Michelin is committed to making their tires 100% sustainable by 2050. This is an ambitious but realistic target for the Group, a leader in sustainable mobility.
Appearances can be deceiving! This adage definitely applies to Michelin’s tires, which are high-technology products made of more than 200 components. They’re much more complex than they appear, which means that ensuring that all the tire’s components are sustainable presents a significant challenge.
AN EXPLOIT WELL WITHIN MICHELIN’S REACH
Though making their tires 100% sustainable is ambitious, it remains realistic. Why are they so confident? The Group’s materials expertise, along with their ability to innovate and develop new technology, offer considerable advantages. Michelin currently has more than 6,000 engineers, researchers, chemists, and developers in seven research and development centers around the world working in more than 350 fields of expertise. Beyond their power of innovation, they also believe they can make 100% sustainable tires because of the Group’s open innovation strategy based on innovative and trailblazing partnerships.
STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS FOCUSED ON SUSTAINABILITY
The Group has always been willing to pool their expertise with that of stakeholders from different fields to accelerate progress and realize their “All-Sustainable” vision. This was the case for their collaborations with Axens and IFP Energies Nouvelles, Pyrowave, Carbios, and recently Enviro.
The Group is already working in various areas such as producing butadiene from biomass (wood waste, rice husks, etc.), recovering carbon black from used tires, recycling polystyrene, etc. All promising avenues that should contribute to their success.
MICHELIN IS GOING EVEN FURTHER…
As if the challenges weren’t ambitious enough, Michelin is raising standards even higher. The Group is determined to use as few materials as possible in tires while maximizing performance and efficacy. Their goal: improve the tire’s ecological footprint and decrease rolling resistance to reduce CO2 emissions. Given that natural rubber remains the tire’s main component, Michelin is also working to make the natural rubber industry eco-friendlier and more beneficial to all its stakeholders. The “All Sustainable” vision that inspires and guide Michelin’s strategy is well on its way!
Source: michelin.com/en/news