JK Tyre is preparing for the future mobility demand, banking on its R&D and testing capabilities. The pioneer of radial tyre technology to green tyres in India, JK Tyre is in the process of launching new technologies from puncture-proof tyres to UUHP ( Ultra Ultra High Performance) and electric vehicles tyres for passenger cars and connected mobility solutions.

“If you look at the evolution of tyre technologies in India, today radialisation in the passenger car tyre segment has reached over 90 percent, while it is in the 50–55 percent range in the commercial tyres segment. In the next three to five years, the radialisation of commercial tyres will reach 65 to 70 percent. We will also see a fast transition from tube tyres to tubeless tyres in the country soon. New technologies such as smart tyres and puncture-proof tyres will pick up gradually segment-wise in India, catering to niche demand initially. As and when OEMs require these new technologies, our products will be readily available,” said Dr Rabindra Mukhopadhyay, director, R&D, JK Tyre & Industries,.

JK Tyre acquired Pune-based Treel Mobility. Today, JK Tyre is India’s only tyre company that indigenously manufactures Tyre Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) based on TREEL sensor technology for OE and OE replacement markets. Its smart tyres provide live data on tyre temperature, tyre pressure, tyre positions, locations, distance travelled and expected tyre life through its algorithm, thus capturing the full health of the tyres.

The company is pushing its smart tyre solutions in the replacement market, especially for fleet companies. “It’s all about the value for money. If the customers think this product is value for money, they will pay for it,” said Dr Mukhopadhyay. The company’s smart tyres are available in PCR, 2-wheeler, LCV and truck categories.

The company is engaged in the manufacturing and marketing of automotive tyres, tubes and flaps. Today, the company has 12 state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities – three plants in Mysuru; three plants in Haridwar; one plant each in Banmore (MP), Kankroli (Rajasthan) and Chennai, and three plants in Mexico. These plants manufacture around 32 million tyres per annum.

JK Tyre’s products comprise truck & bus radial and bias, passenger car radials, two- and three-wheeler tyres, LCV & SCV bias and radial, off-highway tyres (OTR and Farm), as well as speciality tyres for military and defence, industrial and farm applications besides racing tyres.

Products in Pipeline

The company will soon introduce new products catering to the demand of new requirements, and one of them is a puncture-proof tyre for cars. The puncture-proof tyre has an inner coat of a special rubber compound developed by the company that seals and heals the tyre immediately. As per the company, its puncture-proof tyre can sustain up to 300 punctures. It also enhances durability and does not allow fuel efficiency to drop.

Bias tyres will also remain the focus of JK Tyre to maintain its leading position in the commercial tyres segment. According to Dr Mukhopadhyay, though India is aggressively moving towards the radialisation of commercial tyres, bias tyres will remain in demand for the next 15-20 years owing to the road conditions and the benefits it provides. “For short-haul and within-the-city transportation, bias tyres are still preferred. Globally, bias tyres still own around 10 percent market, and India is one of the leading exporters of bias tyres,” said Dr Mukhopadhyay.

Tyres for EVs are expected to have lower rolling resistance, much lower tyre noise and high torque resistance with durability. JK Tyre has also developed new pattern series for electric scooters. For the scooter tyres, the company has a compound which has a 12 percent reduction in hysterias, leading to higher fuel saving and lower heat-related failures. JK Tyre is currently working with MG Motor to offer EV tyres on the passenger car tyre side. “We also have plans to offer electric passenger and light truck tyres,” added Dr Mukhopadhyay. 

JK Tyre has also developed the second generation of EV tyres for passenger cars, which can up to 13 to 14 k per KVH.

Though niche, the high-performance bikes and car segment is gaining traction in India, and JK Tyre is also eyeing the same segment. For premium, high-end luxury cars, for domestic and export, JK Tyre has developed Levitas Ultra, an ultra-high-performance tyre. The Levitas Ultra offers the best in class ride and handling, braking, comfort and noise level. The company will also bring out ‘H’ rated tyres designed for high-speed motorcycles, which can reach 210 kmph, focusing on a lower aspect ratio. The company has tested and validated the Levitas Ultra tyre for India and Europe. The company claims the Levitas Ultra tyre’s performance is tuned at a level better than the global brands in overall handling, performance, control, wet grip and noise. “We are also working on non-pneumatic tyres, but it will take time to develop,” added Dr Mukhopadhay.

R&D and Testing Capabilities

R&D has always been  an integrated focus of JK Tyres to bring new technologies. A few decades ago, almost all tyre companies in India collaborated with foreign tyre companies to get technologies. To reduce dependency on international companies, JK Tyre established India’s first independent elastomer and tyre research institute, Hari Shankar Singhania Elastomer & Tyre Research Institute (HASETRI), in 1991 at Kankroli, Rajasthan. Today, HASETRI is one of the leading research institutes in Asia in rubber and tyre technology. HASETRI works in material characterisation, product characterisation, simulation, environmental analysis, calibration, consultancy and training.

In 2018, JK Tyre inaugurated its Global Technology Centre RPSCoE in Mysuru, bringing together the best in class facilities under one roof. The RPSCoE houses HASETRI and The JK Tyre Tech Centre. The company is ramping up its R&D and testing capabilities to meet future requirements. This year, the company has allocated a budget of INR 1.1 billion to procure equipment for tyre analysis. JK Tyre has already ordered the Flat-Trac CT Plus system, made by MTS, which is engineered to deliver highly accurate and repeatable measurements of tyre force and moment properties under steady-state and dynamic conditions. The machine, which costs over INR 500 million, has capabilities of steady-state force and moment measurement, dynamic force and moment measurement, sinusoidal radial deflection tests, simulation testing and effective rolling radius measurement. Another highlight of the centre is semi-anechoic chamber for noise, harshness and vibration measurement. JK Tyre was also the first tyre company in India to invest in a first-of-its-kind semi-anechoic chamber.

JK Tyre also has a centre of excellence at IIT Madras, a joint venture between the company and IIT Madras. Over the years, the company has developed many predictive technologies and other solutions at the centre. The IIT Madras centre has a virtual proving ground to have the actual performance for the tyres on a vehicle without having real tyres or vehicles. Various data for the vehicles and a tyre is fed into the software, and you can put data of any test track and drive the car with different speeds. The virtual proving ground helps the company generate various data to determine what kind of tyres is best suited for a particular vehicle.

For enhancing its door testing capabilities, JK Tyre is also establishing its wet grip testing capability. The company has bought a skid trailer used for on-road tyre characterisations- force & moment, rolling resistance dry and wet grip. Currently, it is at NATRiP, Indore.

Recently, HASETRI received accreditation from the prestigious National Accreditation Board for Testing & Calibration Laboratories (NABL) for outdoor regulatory testing as per ISO/IEC 17025:2017. With this, HASETRI has become the first Scientific & Industrial Research Organisation (SIRO) recognised by DSIR, Government of India and an independent tyre testing and research institute in India to receive such accreditation from NABL.

Under the scope for outdoor testing, the accreditation includes testing for wet grip and coast-by noise for C1 (passenger) and C2 (light truck) category tyres as per ECE R117 method. The indoor tyre testing facilities for regulatory requirement like rolling resistance, endurance, dynamic growth etc. have already been accredited by NABL as per ISO/IEC 17025:2017.

JK tyre is exploring many possibilities on the material development front, one of which is mixing solid and liquid materials. “We are exploring possibilities of mixing natural rubber at the level of latex form with other solid materials. With this mixing process, we can save lots of energy consumption,” said Dr Mukhopadhyay. The company is working with different raw materials suppliers, especially synthetic rubber suppliers like SBR, to convert petrol-based materials to non-petrol based materials.

Reuse, retread and recycle are also focus of the company.  Currently, the company is using three percent recycled rubber in its new products. In the future, it targets to have 10 percent recycled rubber in the new products in the next five years. “However, a greater challenge is to have virgin rubber properties in the recycled rubber,” added Dr Mukhopadhyay.

JK Tyre is also targetting to increase its retread tyre volume . As of now, it is retreading 300 tonnes of used tyres per day, aiming to take it to 500 tonnes per day. (TT)

l’Aventure Michelin is reopening its doors to visitors after a month’s closure with a revamped visitor trail. The overhauled visitor trail will offer visitors a glimpse of Michelin’s history: right from bicycle tyres to the Michelin Man and the MICHELIN Guide, which is celebrating its 125 anniversary this year.

In order to facilitate visitors' movements and enhance the immersive experience of exploration, l'Aventure Michelin has redesigned its trail for its reopening. Access for those with disabilities was carefully considered. Since its inception, l'Aventure Michelin has maintained the French Tourism & Disability quality rating. It continuously improves its visitor trail to make the trip accessible to everyone, which is evident from the magnetic loops, easily comprehensible brochures and videos in French Sign Language.

This more inclusive visitor trail is complemented by a recently added section that emphasises sustainable mobility and development. Michelin will showcase its MILAW lunar wheel concept designed for vehicles travelling through harsh settings, such as the lunar south pole area. It is specifically designed to withstand harsh circumstances with its flexible construction and lack of air, which maximises traction on uneven ground. The second invention is the WISAMO inflatable wingsail, which uses wind power to cut down on ship fuel usage and contribute to the decarbonisation of marine transportation. It uses a renewable energy source and is compatible with both cargo ships and sailboats.

A member survey of the German Rubber Industry Association (wdk) has come to a conclusion that the situation in Germany as a production location remains worrying. The member survey highlighted that industry sales fell by almost two percent last year. Sales and domestic production were even weaker, with a decrease of three percent compared to the previous year.

Michael Klein, President, wdk, termed this as an ‘overly clear warning signal’ in Frankfurt am Main today with regard to the earnings situation. "While earnings in 2023 were 'only' strained or even threatened the existence of around a quarter of the companies in the industry, this proportion has now increased to more than 40 percent. That is why improving the location conditions must be at the top of the agenda of the next federal government," he said, explaining that more than one in five companies in the industry are already planning to relocate production out of Germany by 2025.

Demand, legislation, energy, sustainability, and specifically, location conditions are the biggest challenges facing the companies in the rubber industry, according to the member survey. Pointing out that 90 percent of companies are feeling an increase in bureaucratic burdens, Klein further added, "This is a clear mandate for politicians. The new federal government must immediately address the issue of reducing bureaucracy - in Germany and in Europe. 13,000 new laws since 2019 are not an achievement, but a burden.”

The European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers' Association (ETRMA) has sent its recommendations to the public consultation held by the European Commission about the urgent measures that must be taken to ensure the automotive industry's survival in Europe and to pinpoint possible remedies.

The proposals made by ETRMA are intended to reduce bureaucratic burdens, create a legislative climate that will increase competitiveness and advance a broader EU Automotive Action Plan that views the whole automotive supply chain as strategically important.

The main points of ETRMA's recommendations include promoting best-performing tyres and tackling the high energy costs for the industry, establishing sector-specific regulation for safe access to in-vehicle data, developing an EU Rubber Strategy to secure supply chain of raw materials such as natural rubber and including it in list of critical raw materials, equipping the current and future workforce with the skills required to meet increasing demands of the industry, achieving fair and open access to global markets for European tyres with a focus on emerging high-growth regions like India and Indonesia and simplifying the tyre regulatory environment to reduce implementation costs and legal uncertainties to promote investing in R&D and producing in Europe.

As the FIA Formula 1 World Championship hosted an exceptional event at London’s O2 Arena to celebrate and mark its 75th anniversary, Pirelli, who is the global tyre partner of Formula 1, marked the beginning of its own celebration. The year 2025 is special for Pirelli too as it is set to hit the 500 Grands Prix mark during the coming season. On the occasion, the company revealed a version of the Pirelli logo that will be used for all its Formula 1 communication throughout the 2025 season.

Pirelli will reach the 500-mark at the Dutch Grand Prix on 31 August at Zandvoort, having participated in 485 championship events thus far. A week later, Pirelli will host a number of special festivities at its home event in Monza to commemorate this milestone. The company has planned a series of celebration activities, the first of which was the unveiling of the logo.

An analysis of the 50 most important Grands Prix during Pirelli's tenure on the F1 World Championship trail will be the first initiative, and it will be featured on Pirelli.com. The British Grand Prix, which took place at Silverstone on 13 May 1950, was the inaugural round of motor racing's blue riband category. That day, there were 21 cars on the grid, eight of which were equipped with Pirelli tires. All three of the top finishers were Alfa Romeos, with Giuseppe Fagioli and Nino Farina of Italy leading the field ahead of Reg Parnell of England. It was the first chapter in Pirelli's lengthy and continuous history in Formula 1, where the Italian business would provide the tyres this year with the longest record in the sport.