Last year, Oxford Dictionaries declared that “Unprecedented” is the word of year that chosen by the famous English language experts to sum up the preceding 12 months. It’s been more than a year since the pandemic changed the way we live and work, and nothing feels more important than staying connected to our communities. Tyre industry is no exception.
As we all know, the automotive society is changing at rapid pace world-wide due to various factors such as new customer trends, growth of middle class and new mobility concepts. The performance requirements of tyres continue to rise ever higher, meaning that even further advancement in tyre technology as well as fighting with complex issues are now our new normal. The requirements of tyre performance parameters are much greater than past therefore now we work with “octagon,” instead of historically used “triangle.”
Today, we are talking about “Desired performance” instead of “Prioritised performance” which covers all required factors as well as sustainable green product concept. As we all know, many tyre manufacturers have announced their aggressive plans to have “carbon-neutral” products and aimed to adopt renewable materials and sustainable solutions.
As noted earlier, there are also additional challenges facing mobility and there are many new topics. In this article as TIC, we focused some of the hot topics to be involved by tyre companies. The below topics will force fundamental changes and our industry is going to be more complex. We need to understand those which would affect market dynamics, breakthrough developments and mobility revolutions.
We believe that a holistic approach is needed to see the future as well as new opportunities and treats. TIC-Tire Industry Consulting’s recommendations are given for some of the important areas, which should be involved by tyre manufacturers in order to continue their business.
Air-Free tyres
The airless concept tyre is one of the initiatives aimed towards many tyre manufacture’s long-term vision of the use of sustainable materials. Many of tyre manufacturers revealed their second or third generation air free technologies by featuring improved load-bearing capabilities, driving performance and environmental design. However, there are a lot of works to be made before air free tyres available for customers. Anyone looking for the future of tyre industry needs to involve Air Free tyre technology. Although it is very hard to estimate, we believe CAGR would be reached 3-4% within ten years globally.
Sustainable solutions
This is one of the most popular topics for automotive industry since many years by aiming CO2 emission reduction. The motivations are: increasing pressure from legislation to move to zero CO2, EV sales booming in many countries and consumers are increasingly seeking to buy from environmentally responsible companies. Main players have announced very challenging targets to use all-sustainable materials by 2030 and 2050. Tyre industry has to follow this path and needs to do fundamental changes regarding all processes such as R&D, supply chain and others. We believe that tyre industry should implement multiple technological innovations for sustainable solutions by working with their suppliers. In order to keep the competition, tyre manufacturers should: have a Science Based Target (SBT) for sustainability, engage with suppliers for joint activities and improve R&D activities regarding new materials, new designs and higher the usage of recycled materials.
EV tyres
Global automotive sector is responsible for 15% of global GHG emission and Paris agreement targeted to have “zero” GHG emission by 2050 to limit global warming. This is a very challenging target ever seen that committed by all countries. Private sector is co-responsible for implementation and rapid fleet electrification is one of the on-going solution items. OEMs have set the pace for CO2 reduction and tyre manufacturers should have the EV tyre that meets “desired performance” as a sustainable green product.
The best example would be Germany , that aims to have 14M electric cars in 2030 by having almost 30% share of total car and electric passenger car new sales would reach to 75-80% of total cars sale in 2030. Those figures show how big opportunity is exist for EV tyre manufacturers for OE and replacement markets. In that respect, we should continue to improve New Product Development (NPD) process even harder by expanding R&D efforts.
Artificial Intelligence
One of the important breakthrough innovations is AI and now widely use in all industries. We have seen many new applications by using AI in tyre industry too. Some of the areas would be sensor adoptions, prediction of compound physical properties, data mining in production processes and performance predictions during service time such a wear life and others. As TIC, we see AI as a “white space” for tyre manufactures that needs special skills as well as knowledge to adapt AI to existing systems.
Dynamic Testing
This has been performed by many tyre manufacturers using different test methodologies such as component level, Hil (Hardware-in-the-Loop), ViL (Vehicle-in-the-Loop) test during the development and test & verification states of the product. In addition to those currently available test technologies, there are new developments in testing, such as dynamic driving simulators, in other words DiL (Driver-in-the-Loop). This technology enables tyre manufacturer to test and verify their next-generation tyre designs in virtual environment using the vehicle digital twin, which replicates the actual vehicle including vehicle driving dynamics, with real driver interaction. The DiL will improve the development process and create new opportunities for tyre manufacturers as preferred one. TIC believes in “Speed to market with right solutions and innovation,” and ready to support you. Design & development process duration is getting more and more crucial and all manufacturers are trying to reduce it by using modern simulation and testing technics. We recommend adopting Virtual technology in order to provide the best service to your customers.
As a conclusion, tyre industry is facing a lot of challenges and having very dynamic competition, in that respect the tyre technology and tyre knowledge will be extremely important to compete in the future, more than at any time in the past.
TIC Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) have vast hands-on experiences for above topics and ready to support your activities. We provide specialised technical solutions for challenges and TIC guarantees a high standard of professional-ethical principles that we have kept and developed for years. (TT)
Doublestar Showcases Specialised Tyre Solutions At 139th Canton Fair
- By TT News
- April 23, 2026
Doublestar Tire, a leading Chinese tyre manufacturer, recently showcased its flagship products at the 139th China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, held in Guangzhou. The event reached a record scale, gathering exhibitors from over 210 countries and regions and highlighting cutting-edge technologies in advanced manufacturing, new energy and low-carbon environmental protection.
Doublestar presented three specialised tyres. The TBR mining tyre D170 was developed for complex mining conditions with enhanced wear, cut and puncture resistance. The new OTR tyre DFA603 offers high loading capacity, safety and durability, boosting support for construction machinery. The PCR star product DH03 provides superior road grip, low rolling resistance, fuel economy, reliable braking and reduced noise for driving comfort.
The company’s participation demonstrated its continuous research and innovation in professional fields and reaffirmed its commitment to overseas markets. Doublestar aims to provide safer, more energy-efficient and intelligent tyre products and travel solutions, earning widespread professional recognition.
Continental Transforms Urban Noise Into Engineered Comfort At Milan Design Week 2026
- By TT News
- April 23, 2026
Continental is showcasing ‘The Sound of Premium’, an immersive installation, at Milan Design Week 2026 held at BASE Milano from 20 to 26 April. The experience translates the brand’s advanced tire engineering into a multisensory journey, redefining how urban mobility sounds. Key technologies on display included Continental’s noise-reducing ContiSilent and Urban Silent Technology, which actively lower rolling noise through sound-absorbing materials inside the tire and tread patterns optimised for city speeds.
Cities are dense with movement and noise, where even invisible elements like tyres shape the acoustic environment. Continental’s technologies reduce road noise at its source, enhancing both driving stability and interior comfort. The installation invites visitors to reconsider urban sound not as a nuisance to be eliminated but as an element that can be precisely engineered and controlled.
The exhibition unfolds in three distinct phases: chaos, harmony and quiet. Layered city sounds first create tension and disorientation, then gradually dissolve as rhythm and balance emerge. The journey ends in a state of calm defined not by silence alone but by acoustic precision. A tyre displayed as a design object underscores how engineering can improve urban well‑being.
An interactive installation of 25 touch points allows visitors to shape their own sound environment in real time, activating different acoustic layers through touch. Each participant creates a personal composition reflecting their rhythm and sensitivity. The resulting experience can be recorded and shared via QR code, extending the dialogue between technology and individual expression beyond the exhibition space.
As electric vehicles become more widespread, rolling noise has grown into a dominant source of urban traffic sound. Continental meets this challenge by applying its expertise at the tyre‑road interface, developing measurable reductions in interior noise. Through ‘The Sound of Premium’, the company positions silence not as emptiness but as a performance feature.
Nokian Tyres Launches Long-Term Share Incentive Plan For Executives
- By TT News
- April 23, 2026
Nokian Tyres plc has introduced a new long-term share-based incentive plan for management and key employees, as the company seeks to align executive rewards with shareholder returns.
The board of directors said the Performance Share Plan (PSP) would cover the company’s management and selected key personnel, with the aim of supporting shareholder value creation and reinforcing commitment to strategic objectives.
The plan, titled PSP 2026–2030, comprises three separate plan periods, each with a three-year performance cycle followed by the payment of potential share rewards. The start of each period will be determined by the board, and any rewards will be paid in company shares.
The first phase, PSP 2026–2028, will assess performance against three criteria: relative total shareholder return, weighted at 50 per cent; average return on capital employed (ROCE), at 40 per cent; and a 10 per cent weighting for reduction in Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions intensity.
Subject to meeting these targets, rewards will be delivered by the end of April 2029.
The maximum number of shares that may be distributed under PSP 2026–2028 is 1,258,000, representing the gross value of the rewards before applicable taxes are deducted.
Approximately 100 participants are included in the first plan period, including the president and chief executive and members of the group management team.
Under the plan’s terms, participants who leave the company before rewards are paid will generally forfeit their entitlement.
The president and chief executive, together with other senior executives, must retain 25 per cent of the shares received until their personal shareholding equals their gross annual salary from the preceding year.
The board said no new shares are expected to be issued under the plan, meaning it is not anticipated to dilute the company’s existing share base.
GPSNR And Elucid Commit To Healthcare Partnership For 1,800 Rubber Farmer Households In Côte d'Ivoire
- By TT News
- April 23, 2026
The Global Platform for Sustainable Natural Rubber (GPSNR) has launched a three-year collaboration with the Berlin-based social enterprise Elucid to provide healthcare access for 1,800 rubber farming households in Côte d’Ivoire. The initiative, funded through GPSNR’s Shared Investment Mechanism, will benefit approximately 9,000 individuals. Financial backing comes from 13 major tyre and rubber manufacturers, including Aeolus Tyre, Apollo Tyres, BKT, Goodyear, Hankook, Kumho Tire, Maxxis International, Nokian Tyres, Prometeon Tyre Group, Sumitomo Riko, Sumitomo Rubber Industries, Toyo Tire and Yokohama Rubber. The programme directly confronts a long‑ignored reality within the natural rubber sector: the link between farmer health and supply chain stability.
Côte d’Ivoire ranks 187th out of 195 nations for quality of care, with only 32 percent of essential medicines available publicly. Although two‑thirds of the population are enrolled in national health insurance on paper, fewer than four percent used their card in 2025. Medical emergencies cost the country an estimated 853 million US dollars in cocoa exports in 2017 alone, and with many farmers growing both cocoa and rubber, the implications for the rubber sector are substantial.
The partnership integrates four measures: enrolling families into national insurance, providing an emergency care package covering WHO‑accredited medications, upgrading 15 local health facilities and running community awareness programmes. Elucid’s digital platform will track data in real time. The project aims to increase healthcare visits from under 200 to over 1,800, push insurance enrolment from below 30 percent to above 90 percent and prevent more than 150 catastrophic health expenditure events annually. Half of beneficiaries will be women, and 20 percent children.
Photo credit: Elucid
Farmer enrolment begins in August 2026, with improvements continuing until January 2029. Without reliable healthcare, medical emergencies force farmers to sell assets and abandon farm improvements, creating direct risks for supply chains. The programme seeks to reverse that dynamic, targeting long‑term sustainability by building cooperative capacity to maintain health support for members.
Stefano Savi, CEO, GPSNR, said, “We talk constantly about improving yields and farm management practices, but we’ve missed something fundamental. A farmer who can’t afford to see a doctor when they’re sick or who cannot go to the farm because their child is unwell can’t be productive. Healthcare isn’t separate from supply chain resilience. It’s central to it.”
Sambhavna Biswas, Partnerships Manager, Elucid, said, “This is about demonstrating what’s possible when the private sector invests in making national health systems work for farmers. This model can be replicated across rubber-growing regions and adapted to other agricultural sectors. Everyone in the value chain benefits when the people at its foundation are healthy and economically secure.”
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