The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., announced that on December 16 it held a groundbreaking ceremony ahead of the start of construction of its new passenger car tire plant in Hangzhou City, China. The ceremony was attended by many local government officials and representatives from the local community, including Hangzhou City Mayor Yao Gaoyuan. Yokohama Rubber Chairman & CEO, Chairman of the Board Masataka Yamaishi and President & COO Shinji Seimiya also attended the ceremony.

A 2-day conference “Asian Tyre Tech 2025” will be held as a co-located event at 6th Edition of GRTE 2025 (Global Rubber, Latex & Tyre Expo 2025) in Bangkok, Thailand during 12-13 March 2025. This conference focuses on the latest developments in tyre design and manufacturing. This conference is aimed at everyone involved with tyre manufacturing such as engineers, scientists, technical managers, researchers, and designers.

To better serve Brazil’s industrial markets, LEIBINGER has enhanced its local presence with key initiatives, including partnerships with established distributors such as Qualijet in the Southeast and Norvac in the Northeast. These collaborations ensure comprehensive coverage for industries like food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, and manufacturing, while also improving access to LEIBINGER’s solutions across the country.
By housing inventory locally, LEIBINGER further strengthens its ability to respond quickly to customer needs, reducing delivery times and ensuring the availability of products and spare parts. This localized approach emphasizes LEIBINGER’s commitment to meeting the specific challenges of Brazilian businesses.

Arkema has set the groundwork for carbon footprint reduction across its Coating Solutions value chain in 2024, with a unique global approach as it achieves multiple Mass Balance ISCC PLUS certifications in the US, Europe and Asia; covering major coating technologies. This allows Coating Solutions to reduce up to 100% the carbon footprint of its mass balance products, supporting the development of more sustainable solutions for coating applications in fast-growing markets such as green energies, emobility, living comfort, building efficiency and advanced electronics.

3M Glass Bubbles provide a high-performance alternative to conventional fillers in a variety of materials. These hollow glass microspheres are not only offering weight saving opportunities but are also contributing to functional benefits ranging from dimensional stability to solar reflectivity. 3M Glass Bubbles are made of soda-lime borosilicate glass, which is a true glass with inherently greater water and chemical resistance than other hollow glass microspheres made of sodium silicate glass, also known as water glass.

Some of the Featured Proposed Topics:
Mixing Technology & Downstream Equipment
AI Applications for the Rubber Industry
Evolution of Resin Technology & Resin for Grip
Rubber Characterization & Testing
Recycling in Rubber
Tires: Advances in Materials & Processes

The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., has developed a sensing technology that remotely monitors the operation of conveyor belts and detects abnormalities in real time. The company plans to launch a comprehensive solutions service using the data captured by the proprietary sensing technology. This will allow operators to optimize the management of conveyor belt operations. Yokohama Rubber aims to begin this service by the end of 2027.

The German Rubber Industry Association (wdk) presented its economic policy demands for the 2025 federal election in Frankfurt am Main. The program entitled “INDUSTRY MATTERS – IT’S ALL ABOUT INDUSTRY” focuses on overcoming the location crisis. To this end, the wdk is calling for a consistent reduction in bureaucracy, globally competitive energy costs and an additional strengthening of the production location with a package of measures.
“The process of deindustrialization in Germany has already begun. In order to restore the international competitiveness of large and medium-sized production sites, the next federal government must vigorously address the long-known causes,” said association president Michael Klein.

The incoming Board members hold senior positions at two of USTMA’s 11 member companies, Bridgestone Americas and The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company.

Elkem and Hafslund have entered into a long-term power agreement for the period 2028 to 2035. The annual contract volume is approximately 400 GWh, with delivery in the NO3 price area.
The new contract supports long-term operations at Elkem’s Thamshavn plant and enables investments at the production facility, which is located in Mid-Norway.

Prinx Chengshan Tire North America, Inc. (PCTNA) has announced a recall of over 541,000 winter tires due to insufficient snow traction. The recall affects more than 100 sizes of Fortune Tormenta and Prinx Hicountry tires, which were sold as replacement tires in the U.S. These tires, marked with the three-peak mountain snowflake symbol, passed European traction tests but failed to meet North American standards.

Today’s tires are high-tech products that combine safety, efficiency and comfort. Tires enable mobility. Yet, what may seem to be a matter of course today is in fact the result of over 150 years of intensive development. From the first pneumatic tires and the first tread patterns through to safe winter tires and energy-efficient, intelligent tires – at various milestones, Continental has redefined tire technology time and time again. The latest “Tire Technology” whitepaper outlines on 32 pages the key steps in tire development, from a simple rubber product to a central component of vehicle technology.

Clariant is expanding its Cangzhou production site for the manufacture of the multifunctional additive Nylostab S-EED. The new, second production line in the Hebei Province of China, will jointly be owned and operated by Clariant and its local partner Beijing Tiangang Auxiliary Co., Ltd. A commencement ceremony for the site was today hosted by the leadership teams of the two companies.

Guill Tool has announced its 10-day program. This program applies to eligible tips and dies that will be shipped within 10 business days of receiving the purchase order from the customer.

Cefic, the European Chemical Industry Council, has recognized 23 companies and national associations for their exceptional contributions to advancing the ambitions of the Antwerp Declaration through the 2024 European Responsible Care Awards. Arkema emerged as the winner in the “Time for Change – Circularity and Climate Neutrality” category with its Optim’O program and received a commendation for reducing the carbon footprint of its bio-based Polyamide 11 materials.

Dow and Carbice have a groundbreaking partnership to offer advanced thermal interface materials for various industries, including mobility, industrial, consumer electronics, and semiconductors. Unveiled at The Battery Show North America in 2024, this partnershipopens in a new tab combines decades of Dow’s silicone expertise with aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) technology from Carbice. The collaboration supports innovation for diverse applications through thermal management solutions that are reliable, affordable, and customizable.

The Association for Rubber Products Manufacturers announces the newly updated IP-2 Hose Handbook.
ARPM members can access the updated IP-2 Hose Handbook and other publications at no cost with their membership. Non-members can find this publication along with other industry standards at arpminc.com/publications

Malaysia’s natural rubber production increased by 20.6 percent in October to 38,400 tons as compared to 31,847 tons in September, according to Malaysia’s Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM) .

Year-on-year comparison showed that the production of natural rubber rose 16.6 percent.

KRAIBURG TPE production site in Malaysia has recently obtained the Global Recycled Standard (GRS) certification for selected thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) solutions. This milestone caters to various industries including personal care, household appliances, wearables, and consumer electronics.

In response to the growing demand for more sustainable solutions in the plastics industry, KRAIBURG TPE has taken proactive steps to provide customers with alternatives. The GRS certification ensures that these alternatives meet stringent social and environmental criteria throughout the production process, including the use of GRS-certified raw materials and seamless traceability in the supply chain.

Currently, Evonik manages its chemicals businesses in the growth divisions Specialty Additives, Nutrition & Care, and Smart Materials. Under the new structure, which will take effect on April 1, 2025, the Group will organize its business lines in two new segments: Custom Solutions and Advanced Technologies. This will allow for clearer strategic focus and resource allocation. It will also enable more differentiated management of the businesses according to their respective business models. The segments currently have annual sales of around €6 billion each.

Continental has been developing and producing winter tires for 90 years. Named the “Gelände,” its first product specifically for the cold season was introduced in 1934. Decades of experience in this field have since paid off: the tread patterns and rubber compounds of today’s winter tires from Continental are perfectly suited to these conditions. Ensuring more grip and shorter braking distances on snow, ice and in the rain. This is evident even at low driving speeds on a full layer of snow. At 40 km/h, a car with winter tires comes to a stop around six vehicle lengths earlier than a car with summer tires. To ensure that each new generation of winter tires meets the highest safety standards, Continental tests its products extensively on test tracks around the world

Rishi Raj Singh becomes Head of OEM Asia Pacific, while Aniruddha Pandit becomes Head of OEM Africa & Middle East, two key figures who will drive BKT’s growth strategy across the two continents. These two new appointments are aimed at consolidating existing relationships with major manufacturers, plus at opening new business opportunities in new markets by leveraging a strategic and ambitious plan. The focus will lie on building long-term relationships with major commercial players, based on an open and transparent dialogue.

Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, the global market leader for sealing solutions, is making significant strides in enhancing the safety of modern lithium-ion batteries, thereby advancing the future of electromobility. On Tuesday, this commitment was honored with a renowned industry award. Dr. Ruth Bieringer, Vice President Material Technology at Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, received the Meyer-Galow Prize for Industrial Chemistry 2024 for two innovations – the development of high-temperature-resistant plastics and leading-edge flame protection barriers.
Bieringer, who has a doctorate in chemistry and oversees material development at the technology company, accepted the €10,000 award on December 10, 2024. Representatives of Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, the German Chemical Society (GDCh), the society’s founder Professor Dr. Erhard Meyer-Galow and others paid tribute to Dr. Bieringer’s creativity and innovative talent.

For the second consecutive year, Yokohama Tire is partnering with the Surfrider Foundation’s North OC Chapter of the nationally recognized nonprofit Surfrider Foundation USA on various to projects to protect the world’s ocean, waves and beaches for all to enjoy.

The ENGEL Group subsidiary, TMA AUTOMATION Sp. z o.o., has begun construction of a modern office and production building in the immediate vicinity of Gdansk Airport in Poland. This new location underlines ENGEL’s commitment to growth and innovation in the automation of injection molding processes.

The strategically favourable location offers an excellent access to various educational and training institutions, including technical universities in the region. This supports the long-term recruitment of highly qualified specialists and strengthens the ENGEL Group’s position in the field of highly integrated and automated production solutions.

Arie Kroeze was appointed Chief Executive Officer of MESNAC Americas Co., Ltd on December 1st, 2024. Kroeze comes with 35 plus years of experience in the tire & rubber industry and has filled multiple positions within The Netherlands and the US.

For this partnership, Michelin and Brembo combined their expertise: excellence in braking systems, vehicle modeling and artificial intelligence for Brembo; leadership in tire modeling and algorithm development for Michelin.

The innovation relies on the continuous exchange of real-time data between Michelin’s connected solutions software, which provides tire grip data to Brembo’s innovative SENSIFY® braking system. These unique tire insights enable engineers to fine-tune the braking system with exceptional precision, further enhancing SENSIFY’s characteristics.

Zochem LLC announces the release of a captivating new video that highlights the remarkable achievements of 2024. This year has been particularly special for Zochem as it marks two significant milestones: the 50th anniversary of the company and the 10th anniversary of the establishment of its plant and headquarters in Dickson, Tennessee.

The video, featuring President and CEO Mohit Sharma, takes viewers on an inspiring journey through the company’s most notable accomplishments over the past year. It showcases Zochem’s commitment to innovation, collaboration, and social wellness, reflecting the company’s dedication to pushing the boundaries of Zinc Oxide manufacturing.

Apollo Tyres Ltd for the first time showcased radial tires for the backhoe loaders, Apollo Terra Pro 1045, and another all-steel radial tires for defense applications and multipurpose trucks, Apollo Terra MPT 1, at the Bauma ConExpo India 2024, an international trade fair for construction machinery, building material machines, mining machines and construction vehicles.

Market and Markets latest report “Advanced Elastomers Market by Type (Thermoplastic Elastomers, Silicon Elastomers), Application (Insulations, Implants), End-Use Industry (Medical, Industrial, Aerospace & Defense), Region- Global Forecast to 2029”, size is projected to grow from USD 6.0 billion in 2024 to USD 7.8 billion by 2029, registering a CAGR of 5.3% during the forecast period. The advanced elastomers market is driven by several key factors, including increasing global focus on sustainability, technological advancements, expanding applications, economic incentives, and growth in demand are the global trend towards lightweighting, most notably in the electrical & electronics and aerospace sectors.