News

Bridgestone Americas (Bridgestone), the group company of Bridgestone Corporation, announced its decision to close its LaVergne, Tennessee, Truck and Bus Radial Tire Plant effective July 31, 2025. This decision is part of the company’s strategic initiatives to optimize its business footprint, strengthen its competitiveness and enhance the quality of the company’s U.S. operations. Bridgestone remains committed to contributing to society, economy, and mobility of people and goods across the U.S.

Arkema has launched its new range ENCOR® bio-based waterborne dispersions designed for textile printing and finishing applications. These binders, with up to 30% bio-based content, and up to 40% carbon footprint reduction compared to traditional textile resins, are supporting the textile industry’s efforts to decrease their product’s carbon footprint, supporting a more sustainable lifestyle.

The Nokian Tyres Surpass AS01™, an all-season, ultra-high-performance tire infused with puncture-resistant Aramid fibers and equipped with a treadwear warranty of 55,000 miles (90,000 kilometers).

The Continental tire plant in Korbach, Germany, recently became the company’s fourth plant to receive the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) PLUS sustainability certification. This globally recognized standard certifies that Continental meets specific sustainability documentation requirements relating to the use of more sustainable materials. It also confirms the transparent traceability of the raw materials used in the production process. Certification of the raw materials enables Continental to ensure the end-to-end traceability of materials from renewable and recycled sources. For the premium manufacturer, this is a further step on the way to 100 percent sustainable materials in its tire products by 2050 at the latest. In addition to the tire plant in Korbach, the plants in Lousado (Portugal), Hefei (China) and Puchov (Slovakia) are already ISCC PLUS-certified production sites of Continental Tires.

For the 9th consecutive year, Dow has been recognized for innovation by the Business Intelligence Group (BIG). In the 2025 BIG Innovation Awards, Dow technologies won six awards in the Transformative Products category—more than any other company. This matches the record number of BIG Innovation Awards Dow received in 2024.

Wacker Chemie AG this week started up two new production facilities for specialty silicones in Japan and South Korea. The expansion strengthens the company’s activities in the Asian growth market. The new plants, located in Tsukuba, Japan and in Jincheon, South Korea, will serve the growing demand from the automotive and construction industries for these products. In total, WACKER has invested an amount in the double digit million Euro range in the capacity expansions.

The Rubber Division, ACS would like to remind you that you don’t have to wait until the Spring Technical Meeting or Global Polymer Summit to learn, connect and grow. Regional Rubber Groups and Affiliated Technical Organizations provide technical meetings, social events, business opportunities, recognition in the industry and scholarships all throughout the year.

The Top Employers Institute’s rigorous certification process evaluates organisations across HR domains and topics, including People Strategy, Talent Acquisition, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Well-being and more. Achieving this certification demonstrates Apollo Tyres’ global commitment to excellence in workplace practices and reinforces its position as an employer of choice.

Qualitest announces the launch of two cutting-edge machines: the Laboratory Cutting/Splitting Machine for Finished Rubber Samples and the High-Capacity Rubber Splitting Machine for polyurethane, rubber, plastics, elastomers, and thermoplastic materials. With advanced features and robust construction, they redefine standards in efficiency and accuracy for industrial and laboratory applications. These innovative machines are designed to meet the demands of precision cutting and splitting.

Solvay and Hankook announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate on the development of circular silica coming from bio-sourced and waste sourcing for tire production. This partnership combines Solvay’s silica expertise and sustainability commitment with Hankook’s manufacturing capabilities and market leadership.