Continental puts the future on the road, transferring sustainable concepts into production tyres

The Hannover based tyre manufacturer is styling itself as a ‘pioneer in implementation’, with concepts moved into production in as little as one year

(Image: Continental)

Continental is styling itself as a “pioneer in innovation” by accelerating the evolution of its sustainability concepts into production tyres. The manufacturer is using silica from rice husk ash, carbon black from end-of-life tyres, and polyester from recycled PET in series tyres already, backing up head of sustainability Jorge Almeida’s maxim that “Sustainable innovations belong on the road and not in a showroom.” The UltraContact NXT car tyre, launched in 2023, is the current apex of this strategy, its most sustainable production tyre to date. Conti innovated the use of silica from agricultural waste, polyester from recycled PET and other renewable and recyclable materials from 2021 with the Conti GreenConcept concept tyre. Many of these technologies have subsequently been used in its series tyres. Overall, Conti says this underscores its claim to be “the most progressive manufacturer in the tyre industry when it comes to sustainability.”

Almeida continues: “We ensure that innovations and concept tyres are made available to our customers and go into production as quickly as possible, without any compromises in terms of safety and performance. We were the first to integrate pioneering technologies such as recycled PET into series tyres. And we were also the first tyre manufacturer to launch a model with a particularly high share of renewable and recycled materials. We walk our talk when it comes to making our world more sustainable.”

Continental head of sustainability, Jorge Almeida (Photo: Continental)

PET bottles often end up in waste incineration plants or landfills. By using the ContiRe.Tex technology, Continental and its partners have succeeded in producing high-quality polyester yarn for tyres from recycled PET bottles. Depending on the tyre size, between nine and fifteen PET bottles can be reused per tyre. The PET bottles used come exclusively from regions without a closed recycling loop.

The manufacturer says it brought the Conti-Re.Tex technology to production readiness in less than a year. This speed is remarkable, because of the  complex balancing act for the engineers and material experts to introduce new raw materials in addition to the conversion of corresponding production processes in the tyre plants. The materials must be perfectly coordinated with each other in order for customers to benefit from safe, energy-efficient and durable high-performance tyres. Series tyres with Conti-Re.Tex technology have been available from specialist tyre dealers in Europe since April 2022.

Up to 65 per cent sustainable materials

Continental CityPlus concept tyre (Photo: Continental)

The Conti-Re.Tex technology is also part of the most sustainable passenger car series tyre on the market to date. With the UltraContact NXT, Continental offers a tyre with a particularly high proportion of sustainable materials, many of which were contained in the the GreenConcept tyre, presented to the public for the first time at IAA Mobility 2021, including silica made from rice husk ash or recycled PET bottles.

Production of the UltraContact NXT started in July 2023 in Lousado, Portugal. With up to 65 percent renewable, recycled and mass-balance-certified materials, the series tyre combines a high proportion of sustainable materials with maximum safety and performance. All 19 tyre sizes received the top EU tyre label A-grade in rolling resistance, braking in wet conditions and exterior noise. By 2030, Continental is aiming to use over 40 per cent renewable and recycled materials in its tyres. The UltraContact NXT is an important step for the tyre manufacturer on the way to achieving its ambitious sustainability goals.

Thanks to the balanced interplay of efficient and sustainable technologies and materials, Continental products are particularly efficient when driving. The Conti CityPlus technology presented at the most recent IAA Mobility exemplifies this, increasing the overall energy efficiency of a car tyre by up to 10 per cent, Conti said. As a result, ICE cars’ CO2 emissions are cut and electric vehicles can maximise range. This is achieved by optimising tyre behaviour in inner-city stop-and-go traffic, which can increase the range of passenger cars by up to three percent. For electric vehicles, this corresponds to a saving of around 0.6 kWh per 10okm. Conti says its latest technology could also be used in production in the near future, with several original equipment manufacturers expressing interest.

Continental is continuously working to advance innovative technologies and sustainable products and services along the entire value chain, from the procurement of sustainable materials to the recycling of end-of-life tyres. By 2030, the premium tyre manufacturer is aiming to use more than 40 per cent renewable and recycled materials in its tyres. Continental aims to achieve a proportion of 100 per cent sustainable materials in its tyres by 2050 at the latest.