Jyotsna came on board as the CFO and Head of IT of Bridgestone India, around two-and-a-half years ago - in April 2018. Since then, she has ensured attentive capacities are in place, thus focusing on maintaining cost control and delegating financial management. Afterall, the tyre industry is highly competitive and market-driven. And yes, digital evolution and safety of her colleagues and business partners have become one of her top priorities during the pandemic.

Raised in a modest and orthodox business family of six daughters, principles such as hard work, humility, and honesty were a natural part of growing up for her. Married at the age of twenty-one, Jyotsna wanted to be more than just a housewife. Thus, she pursued her grinding CA qualification while being a mother of a baby boy.

“I pursued further education and got a professional qualification, CA, in 1994. Not an easy call in any way. The profession itself was demanding and then to be able to garner the support of the larger family was a big task considering the social norms at the time. However, with the great support from my in-laws, my husband Rajesh, and my conviction, I managed to pursue this new path,” Jyotsna recalls.

When asked about what she would attribute to the leadership qualities she has achieved, she reflects on her family background and the formative years of her life. Marriage was the ultimate end-goal for all girls back then, she says. But, her father, who was a civil engineer, and ran a unit into precision tools manufacturing, understood the value of education. He ensured all his daughters received quality higher education. This paid off as all of Jyotsna’s sisters are highly qualified across different streams.

Jyotsna also mentions the underlying importance of financial independence that was ever-present while growing up. These values, coupled with formal education and academics, added to her versatile calibre. However, she says studies were never her cup of tea. Her interests were games, food, and fun. Having done her graduation at BMCC, life was relatively stress-free then.

However, getting married at the early age was a turning point in her life when she braved the conventional social norms at the time and pursued her CA studies. She adds that the journey from 1989-1994 was full of challenges, excitement, courage, and family support. Significant challenges to pursue her CA were to convince the in-laws to allow her to go and live in a hostel and study and to be able to meet social obligations as a newly-wed woman, and not being able to give time to her son.

 “To be able to give my 100% to the studies amidst all of this was quite difficult. However, I always kept my eye on the big picture.”

Jyotsna started her professional career at Kinetic Honda, a manufacturing organisation which, she says, was not perceived to be ideal for women and had limitations to growth. “But that made me work even harder. However, it was a role of my choice, and I worked with them for nine years, and those were my formative career years. A combination of experience at Firodiya, a well-respected business house and a Japanese business brand is great learning for any finance professional. I took additional responsibilities on multiple functions and projects to rise the ladder at a good pace as by now; I had found my Ikigai- a reason to live.”

 “Amidst all this, the family challenges continued as my husband Rajesh had moved to Singapore, and I single-handedly attended to our son”.

At the workplace, she always ensures that she works hard and does everything from grassroots and is never bothered about her designation and qualification as, for her, that is a means and not an end. “Over the years, I worked on building and strengthening relationships and never really kept any limitations to what I wanted to achieve.”

COVID has turned the auto industry upside down. New normal is becoming a part of life and businesses as well. Whereas the challenges of COVID have been unprecedented, it also brought new ways of doing businesses. Now employee safety is becoming a top priority, while digital evolution is bringing a new era ahead of the industry.

At Bridgestone, Jyotsna says, the safety of their people and safeguarding their operations have been the topmost priority. Ever since COVID first hit the country, the company took proactive measures to not only keep the people safe but, also streamline operations in the wake of new normal. Furthermore, at the back of accelerated digitisation, Bridgestone India has been able to bring the right solutions for its consumers as well as ensure the same levels of productivity within the organisation. 

When asked about how she feels about working in such a dynamic industry, Jyotsna says, “The automobile industry is where my professional career is slated. Kinetic Honda, SKF Bearings, NRB Bearings, Sandvik Asia and now Bridgestone are my performing turfs. One side of the industry, i.e., channel partners, are the same - similar channels set up requirements, risks, opportunities, and expectations of the partners. What differs is the strength of the product and strength of the competitor. Bridgestone, with its world-class Japanese technology in tyre manufacturing, is one of the leading and most trusted brands with all the strengths on the product, manufacturing, and innovation.” 

“The market in India is huge, and the progressive growth and demographics of the country are definitely positive. At Bridgestone India, we are financially secure with a good product range, best manufacturing facilities, substantial market share, reliable channel partners and an ambitious and committed workforce. The biggest risk is getting complacent and losing focus on cost. The tyre industry is competitive, and market driven. Also, the capacities are in place, thus keeping focus and maintaining cost control is the financial management challenge which is exciting.”

Like everyone, COVID has influenced Jyotsna’s personal and professional life. According to her, COVID was a blessing in disguise to be able to spend all this time at home and spending time to call and check on all near and dear ones, reconnecting, rejuvenating were positives in this situation.

However, work from home bears multiple challenges and ,for her the divide between official work and domestic duties was practically invisible. As the Head of IT and CFO, Jyotsna had a great responsibility to ensure the digital solutions were up and running and without causing the loss of productivity at the same time managing concerns around security and support. “As a CFO, a time to complete FY 20 financials and audits, and the Mid-term – 3 years business plan process which were very challenging.”

“But I would say the times have tested my abilities to stay strong under all situations. I would like to say this to my fellow leaders that encourage your teams throughout and keep the work exciting as always. This will ensure a positive sentiment in these trying times.”

As much as work is refreshing with so much happening, Jyotsna does take personal time to recharge. She loves to drive and have been doing rallies like Raid the Himalaya, Desert Storm, Spice Challenge. She has also done international driving vacations.

 “Amidst the lockdown, I recently drove to Bangalore to be with my son Prateek. The memory of absolutely traffic-free roads and my car racing at 230-250 with confidence to touch Bangalore from Pune non-stop in 9 hours was wonderful. We drove through Kabini and spent a holiday together, making memories.”

“I also like to read, so I took this opportunity to download the most read books Ikigai, Atomic Habits, Just do It – the Nike story and many more.”

 “Netflix was another relaxing way to spend some time, and the most exciting watch for me was Drills apart from many others. I love to socialise and continued e-socialising as well.”

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Kuraray America, Inc. has announced that Project Kuralytix has secured a finalist position in the 2026 IChemE Global Awards, a competition run by the Institution of Chemical Engineers. The entry, officially titled ‘Project Kuralytix: Unifying Five Legacy Systems for Predictive Reliability at Kuraray America’, sits among six shortlisted candidates in the Digitalization, AI and Automation Award category, which celebrates creative deployment of digital tools across chemical engineering.

The La Porte, Texas, facility serves as the backdrop for this initiative, which takes on a persistent industry hurdle: making sense of enormous volumes of operational and reliability data so that decisions can be reached swiftly and with greater confidence. Through a partnership with Pinnacle and its Newton platform, five formerly siloed systems were merged into one cohesive reliability platform. The blending of machine learning with quantitative reliability optimisation empowers teams to forecast equipment breakdowns, weigh their potential operational fallout, sequence maintenance tasks and channel resources towards maximum benefit.

Demonstrated results underscore how analytics can reshape manufacturing reliability management. The effort revealed avenues for trimming process-related reliability losses and assisted in sidestepping production interruptions by flagging equipment decay earlier. Reliability calculations that once consumed days now finish in minutes, while maintenance strategy shifts from reactive, time-based choices toward proactive, data-driven reliability management. Taken together, these improvements reinforce asset reliability, bolster process safety and yield quantifiable operational value.

Kuraray America conveyed pride in earning international acknowledgment alongside fellow organisations propelling chemical engineering innovation. The distinction reflects the teamwork, technical proficiency, and commitment of the La Porte team and its Pinnacle collaborators, whose efforts brought Project Kuralytix to fruition. The company voiced gratitude to all contributors to the project's development and rollout, citing Charles Neal, Daniel Velasquez, Jennifer Lawrence and Kevin Birkby.

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Yokohama Tire Corporation has notified NHTSA of a voluntarily recall covering two sizes of its GEOLANDAR M/T G003 Light Truck tyre line. The affected sizes are LT245/75R16 120/116Q and LT285/70R17 121/118Q, produced at the company's Mie Plant in Japan from 31 May to 6 June 2026. Approximately 610 tyres are believed to be involved in the action.

Initiated in accordance with NHTSA regulations, the recall stems from the possible use of an improper compound in the sidewall during manufacturing. Reduced adhesion could lead to carcass-ply separation, air leakage or rapid air loss. Such loss of inflation pressure may diminish vehicle control and heighten crash risk.

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Scandinavian Enviro Systems AB (publ) has adopted a revised reorganisation plan proposal, including a debt settlement, as it continues through company reorganisation proceedings that began on 27 February 2026. The new proposal supersedes the version published on 26 August 2026 and centres chiefly on reclassifying affected parties into groups. The reorganisation, initiated by a Gothenburg District Court decision, has been extended twice, most recently until 27 November 2026.

The earlier plan was circulated to affected parties in late August, and feedback received since then, together with the Company's own deliberations, prompted the revised submission. Under the new classification, five groups remain, but the former Group A – comprising creditors asserting a right of retention – has been removed, with those creditors moved into the non-preferential category. Group A now contains only the Company's auditor, PwC, whose statutory audit claim is treated as preferential and slated for full payment. Enviro has asked the retention-asserting creditors to substantiate their rights without success, and it considers preferential treatment unwarranted, especially as the property concerned holds no going-concern value for the Company.

The settlement terms for remaining creditors are untouched: public-law claimants and non-related non-preferential creditors are offered 30 percent, while related creditors receive nothing. Payments fall due within three months of the plan gaining final, non-appealable status, though disputed claims await final resolution or binding settlement. Financing comes from a convertible loan and warrants arrangement concluded with Nordic Restructuring and Growth Capital 1 on 26 August 2026, with SEK 35 million earmarked for the settlement as new financing carrying a general right of priority.

The revisions aim to produce a grouping that accurately mirrors creditors' legal standing, thereby yielding a plan capable of adoption by affected parties and confirmation by the district court. The revised proposal will accompany the reorganisation administrator's report when sent to affected parties, and Enviro plans to seek plan proceedings shortly, at which point voting will take place. The full revised plan will be available on the company website.

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Giti Tire has secured a Guinness World Records title for the highest speed achieved by electric vehicle tyres, following a run in which its specially engineered GitiSport e.GTR2 Pro tyres reached 503.17 kmph (312.65 mph). The record was set on 1 November 2026 on a specially secured section of the Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed International Road (E11) in Abu Dhabi’s Al Dhafra Region, surpassing the previous benchmark of 496.22 kmph set at ATP Papenburg in Germany in September 2025.

The achievement was marked on 6 November 2026 at a ‘Celebration of Speed’ event at Burj Khalifa in Dubai, where Dr Enki Tan, Executive Chairman of Giti Tire Group, received the official Guinness World Records certificate. German professional racing driver Marc Basseng drove the YANGWANG U9 Xtreme during the record-setting attempt.

The GitiSport e.GTR2 Pro resulted from more than three years of collaborative development, engineering innovation and rigorous testing. Designed to withstand the extreme forces of an electric hypercar producing over 3,000 PS, the bespoke tyre features high-strength aramid fibre reinforcement and a specialised racing profile. Giti’s engineers worked closely with YANGWANG and Basseng throughout the programme, refining performance according to vehicle dynamics, aerodynamic changes and driving feedback, and further optimised the tyres for the Abu Dhabi highway conditions with critical technical support.

For Giti Tire, the title reflects the strength of its international research and development network, technical expertise and ability to collaborate with leading manufacturers on demanding projects. With 75 years of tyre manufacturing experience and a presence in more than 130 countries, the company continues advancing engineering capabilities across passenger car, commercial vehicle and high-performance tyres. Its expertise is recognised through extensive Original Equipment partnerships, and lessons from extreme-speed projects contribute to wider development priorities including braking, handling, comfort, efficiency and durability.

Basseng said, “When you're pushing the limits of speed, confidence is everything. Having worked closely with Giti's engineers throughout this journey, I've developed tremendous trust in their expertise, dedication and attention to detail. Knowing that every detail had been carefully tested, checked and prepared gave me the confidence to focus entirely on driving and push beyond what we had previously achieved.”

Dr Tan said, “This will be marked as a true Milestone in Automotive history, going beyond 500kmph in an electric vehicle is an industry game changer. Giti and YANGWANG have together pushed beyond the limits of technology to attain the ‘Highest Speed Achieved by Electric Vehicle Tires’. This achievement is a testament to innovation, dedication and the relentless pursuit of excellence demonstrated by our global research and development teams. We engineer tyres that perform under the most extreme conditions. Beyond setting records, this partnership reinforces our commitment to advancing tyre technology, delivering innovative solutions for the evolving automotive industry and inspiring greater confidence in the Giti brand among vehicle manufacturers and motorists worldwide.”

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