During the war the War Production Board ordered raw materials and finished goods. The Board was crucial to persuade producers and manufactureres to accept war orders. It also requisitioned any and all property and products needed in order to support the war.

One product deemed essential to the military was rubber; an industry which grew widely during WWII. In 1939 Goodyear Aircraft Corporation had 140 employees; by 1943, it had 32,000. The product requisitioned to Goodyear by the military was for combat tires-"to keep 'em rolling."

"Picture a column of troop carriers, combat cars and field pieces like this, 40 miles long, and you have just one mechanized division of our new army on the march. There'll be thousands of vehicles in line, each using four to ten tires-with a full set of spares in reserve back at the base."

"And these are no ordinary tires, mind you. For military equipment Goodyear is building a new-type combat tire that a 37mm. Anti-tank gun can't knock out of action. Even when riddled by machine gun fire, they keep right on rolling along-don't require changing."

"We can't tell you how it's done. But we can tell you that each one of these Goodyear combat tires requires far more rubber than an ordinary passenger car tire. So when you stop to consider how many of these tires are needed to move an army of millions, it is easy to see why civilian tire sales must be rationed for the duration."

"But there's another angle, too. In the development of these special army tires, and other military equipment such as bullet-puncture-sealing gasoline tanks built with Chemigum (Goodyear's synthetic rubber), we are learning new skills and techniques that will make Goodyear products better than ever before in the peace to come. Thus while building for victory, Goodyear is also building for tomorrow."

"Even the guns are now mounted on Goodyear combat tires-to keep 'em rolling."