Backing the right sustainability horse

In recent years market observers have worn out the word unprecedented, but 2023 was another year of significant developments. From the ongoing impact of the Russia-Ukraine war and the continuing challenges of pandemic-related disruption to the transformation and rationalisation of European manufacturing that has followed in its wake, several stories have run and run because of their multi-faceted repercussions for the whole tyre business. In short, for some it was a good year. But for many, it has been a challenging 12 months – not least for those in the manufacturing side of the tyre business (see pages 28, 30 and 41 for more on that).

In addition to covering those developments, December’s Tyres & Accessories brings you the latest details on the most impactful news, with particular emphasis on Fleet Business (see page 42 onwards), the all-important raw materials that form the basis of tyres (see page 56 onwards) and a closer look at some of the major trends this year (see page 30 onwards). What draws all these threads together is the word “sustainability” – a term repeated throughout this edition and often used in different ways (see page 20 for another example).

For many, the word “sustainability” is basically synonymous with “green” or “environmental”. But it actually covers a wider range of subject areas and is far more impacting than that one, albeit important, area alone. That much has become clear for many in the tyre business during the last year or so, but it still bears repetition.

During the recent Vaculug-initiated “Sustainable Thinking” forum (see page 14 onwards), Hankook Tire Europe vice president of sales and marketing and business strategy, Guy Heywood, gave a presentation entitled “From evolution to revolution” in which he shared how “what seems like science fiction is quickly becoming science fact”. In short, he highlighted how maturing powertrain technologies, lightweight materials, rapid advances in connected vehicles, shifts in mobility preferences and the emergence of autonomous vehicles are shifting thinking away from a linear automotive industry towards a multi-modal mobility ecosystem. And all that is taking place in the context of multi-dimensional emphasis on sustainability.

The dream that especially interests vehicle makers foresees a future where vehicles don’t crash, there are no traffic jams, energy demand drops and trip costs fall. However – and this point cannot be overstated – that same dream inevitably moves towards a future where there are no fast-fits, no body shops, no car parks and no vehicle ownership. If that ever becomes the case, the impact on independent tyre distributors and service providers is obvious.

Vive la revolution?

While the revolution is underway, that so-called dream thankfully can’t become a reality tomorrow. Rather, as Heywood pointed out, it is better to look at it like this “revolution has started” with the evolution of fuel type, “but the best estimate is [the market will be] 100 per cent electric vehicle by 2055”. Right now, diesel propulsion still dominates the truck sector, but the bus parc is already down to 63 per cent diesel and the rest split between hybrids, EVs and others. It is fair to say Heywood doesn’t back hydrogen as the right solution moving forward, but whatever options we end up with in a couple of decades time, they all still need tyres. While various tyre makers have speculated what those might look like in the future, the fact is they will still be needed (see page 36). Indeed, even multi-modal vehicles have to get in contact with the ground at some point.

But there’s no denying that as our mobility ecosystem “revolutionises”, disruption will take place and new opportunities will appear. The combination of virtual tyre development and AI means we are already in a tyre development arms race, which is making tyre range replacement cycles shorter than ever. Similarly, sensor technology is become ever more integrated into the tyre business. Hankook, for example, highlights TPMS, tyre ID, load sensors, wear sensors and road condition sensors as current technology, with “tyre health sensing” next. And that all pushes the tyre sector straight towards Tyres as a Service models, digital services platforms and data integration solutions – where those things aren’t already in place. Indeed, looking forward to 2025, Heywood suggested that we look out for tyres with inbuilt sensors as well as airless and intelligent tyres in the market.

In other words, we all need to get on the same page regarding what we mean when we use the term sustainability. And, to develop and expand that point, we need to back the right sustainability horse.

With that said, as we go to press at the start of this year’s festive season, on behalf of everyone at Tyre Industry Publications Ltd, we wish all our subscribers, advertisers, suppliers and stakeholders a very merry Christmas and a happy, healthy, prosperous – and why not? – sustainable 2024 and beyond!