One of the most respected companies in the tire industry is the Hankook Tire company. They have a history that spans more than sixty years, a history that has met with many success and new developments. They have over the years become one of the top tire manufacturers in the world. The company has always been open and ready to change and expand to meet the needs of the consumers. Branch offices and manufacturing plants for Hankook Tire are located in countries all over the world. While they have expanded their operations to include other products and equipment, their mission and focus has always been to produce the finest tires in the business. This was the vision sixty years ago, and remains the vision today. Their focus on the technological advances of tire manufacturing have made the driving experience more comfortable, more intense and perhaps most importantly more safe. The company was founded in 1941, in Seoul, Korea. Within twenty years they were exporting their tires world wide. In 1974, they produced the first passenger car radial tire, and in another six years their exports increased to just about one hundred million dollars of revenue per year. As their foreign commerce and trade was expanding, they decided to open their first branch for Hankook Tire in the United States. This occurred in 1981. They constructed a new design and research development center in Seoul, and soon added four more such centers in Germany, the United States, Japan and China. The goal of these centers was and is, to optimize the performance of their existing products and to develop new and innovative products. By 1991, they had become ranked as one of the top ten tire manufacturing companies in the world and just nine years later they were awarded the coveted honor that is given out by the Ford Motor Company, the Q1 Award. This award signifies that their products are of the highest quality in the industry. Today they remain to be one of the most respected companies in the business, and they continue to grow and produce the finest quality products and tires available.