High levels of grip and traction are not just important in vehicle tyres, and to emphasise this Continental has shed some light onto an oft-overlooked part of its business. In addition to manufacturing commercial, consumer and off-road tyres, the German manufacturer has supplied rubber compounds to adidas for the past few years. These compounds are used to produce non-slip soles for more than 30 models of men and women’s running and trekking shoes. The tyre maker says the Continental sole has extremely effective non-slip qualities.

“We are delighted that the adidas running shoes with our rubber compound technology developed in Hanover are helping many professional athletes to achieve new personal best times and break course records,” comments David O’Donnell, head of R&D for passenger car and light truck tyres at Continental. “This shows the potential long-term benefits of looking beyond your immediate industry for new technology and solutions. During the development of our premium products, which stand out primarily due to exceptionally good grip in the wet, we even looked at gripping mechanisms from the animal kingdom – cats and polar bears in particular – and also focused on the production of rubber from dandelion plants.”