Tomcat
• F-15 Eagle (radome erosion boot)
• F-16 Fighting Falcon nosewheel
• S-3 Viking
• P-3 Orion
• C-141 Starlifter
• C-5 Galaxy
• B-52 Stratofortress
• F-111 Aardvark
• F-117 Nighthawk
• A-6 Intruder
• CH-46 Sea Knight (wheels or rotor brakes)
• CH-47 Chinook (wheels or rotor brakes)
• CH-53 Sea Stallion (wheels or rotor brakes)
• V-22 Osprey (wheels or rotor brakes)
• Harrier Jump Jet - All Versions (Hydromechanical fuel systems)
• SEPECAT Jaguar - All Versions (Hydromechanical fuel systems)
• Space Shuttles (wheels and brakes)

References

1. ^ (2007) Standard and Poor's 500 Guide. The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.. ISBN 0-07-147906-6. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} Uniroyal, Inc. Eau Claire Plant Records, 1917-1990, UWEC.edu
3. ^ Jeremy J. Siegel, Stocks for the Long Run, Second Edition, 1998, ISBN 0-07-058043-X
4. ^ ^{a b c} Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Co reports earnings for Qtr to Sept 30, New York Times Archive, Published: October 14, 1988
5. ^ COMPANY NEWS; Goodrich to Sell Complex in Akron, AP, New York Times, February 18, 1988
6. ^ ^{a b} Company News; Goodrich Outlook, REUTERS, New York Times Archive, Published: June 24, 1988
7. ^ ^{a b} COMPANY NEWS; Goodrich Gains In Uniroyal Sale, REUTERS, New York Times Archive, May 3, 1990
8. ^ Uniroyal Goodrich Tire Co reports earnings for Qtr to March 31, New York Times Archive, Published: April 25, 1989
9. ^ FINANCE/NEW ISSUES; Uniroyal Goodrich Sets 2-Part Offer, New York Times Archive, June 17, 1988
10. ^ Uniroyal Goodrich Tire reports earnings for Qtr to Dec 31, New York Times Archive, Published: February 23, 1990
11. ^ INSIDE, New York Times, Published: September 23, 1989
12. ^ http://www.greens.org/s-r/12/12-13.html
13. ^ http://epa.gov/reg5oorc/enfactions/enfactions1999/law-mm.htm

Further reading

• Mansel G. Blackford; B. F. Goodrich: Tradition and Transformation, 1870–1995; 1996, Ohio State University Press; ISBN 0-8142-0696-4.

External links

• Goodrich Corporation website
• Turbine Fuel Technologies (A Goodrich Company)
• Delavan Spray Technologies (A Goodrich Company)

Wikipedia content modification information:

• This page was last modified on 7 November 2008, at 11:05.

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