Harm Voortman, Chief Executive of VMI Group, explains how his company is mobilising its resources to cut energy use and reduce emissions, together with other forms of pollution in its strategic drive to make the business more sustainable and environmentally responsible. Having just been awarded the prestigious EcoVadis Gold Award in recognition of the progress made already, VMI is determined to keep enhancing its own performance while helping customers worldwide achieve better sustainability.

A STRATEGIC INDUSTRY

Tyres are essential for the modern economy. That’s a simple fact of life because much of the global economy depends on motor vehicles, and all those vehicles run on tyres. Two billion tyres are made every year across the world, and a high proportion of these are built on tyre building machines designed, built and supplied by VMI.

There is, however, another side to this story of economic and manufacturing efficiency. Those two billion new tyres every year also translate into something like six million tonnes of microplastics. These highly polluting particles end up in the environment – much of it in the oceans of the world. This means that one of the essential drivers for the global economy is also a major contributor to pollution and environmental damage.

The big question for all of us is how can we maintain the benefits of the tyre industry while also finding ways to reduce the harms it causes. In other words, how can we make it transformationally more sustainable?

OUR GREATEST CHALLENGE?

Sustainability is “not just a nice to have” it is an essential and non-negotiable requirement for every manufacturer and operator of automotive products.

Motor vehicles still largely use fossil fuels and require roads that must be built across the countryside, then constantly maintained and upgraded. Inevitably, this causes environmental damage.

Tyres are made from increasingly complex blends of materials, which are used to make the novel compounds required to meet the changing demands of the automotive industry. This requires a huge amount of energy and a continuous stream of raw materials.  

The move to electric vehicles (EVs), a key factor in making the industry more sustainable by reducing reliance on fossil fuels, also has one major disadvantage. EVs are often heavier than the conventional vehicles they replace. That leads to greater wear and tear on the road surface, generating a higher level of particulates that are harmful to the environment and to human health.

The need to make the entire industry less environmentally damaging, more efficient and sustainable is a challenge that every participant – car and truck manufacturers, energy companies and, above all, tyre builders – have no choice but to face. Here, as in so many other ways, VMI is leading the way.

COMMITMENT TO INNOVATION

VMI has become a strong and respected global player because it is an innovator. Many of the concepts that have transformed the tyre industry were developed by VMI, including ‘hands off, eyes off’ automation, advanced visions systems and now the use of AI to help eliminate errors and optimise production.

Yet perhaps the most important application for innovation today is in sustainability. Fresh ideas in this field lead to better environmental performance, assured regulatory compliance and to better commercial results as well. VMI believes that doing the right thing for the planet can also lead to the best outcome for shareholders.

The drive for enhanced sustainability has become a major focus for all VMI’s employees: one of its most striking features is how it involves everyone, at all levels and in all disciplines. This has become a personal goal, with every member of the wider VMI team committed to looking for new and better ways to reduce the environmental impact of their work.

At all times, the aim is to look for new methods that can deliver a real win-win to manufacturers and customers.

There is a continuing search for ways to use less energy in production, reduce waste and scrap, while eliminating errors – thereby cutting down on the amount of materials used. Reducing emissions and pollution also leads to business benefit, because less energy used means lower costs. Less scrap and waste leads to improved efficiency and, once again, cuts costs significantly.

Tyre manufacturers understand better than ever that commitment to sustainability is not just responsible, not just essential for regulatory compliance and being a good corporate citizen: it also ends up being good for shareholders through higher profits and better brand reputation.

KEY FOCUS AREAS FOR SUSTAINABILITY IMPROVEMENT

VMI’s policy focuses on four main areas of activity:

• Energy and emissions
• Efficient use of materials
• Eliminating errors and waste
• Whole lifecycle management

This strategic approach has delivered measurable benefits to VMI and also helps customers to improve their own performance. The positive impact on environmental performance is also now a matter of public record.

So how can other manufacturers learn from the approach taken by VMI? Let’s look at this in more detail.

ENERGY AND EMISSIONS

Improved energy efficiency does not usually make progress through a few big breakthroughs: instead, it’s the sum total of small improvements made to every stage of every process, and that involves the work of every employee in every department. From the design stage on, energy efficiency is a key factor in new concepts, but, at the same time, each team of engineers is accountable (and rewarded) for identifying ways in which their objectives can be reached more efficiently by using less energy.

This process starts very early. VMI sponsors educational programmes designed to build energy consciousness into future engineers from very early on and each team is empowered to scrutinise their processes critically to develop better methods. Above all, VMI and other responsible manufacturers use the regulatory system not as a painful duty to be obeyed but as a useful incentive for better performance.

Just as every employee has to be engaged in the drive for sustainability, VMI has taken the view that every supplier and partner also needs to be actively mobilised to enhance every aspect of sustainability performance. VMI’s vision is closely aligned with the EU’s adoption of the GHG Protocol’s Scope 1, 2 and 3 frameworks, which require manufacturers to account for their entire value chain emissions, not just those under their direct control.

Scope 1 covers direct emissions, Scope 2 includes indirect emissions from purchased energy and Scope 3 encompasses all other upstream and downstream indirect emissions, obliging manufacturers to take responsibility for the environmental impact of their entire value chain while driving sustainability across their supply chains.

By working actively with suppliers on every aspect of joint working, it is possible to enhance everything from component design, fabrication methods, transportation efficiency and even packaging to ensure progressive and measurable improvements. By making this not simply a ‘box ticking’ exercise but a mission that engages every participant, extraordinary improvements have been – and will continue to be – delivered.

EFFICIENT USE OF MATERIALS

One of the most important aspects of tyre design is the growing use of advanced new materials designed to reduce weight without any loss of tensile strength or safety performance, cut down on rolling resistance, reduce particulate emission and enable higher efficiency in operation. The rise of EV use is a key factor in driving this kind of research as EVs are often heavier, have different driving characteristics and are moving towards a self-driving future.

Every tyre manufacturer is now committing considerable resources into developing materials with precisely calibrated operating characteristics. They also need to deliver specialised tyres in smaller batches then before without waste, on time and efficiently enough to make a profit even from very short production runs.

VMI focuses on developing and testing new compounds in the lab without the need to rely only on trial and error. Lab testing is not a new technique – the VMI LAT100 tyre tread compound tester was first developed some decades ago – but use of advanced simulation software now means lab testing can be embedded within the tyre design and development process as never before. New compounds can be made, tested, evaluated, fine-tuned and tested all over again within (using a term borrowed from the software industry) a ‘DevOps’ approach to manufacture.

In this concept, there is no firm line between disciplines (design, build, test, core engineering…) because the entire end-to-end process is treated as an integrated whole. The tyre industry knows that new and higher performing, more sustainable compounds are a core requirement for staying competitive into the future. VMI’s integrated, lab-focused approach can fast-track new concepts and, used with new developments in continuous mixing and extrusion, this is a practical way to accelerate development without significant environmental impact.

ELIMINATING ERRORS AND WASTE

Tyre building, even with automated production systems, requires a complex blend of processes. In practice, it is as if a series of ‘just in time’ activities co-exist within a single factory with different machines, often supplied by different manufacturers, fabricating components, many of which are then moved to where the next process takes place.

There is huge scope for wastage in the average tyre factory as materials are loaded, unloaded, moved by truck or automated vehicle, put into storage until needed, then reloaded onto another machine, processed, stored again…

Innovators across the industry understand that the sheer complexity of this approach limits both the energy savings and emissions reduction that can be achieved – for the moment. Yet new technologies are being used today to make significant progress possible. Again, VMI has been a major innovator in this field as well.

OPEN SIDE BAR

There are many ways in which taking an integrated view of tyre building processes can bring greater efficiency with better sustainability performance to the whole process. VMI has taken aspects of its UNIXX single cell technology to deliver standalone solutions that can be used with a conventional TBM to streamline conventional methods, leading to greater efficiency, reduced footprint, drastically lower energy use and better sustainability performance.

The UNIXX Beltmaker, for example, cuts out the need for a separate calendering line with the massive energy use and huge space required. By using UNIXX Beltmaker, and considering use of continuous extrusion Strip Winding, it is possible not just to eliminate process stages but accelerate production and build smaller batches without damaging profitability. All this can be achieved with lower energy use, reduced emissions and much lower wastage.

CLOSE SIDE BAR

VMI introduced vision systems to measure the placement of materials as they enter a MAXX automated Tyre Building Machine (TBM). Now these increasingly advanced vision systems are being matched with emerging AI to improve other aspects of performance. This enables automated placing, use of pattern recognition and machine learning (ML) to deliver accurate cuts and AI algorithms to ensure higher efficiency in materials usage, leading to a major reduction in all aspects of wastage due to errors.

VMI, like other businesses in the wider industry, is investing heavily in specialised software development and management, with AI now forming a major part of its solutions.

Beyond the hype caused by GenAI, we can see that the combination of sensors, pattern recognition, ML and data analytics is a proven AI combination that delivers higher sustainability through reduced waste, scrap, rework and energy investment. The intelligence of each system is now greater than ever and the sustainability benefits are increasing in step.

WHOLE LIFECYCLE MANAGEMENT

VMI moved from building standalone machines some years ago and now specialises in Production Platforms, which are designed to be updated regularly over an extended lifecycle. VMI tyre building machines are designed to operate at maximum efficiency over a very long lifecycle (between 10 and 20 years is normal), and the Platform approach adds value by making it easier to keep machines operating at best practice level. They are designed to make it easy for higher performance components, assemblies and upgrades to be retrofitted over the lifetime of the product.

The goal now is to make sure that the TBM at the heart of any production facility lasts for longer, continues to meet sustainability goals, remains highly efficient and is always at best practice level. Yet, that is not the whole story. VMI is also aware that end-of-life is part of the process as well and that all systems must be designed for safe recycling (including extended life for specific components) and environmentally responsible disposal.

End-of-life management has to be designed into a product from the very start. This is now a basic requirement for all VMI machines.

WHAT ABOUT THE FUTURE?

The tyre industry is essential for almost all aspects of economic life. The world economy runs on the road, and every vehicle runs on tyres. This simple truth means that every method we can find to improve performance in terms of efficiency and sustainability is a benefit to the world.

This is why the VMI approach matters. It was VMI that enabled the whole industry, not just the ‘Tier Ones’, to use the most advanced, automated systems in their daily activities. Others have followed – yet VMI’s pioneering work in creating and making available automated production systems, even to relatively small companies, has been transformational.

Today, MAXX for passenger tyres and MILEXX for trucks are in use worldwide and have made it possible for companies originating in China and India, for example, to challenge the biggest companies in the world, while many other countries have become major production hubs for the industry. VMI has had a permanent presence in China for almost 30 years and has important centres in India, Brazil, Thailand, US, Poland, Germany, Malaysia and, from the end of this year, in Mexico as well.

There is a clear roadmap to the future for the industry wherein we will see an increasing use of specialised software, including AI, to reduce human touch points still further, cut out errors and optimise quality. Further use of automation will reduce the need to move materials by hand and further cut wastage through optimised handling. We are already using hybrid systems, with UNIXX Beltmaker and Strip Winder, combined with MAXX TBMs to enable profitable, quality-assured building of small tyre batches.

The next step will be the use of single cell machines, in which ‘batches of one’ are the norm, with every stage of production taking place as part of the same process, cutting waste as close to zero as possible while driving down energy use and emissions still further.

The tyre industry remains at the heart of the world economy, but its very importance makes it essential for all of us who are shaping the future of this business to keep sustainability front and centre of our minds. VMI is proud of the way we combine innovation and care to deliver outstanding results for our customers, but there is still a lot of work to do, and we are already focused on the next steps.

Now and into the future: Sustainability is at the heart of our strategy.

Evonik, a global speciality chemicals company, has outlined a three-year strategy to sharpen its focus and accelerate growth, assigning distinct roles across its business portfolio and setting specific tasks for its major German sites. Targeted growth projects are also intended to improve the group's geostrategic balance. To fund these investments, the company is relying on its Evonik Tailor Made restructuring programme to further reduce its cost base. The plan involves cutting 3,200 jobs worldwide, with roughly 2,150 of those losses falling in Germany.

At the annual strategy meeting, the executive and supervisory boards reviewed plans through 2030. Interim CEO Claus Rettig said the industry faces a structural and economic crisis, and Evonik will use this polycrisis to reshape old structures and improve its positioning. Many parts of the business are still growing, so efforts will concentrate on strengths, future topics and lucrative markets, with better cost positions creating room to manoeuvre.

Transformation will proceed at every level. Healthcare and biotechnology projects in Canada and Slovakia, worth several hundred million euros, will strengthen the portfolio, while business units are aligned by role as growth drivers or cash generators. A new business line, Designed Polymer Solutions, bundles growth areas in aerospace, automotive and gas separation, including biogas and hydrogen. Asia and America offer strong opportunities, and further investments there are under review. Each of the six major German sites will receive a clear profile, with implementation starting shortly.

Evonik is also exiting activities with no internal prospects. Rettig said long-term leadership requires leading in what the company does, and volatility demands flexible responses. Closures of smaller sites fit this approach, and divestments of C4 chemicals and infrastructure are progressing as planned. Tailor Made's second phase begins in 2027 and runs to 2029. Measures will be finalised by late 2026, including unfilled vacancies, early retirements and voluntary severance departures. Chief Human Resources Officer Thomas Wessel said Evonik has long lived social responsibility and maintained intensive dialogue with employee representatives, and this transformation will be completed together.

Continental recently showcased its new TerrainContact A/T2 tyre during a five-day driving event in Iceland, held from 14 to 18 September 2026. Journalists and invited customers tested the tyre across winding roads, rugged highlands, glaciers and volcanic terrain.

Starting at Þingvellir, the group travelled through Iceland's Western Highlands and the Kaldidalur valley, where gravel routes highlighted the tyre's blend of on-road comfort and off-road traction. The TerrainContact A/T2 targets pickup and SUV owners who mainly drive on pavement but require extra grip when conditions change.

Compared with its predecessor, the tyre offers better wet braking and snow traction while preserving a quiet ride and off-road ability. A new tread compound boosts wet performance, greater tread depth aids snow grip, and optimised zig-zag grooves and traction teeth add control on loose or snowy surfaces. It carries the Three-Peak Mountain Snowflake symbol and is engineered with electric vehicles in mind.

Okan Sen, National Marketing Manager, Continental Tire Canada, said, “The TerrainContact A/T2, as one of the best-balanced performance all-terrain tyres in the market, was developed for drivers who want the freedom to explore without compromising their everyday driving experience. Iceland was the perfect setting to bring that versatility to life, giving attendees the opportunity to experience the tire across the kind of changing terrain it was designed to handle.”

A new Oxford Economics study commissioned by Tyres Europe underscores the tyre sector's vital economic and social contribution, arriving as Brussels shapes its Industrial Accelerator Act to reinforce European industrial competitiveness. The report, titled ‘The Critical Importance of the EU Tyre Industry’, makes the case that EU industrial policy ought to encompass the finished products sustaining Europe's economy and essential services, rather than focusing solely on raw materials and technologies.

Through the lens of tyres, the research maps the relationships between European manufacturing capacity, reliance on external sources and the smooth operation of mobility, freight and public services. It concludes that EU-produced tyres potentially enabled freight, agriculture and passenger transport, directly yielding EUR 1.5 trillion in GDP – 9 percent of the EU's total – and providing work for 30.5 million people, 13 percent of EU employment.

The study further reveals exposure on both sides of the tyre value chain. Imported intermediate inputs constitute 11.9 percent of EU tyre production value, exceeding the EU economy average of 7 percent, while natural rubber supplies depend wholly on imports. In 2024, imported tyres made up 40 percent of newly fitted tyres across the EU, a proportion that continues to climb.

Adam McCarthy, Secretary General, Tyres Europe, said, “Economic resilience depends not only on access to materials but also on retaining the capacity to transform them into safe, advanced products in Europe. The Industrial Accelerator Act is an opportunity to recognise strategically-important finished products and support competitive manufacturing in Europe. A strong EU tyre manufacturing base reduces reliance on external suppliers and helps build a more resilient, competitive automotive value chain.”

Pete Collings, Managing Director, Oxford Economics, said, “Europe’s tyre industry is far more than a manufacturing sector: it is a critical enabler of mobility, trade and wider economic activity. Our analysis shows that EU-produced tyres support hundreds of billions of euros in GDP and millions of jobs across key customer sectors, while the industry itself depends on complex global supply chains. The findings underline the economic value of maintaining a strong European tyre manufacturing base.”

The J&K Bank presents JK Tyre Rally of Himalayas 2026, a premier Cross Country Rally, was flagged off from Manali on 26 September. Organised by Himalayan Xtreme Motorsports and Adventure X Fusion Tribe, the sixth edition achieved a significant milestone by entering the Zanskar region for the first time. The ceremonial start occurred at 5:00 PM at Dev Lok, 15th Mile, near Span Resort, Manali. Bhuvneshwar Gaur, MLA Manali, served as Chief Guest, joined by V P S. Jasrotia, Deputy General Manager of Jammu & Kashmir Bank, as Guest of Honour alongside JK Tyre officials. The rally is supported by J&K Bank as Presenting Sponsor, JK Tyre as Title Sponsor, Ladakh Tourism as Official Sponsor and Impulse and Liqui Moly as Partners.

The competition features 140 participants across Moto, Extreme and TSD categories over five days in the formidable Himalayas. The route traverses Kaza, Jispa, Padum and Pensi La before concluding in Padum, Zanskar, on 30 September. The Moto category includes 80 riders, among them one female rider. The Extreme category comprises 35 participants, including two female drivers and five Army teams. The TSD category has 24 competitors, four of whom are female, testing precision, timing and navigation. This diverse field includes professionals, private entrants, women and Army teams.

This edition serves as a tribute to Hari Singh, the legendary Gypsy King and five-time National Rally Champion, whose legacy inspires competitors. The event's defining feature is its inaugural entry into Zanskar, introducing high-altitude terrain, remote landscapes, long competitive sections and shifting Himalayan conditions. From Kaza, competitors progress to Jispa and into Zanskar, tackling Padum and Pensi La before returning to Padum. Preparation, navigation, endurance and reliability become critical. Since its 2021 inception, the rally has grown into a demanding platform testing riders and drivers against Himalayan challenges.

JK Tyre, synonymous with Indian motorsport, continues its legacy rooted in rallying, embodying endurance and adventure. For J&K Bank, supporting the event reflects nearly nine decades of commitment to regional development and showcases tourism potential. The Department of Tourism, UT Ladakh, partners as a sponsor to position Zanskar as a premier adventure tourism destination, highlighting landscapes, heritage and driving routes to national and international audiences.