The Innovative Tyre Development Forum, organized by TBM Evolution Group, has taken place in Berlin on the 4th and 5th of June 2015.
This major event brought together tyre industry managers from around the world and the main topics discussed included tyre market trends, the future of the tyre plants, tyres and fuel economy, optimizing tread patterns, global regulation, tyre labelling in Europe and other countries, tyre homologation, the tyre of the future and the consumer’s behaviour and perception.
Keynote speakers included senior managers from Michelin, Goodyear, Pirelli, Yokohama, Ceat, Evonik, Bekaert, Idiada and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe.
Guido Savi, Head of Automotive Consultancy at HBC Group and Chairman of the conference, declared: “The level speakers and content of the presentations were very high and the panel discussions were very animated”.
During this forum, two topics were discussed in particular
The European labelling legislation had a major impact on the international tyre market. Many of the large tyre-producing countries, such as Japan, Korea, and China, who export tyres to Europe, have introduced the tyre labelling on a voluntary or mandatory basis. Other countries such as the United States, Brazil and China will follow. It also seems that many countries support the future introduction of the longevity (mileage) criteria.There is a gap between the tyre retailer’s perception and the consumer’s expectations. Guido Savi declared: “Despite the high level of technology, tyres are still a low interest product. Tyres selling is often a price discussion because retailers do not give value to the product by using technical product information. Retailers mainly believe that consumer are not interested in technical information while European consumers surveys clearly show that consumer are willing to know more about the product they purchase. The whole tyre selling process needs to be reinvented”.
Press Release by HBC group S.A.
