Falken and its parent company, Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd (SRI), are celebrating a strong start to the year with a trio of nominations in this year’s “Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence.
SRI has been shortlisted in the ‘Environmental Achievement of the Year – Manufacturing’ category for its use of hydrogen and solar energy during tyre production. It’s also nominated for ‘R&D Breakthrough of the Year’ for its Tire Internal Power Generation Technology – a solution that generates electric power from tyre rotation and supplies this to peripheral tyre sensors.
Elsewhere, in the ‘Tire of the Year’ category, Falken’s AZENIS RS820 has been shortlisted. The new ultra-ultra-high-performance (UUHP) tyre was launched in 2023, and is engineered to offer ultra-precise handling, stability, refinement and control at all speeds and in a variety of conditions.
“SRI is proud to have been recognised many times in the Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence,” says Andreas Giese, Chief Corporate Officer at Falken Tyre Europe GmbH. “Having won the inaugural ‘R&D Breakthrough of the Year’ award in 2023, we’re delighted to have been recognised again for our ongoing investment into R&D – a vital component of our long-term sustainability policy, ‘Driving Our Future Challenge 2050* and the realisation of a sustainable society.”
Recognising ‘the scope of innovation and achievement showcased in the previous 12 months’, the Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence are a celebration of recent advances in tyre technology and the progress made toward a greener and more sustainable industry.
The winners will be announced as part of this year’s Tire Technology Expo, which takes place in Hannover, Germany, from 19-21 March 2024. The awards are decided by the votes of a panel of experts from the tyre industry and academia.