What kind of products does Uzer Makina offer to global tyre industry?

Uzer Makina has been serving top tyre makers all around the world with its tyre curing presses and molds since 1978. Our press product category consists of mechanical and hydraulic presses for all kinds of tyres; while mold category includes tread segments, sidewall plates, container mechanisms, AG molds and bladder molds.

Tell us about the evolution of the company as a global leader

The company was founded by Selahattin Uzuner and his nephew Bahattin Ertuğ. At first, the company was working for petrochemical industry in Turkey and later on started to make mold maintenance activities for various tyre companies in Kocaeli. First mold was manufactured 1984. Nearly 10 years later, Uzer Makina started to manufacture tyre curing presses again for plants in İzmit. In 2000, the plant was moved to Kartepe, Kocaeli, where it  is currently located. In 2004, first hydraulic tyre curing press is manufactured and in 2007 Uzer Makina designed, manufactured and internationally patented its popular product Floating Column Hydraulic Press. Until late 2000s, the company mostly served domestic market. After 2010, we started to supply a good amount of its products abroad as well. With an aggressive growth strategy, Uzer Makina invested in buildings, brand-new equipment, human resources and expanded production in last five years to become a global player in tyre curing equipment market. We now serve top tyre makers and their plants in more than 40 countries.

What is the latest step in your expansion process?

After doubling capacity in 2018 by separating press and mold factory, Uzer Makina has completed another expansion by June 2020. This new facility is entirely dedicated for pre-production activities, including storing steel raw materials, cutting, bending, construction, welding, sandblasting and heat treatment serving both for tyre curing press and mold categories which used to be a part of press manufacturing facility before. Uzer Makina also moved its HQ office from mold factory to press factory.

Investment decision was made at the end of 2019 by the top management before Covid-19 pandemic with the goal of decreasing the costs by decreasing the amount of manufacturing activities which are outsourced. Following this decision, Uzer Makina has acquired 9500 m² land just next to existing press manufacturing facility and finished 6500 m² building in less than 7 months.

Uzer Makina also has added brand-new pre-production equipment like heat treatment furnace, sandblasting machine and bending machine. With these new machinery investment, Uzer Makina is planning to decrease the cost per product and production time while increasing the total quality of the processes by taking these operations in house rather than outsourcing them.

This expansion enables Uzer Makina to better use the existing press manufacturing facility. Since pre-production occupied a good amount of space before leaving the building, remaining place is now used for press manufacturing and assembly. Therefore, Uzer Makina is able to manufacture more presses at the same time compared to previous set-up. Uzer Makina has also made machinery investments for existing press area as well including automated spray-painting booth for painting press bodies/parts and vertical turning machine with 3 meters turning diameter which would mainly be used for parts of bigger (over 85”) mechanical presses.            

What are the features of the new SUV & TBR Floating Column Hydraulic Press?

A new era for SUV & TBR tyre curing has begun as Uzer Makina announced the development of SUV & TBR version of its most popular and internationally patented Floating Column Type Hydraulic Press in the last Tyre Technology Expo. Uzer Makina dispatched the first 65” Floating Column Hydraulic Type Curing Press at the end of 2020. This new version outweighs the existing solution Frame Type which used to be the industry standard almost in every aspect. It offers a simpler design, the construction weights much less, has fewer components, maintenance requirements are lower and finally the energy requirement is lesser compared to Frame Type. Besides, most importantly, pricewise there is no significant difference between these two types.

On the other hand, tyre manufacturers will be able to benefit all the advantages of the internationally patented Floating Column Technology for curing of larger tyres. Floating Column Technology provides fully automatic mold height adjustment and therefore eliminates the need for conventional mold height adjustment systems. The technology features two squeezing cylinders under the columns on both sides of each cavity. The piston rods of these cylinders are directly connected to the columns. Besides applying squeezing force, these cylinders also change the position of the locking point, which is located on the columns for adjustment of mold height. Therefore, the press does not need multiple locking points and can work perfectly well with just one. Columns rise at the end of each cycle and release the locking plates from grooves, meaning the locking mechanism can work without jamming.

In addition to these, Uzer Makina is able to construct this new size Floating Column Type Hydraulic Press as V-Shape as well in order to save space. The V-Shape design enables tyre manufacturers to use the curing press area at least 12% more efficiently, in other words, tyre producers would be able to place 112 curing presses in an area that was previously large enough for 100 machines. This concept was developed by Uzer Makina engineers in response to the recent market demand for upgrading existing machines in tyre production plants.

On the other hand, Uzer Makina have been recently putting so much effort to increase energy efficiency on the presses and therefore help tyre manufacturers to comply with the latest European regulations. With this object in mind, Uzer Makina has developed “Energy Saver Steam Hoses” as a subsidiary product that would work both with Uzer Makina presses and others. With these hoses, one can save up to 5% energy per press which is equal huge amount of energy considering the fact that tyre curing is the most energy consumer process of tyre production. These hoses also prevent curing area from overheating. In case there is an effort to cool down the area, there is no need for it or at least it requires much less effort to keep the curing area at normal temperature.

Uzer Makina is not solely a tyre curing press and mold producer – the company also strives to improve the efficiency of the entire curing process. Uzer Makina places great emphasis on digitization and designs its presses to be fully compatible with Industry 4.0 requirements such as EMS, AGV, SCADA, MES and ERP systems. In addition, the company conducts its own research and also works with leading industry companies to offer solutions such as mold pre-heating presses, mold changing pickup cranes and RFID mold management systems – to help tyre manufacturers achieve the most efficient curing processes.

How did the company take on the pandemic?

Even though pandemic conditions were very challenging for tyre industry especially in terms of demand last year, 2021 is very promising also for Uzer Makina. There are many reasons for this: firstly, because of US tariffs against Asian tyre makers, Turkey & Eastern Europe has become a very attractive country for capacity increase for tyre production. Almost all tyre makers in Turkey runs at full capacity and some of them already is expanding. Secondly, there has been a global change in transportation as many people now prefers to move more individually than ever, this probably will eventually affect the number of tyres produced globally. Uzer Makina started to feel this rebound in the demand as many existing customers has decided to restart their previously on hold orders and requesting inquiries for new equipment, and it is also a known fact that quite a few tyre makers are making new greenfield & expansion projects. As Uzer Makina continues to improve its reputation in the market year by year, this rebound will have much more positive effect on the company.

In the pandemic period, like all other companies, Uzer Makina also had to transform the way to operate business into more digital. Now in Uzer Makina, all internal meetings are video meetings. Since travelling abroad is still an issue, nearly all the meetings with customers and suppliers are done via video calls too. Uzer Makina enriched the content of the installation and commissioning materials and provided remote support in order to help the customers which cannot accept people to their plants because of travelling bans. (TT)

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Following a wave of international acclaim, Pirelli's Cyber Tyre technology continues to redefine automotive safety and connectivity, earning a trio of prestigious awards that underscore its transformative impact. The recognition began in France, where a panel of 20 industry experts at the Automobile Awards honoured the Cyber Tyre with the Safety Award for its ability to enhance vehicle security. This intelligent system employs integrated sensors that communicate with a car’s electronic control unit, delivering real-time road data. This allows vehicle stability systems to react more precisely, improving braking and handling, while also sharing critical information with road infrastructure and other connected vehicles to proactively alert of hazards.

Further acclaim came from Autobest, a European automotive jury representing 32 countries, which granted its SafetyBest 2026 award. This honour celebrates the pioneering development of the Cyber Tyre, a technology deemed of exceptional significance for raising road safety standards following rigorous evaluation. Simultaneously, the global market analysis firm Frost & Sullivan named Pirelli the 2025 Company of the Year in the smart automotive tyre sector. This award highlights Pirelli’s foresight in anticipating industry trends and bringing groundbreaking innovations to market that generate substantial value.

The culmination of two decades of development, Cyber Tyre technology is now moving from concept to real-world application through key automotive partnerships. Following its 2021 debut on the McLaren Artura, the system has been adopted by Audi for a special track model and is fully integrated into the electronics of the Pagani Utopia Roadster. A recently announced agreement with Aston Martin will see the technology featured on future models, with development also expanding into the premium volume market. These implementations are supported by a strategic collaboration with Bosch, ensuring seamless integration with essential vehicle systems like ESP and ABS.

Fundamentally, the Pirelli Cyber Tyre is an integrated hardware and software platform. It collects vital data on tyre pressure, temperature and dynamics, processes this information via proprietary algorithms and communicates instantly with a vehicle’s driver-assistance and stability controls. This elevates safety, efficiency and comfort. Its influence extends beyond the vehicle itself, contributing to smarter infrastructure. A pilot project in Italy’s Apulia region, for example, combines tyre sensor data with camera imagery to create dynamic road maps that monitor pavement conditions and aid maintenance planning. Through Vehicle-to-Everything connectivity, the Cyber Tyre is paving the way for smarter roads and cities, marking a decisive step towards future mobility by transforming the traditional tyre into a connected, intelligent component.

Andrea Casaluci, CEO, Pirelli, said, “These new recognitions confirm that the role of the tyre has changed. For over a century, the technologies inside it have been evolving, but its function has remained the same: conveying forces to the ground to ensure vehicle control. Today, the tyre continues to evolve, and to its primary purpose a new one has been added: thanks to Pirelli Cyber™ Tyre, it has begun to collect and transmit data, processed through algorithms developed by Pirelli. These enable new functionalities, both within vehicle electronics and in relation to road infrastructure, with development potential that looks towards smart cities and autonomous driving. Digitalisation and connectivity are essential pillars for designing future mobility, and our technology – the first of its kind in the tyre world – has embraced them, as confirmed by these awards and by our collaborations with leading car manufacturers.”

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Dunlop (company name: Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Ltd.) has integrated chemically recycled circular carbon black into selected passenger car tyres, initiating mass production at its Miyazaki facility in November 2025. This marks the first application of this recycled material within Dunlop's commercial tyre range. The circular carbon black is derived from end-of-life tyres and manufacturing rubber scrap, which are processed through chemical recycling instead of being incinerated for energy. Developed in partnership with Mitsubishi Chemical, this approach transforms waste into a valuable raw material, promoting a circular economy and helping to lower CO₂ emissions.

This innovation was first proven in high-performance settings, having been successfully tested in Dunlop racing tyres during the competitive SUPER GT 2025 season, where it delivered reliable results. The initiative is a key component of Sumitomo Rubber’s overarching TOWANOWA circular economy strategy, which seeks to embed sustainability throughout the tyre lifecycle. This framework connects a sustainable ring, managing five key processes, with a data ring that harnesses information to generate additional value. A central element involves increasing the adoption of sustainable materials to lessen environmental footprint.

Operationally, Sumitomo Rubber provides rubber waste to Mitsubishi Chemical, which then utilises coke oven chemical recycling to produce the circular carbon black. This partnership redirects rubber from combustion to material recovery, enhancing resource efficiency and fostering more sustainable tyre production. Moving forward, the company plans to further develop its TOWANOWA strategy, concentrating on reducing ecological impact, improving tyre safety and performance and expanding service-oriented solutions for sustainable mobility.

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Bridgestone India has further strengthened its environmental and educational mission with the opening of a Nature Interpretation Centre. This new facility, an eco-friendly mud structure, is situated within the company’s thriving Butterfly Garden at its Kheda Plant. Designed as a hub for nature-based learning, the Centre provides immersive educational tools such as 3D models and interactive smart boards, alongside a resource area with books and training materials. It will facilitate workshops and community programmes, having already engaged over 70 local students with hands-on conservation experiences.

The surrounding 1.23-acre Butterfly Garden forms a critical habitat, home to over 7,000 native plants that sustain a diverse ecosystem of butterflies, birds, mammals and pollinators. Its ecological impact is demonstrated by a Bombay Natural History Society evaluation, noting a significant rise in biodiversity. Since the garden’s creation, documented butterfly species have grown from 44 to 68 and bird species from 40 to 46, with several birds recorded in the Kheda region for the first time.

Collectively, the garden and centre showcase a successful model for harmonising industrial activity with nature, actively supporting Bridgestone’s commitment to sustainable growth and meaningful community engagement.

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JK Tyre & Industries Ltd. has formally completed the merger of its subsidiary, Cavendish Industries Ltd., into its operations, a strategic move that follows Cavendish's acquisition in 2016. At that time, Cavendish was operating at only 30 percent of its manufacturing capacity for various vehicle tyres. Under JK Tyre's stewardship, the subsidiary received extensive managerial, financial and technical support, which facilitated a complete operational turnaround. Through optimised manufacturing processes, capacity utilisation dramatically increased to 95 percent. Additional expansion at the Laksar facility further bolstered its substantial contribution to the company's overall tyre production.

This consolidation is projected to generate significant value by combining operational strengths, achieving greater economies of scale, and creating a more robust and diversified product portfolio. The unified entity will also benefit from an extensive, integrated distribution network. The merger aligns with JK Tyre's enduring strategy of pursuing sustainable growth through both organic projects and strategic acquisitions. Cavendish’s successful integration represents the company’s third major operational turnaround, following previous revitalisations of Vikrant Tyres and JK Tornel Mexico, alongside the establishment of two Greenfield plants.

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