Toyo debuts Proxes Sport 2 at Autopromotec 2022

Occupying one of Autopromotec 2022, Hall 20’s largest stands, Toyo made the second generation of its top-selling UHP summer tyre, the Proxes Sport 2 the centrepiece, alongside two recently launched products, the Proxes Comfort summer tyre and the Celsius AS2 all-season tyre. Toyo said the newest tyre marks an important evolution in terms of innovation and technology. “The new UHP summer tyre… has been designed using the most modern technologies known in the sector that have made it possible to produce a highly innovative tyre that aspires to become the technological leader in its segment,” said Dr Davide Dell’Aquila, Toyo Tire Italia.

The new product is not the only 2022 innovation Toyo was exhibiting; the manufacturer’s Serbian tyre plant is due to commence production in July 2022, with an initial capacity of 5 million pieces per year. Its new production facility will be Toyo’s eighth around the world. Toyo says the plant’s location will allow it to open up Euorpean markets in a step towards its global growth strategy. In collaboration with the European Research and Development Center in Germany, which was opened in November 2019, Toyo aims to strengthen its competitiveness and engineering capabilities. At the facility’s opening ceremony in December 2020, Takashi Shimizu, president of Toyo Tire Corporation said: “Many of the products made at this facility will be designed and developed in our new R&D centre in Germany. Our goal for the future is to produce tyres designed entirely in Europe.”

Toyo talks European development on regional subsidiary’s 30th anniversary

Unlike certain other brands, which exhibited at both The Tire Cologne and Autopromotec in various guises, Toyo chose just to exhibit in Bologna. “The choice to trust the Bologna fair, preferring it to other events, is evidence of the extreme attention that the company has towards its network of dealers in Italy,” Fabio Merli, CEO of Toyo Tire Italy said. Its modern, 250 square metre stand offered a comprehensive round-up of the manufacturer’s products, including both Toyo and Nitto ranges for cars, SUVs, off-road vehicles and light transport in summer, all-season and winter applications. Toyo’s Italian subsidiary celebrated its 30th anniversary in 2021.

Fabio Merli, CEO of Toyo Tire Italia, said that despite significant challenges and the general market situation, the company “made a sales record” in 2021, illustrating the brand’s strength in the Italian market. He added that 2022 has begun well, suggesting that the brand is reaping the benefits of the establishment of its European R&D centre: “These results are also fuelled by ongoing product launches since the new research and development centre in Willich, Germany went into operation in 2019. About fifteen engineers work in the European centre, producing tyres specifically designed for the European market and this is reflected in the test results of specialised magazines. The new products respond more precisely to the expectations of European consumers.”

With production in Europe about to commence, Merli adds that beginning manufacturing in Serbia “will be a very important event for us. Initially we will produce five million pieces, concentrated in the car, SUV and light transport sectors, for summer, winter and all-season. Part of this production will be reserved for the European market and a part for the US market.

“The new factory is state-of-the-art and the European machinery suppliers themselves claim that they have never produced such sophisticated machines for the tyre industry. For the first time they too have tried their hand at particular technologies, mainly oriented towards improving the quality of products.

“Having production in Europe will also mean having an effective approach to European original equipment, on which our German research and development centre has already started working, approaching the major car manufacturers.”

Supply challenges

While these are exciting times in Europe for the manufacturer, Merli recognises that Toyo is in the same boat as many competitors when considering the short supply of vital raw materials for tyre manufacturing: “we too have the same concerns that our competitors may have, regarding the lack of raw materials, given that the latest events in the war mainly affect areas where there are suppliers of some really important components for the production of tyres. I am referring to carbon black in particular, the scarcity of which, for us, adds to the difficulties due to the passage of production from Japan to Serbia, which is being planned.

“At the moment, when it comes to winter pre-orders, we are around 95 per cent of the demand satisfaction rate for customers who had requested delivery for the first months of the season; July and August. We hope to be able to continue with this trend, even if the quantity available will not be abundant.” He added that increased raw materials and energy costs, along with “the now absurd costs of logistics” are having a big impact and that “significant increases in the price lists are certainly to be expected.”

Merli continued: “We will try to sweeten this complex situation and therefore delay the increases as much as possible, but, sooner or later, we will be forced to pass on the increase in costs to the market. It is not speculation, at least as far as we are concerned, but a pure attempt to cover the soaring costs which, moreover, we already know that it will not even be enough.”

Speaking about the latest products in Toyo’s range, Merli said the new Proxes Sport 2 will be produced initially in sizes of 18 inches and above, with 17 inch sizes joining later. The range is due for completion in 2023, with sizes added in intervals. He said that the new tyre “supports the Proxes Sport A, because in reality it is a completely different product. The spirit with which we have designed it is to give full enjoyment to those who love sporty driving, to those who have high-performance vehicles and want to exploit all their power, in complete safety. The new model uses all the latest technological discoveries, in terms of bi-compound and construction tricks. The carcass, for example, has a controlled flexibility, which helps the ultra-performance tyre to be less energy-intensive, that is, to consume less fuel.” Toyo is looking forward to comparative tests, he added, since it is “convinced that we have made a further leap in quality compared to the Sport A.”

Toyo is supporting its new products in Europe with a new management structure in the region, operating under the management of its continental headquarters in Germany. “Basically, we will no longer be just a commercial company, but a holding company that manages and keeps the two production and distribution areas in close communication. There will be changes in management, the logistics will be completely new and there will be major investments focused on the European market,” he concluded.