WHAT’S NEW WINNERS ANNOUNCED Tire Technology International Awards: Continental takes three trophies; Bridgestone, Goodyear and Sumitomo Rubber Industries also celebrate on the night T his year’s Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence were announced at Tire Technology Expo 2024 in Hannover, Germany, just as this issue went to press. A full report, including exclusive interviews with some of the winners, will follow in our next issue, but here’s a quick overview of who came away smiling on the night. Continental, which picked up no fewer than three awards, was first to the stage to claim the trophy for Environmental Achievement of the Year – Tire Design, in recognition of its UltraContact NXT, which features up to 65% renewable, recycled and mass balance-certified materials. The award for Environmental Achievement of the Year – Manufacturing was presented to Sumitomo Rubber Industries for its use of hydrogen and solar energy in tire production at its Shirakawa factory. In the Environmental Achievement – Industry Contribution category, the jury recognized the BlackCycle 8 Now comprising 13 categories, the awards are a celebration of recent advances in tire technology and progress toward a greener and more sustainable industry project, a European consortium led by Michelin focused on developing a circular tire economy. The first supplier to take to the stage was Cabot Corporation, whose E2C DX9660 elastomer composite was crowned the Chemicals and Compounding Innovation of the Year. Teijin Aramid was the next vendor to claim a trophy, with its Twaron fiber with recycled content proving successful in the Materials Innovation of the Year category. “Physical and chemical recycling of aramid fiber is a challenge,” said juror Kuninobu Kadota, a former fellow in the research division at Bridgestone. “If the circular fiber can be used for tires, it will be a great achievement in terms of sustainability.” Goodyear picked up the R&D Breakthrough of the Year award for its groundbreaking SightLine system, a predictive model that evaluates various tire conditions such as pressure, load, wear, rolling speed, external weather and road conditions to minimize the risk of hydroplaning. Perhaps the loudest cheer of the evening came when Rodolfo Comerio picked up the award for Tire Manufacturing Innovation of the Year for its RC Calender Quick Change System. “This quick-change setup gives the ultimate flexibility to a tire plant to make plies for PCR and TBR tires, or to follow changing trends in tire reinforcement,” explained juror Patrick De Keyzer, a partner at DeKep consultancy. Next up was 4Jet, to claim the Industry Supplier of the Year trophy – one of the most closely contested categories. “The development of 4Jet is impressive,” said juror Prof. Gert Heinrich of TU Dresden. “The company has supplied more than 500 automatic in-line laser systems and counts virtually every international tire maker among its customers.” Hannover-based Continental was then asked back up to the stage to collect a further two awards for the Tire Concept of the Year and Tire of the Year categories, for the Conti CityPlus and AllSeasonContact 2, respectively. However, the hotly contested Tire Manufacturer of the Year award was picked up by Bridgestone, with jurors highlighting the company’s Enliten technology, upcoming Formula E contract and a range of sustainability initiatives at its plants around the world. As well as recognizing the impressive achievements of manufacturers and suppliers, the awards are also an opportunity to recognize remarkable individuals within the industry. Nadine Aschenbrenner, a test engineer at Continental, claimed the Young Scientist Prize for 2024 for her work around tire wear particles; and Günter Leister took home the Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his many years of hard work at Daimler and his own consultancy. Look out for more on the winners in the June issue of Tire Technology International , which will also include a full review and all the news from the expo in Hannover. www.tiretechnologyinternational.com March 2024