The International Institute of Synthetic Rubber Producers (IISRP) has elected Douglas Wilson as its President-International for the year 2025–2026 at the association’s 65th Annual General Meeting on April 9, 2025. Wilson replaces Zhuang Yi of Sinopec, who became the Institute's Past President-International.

Wilson is now in charge of P&L for every facet of LCY's Styrenic Block Copolymer business in North and South America, including the Baytown SBS production facility, as the General Manager of the Americas business for LCY Elastomers LP. After 22 years at Honeywell International, Wilson served as Global Business Director for Vertellus (now Aurorium) for five years in the Polyether Sulfones, Citrates and Additives business until joining LCY in 2023. Wilson served as the Global Business Leader for two distinct divisions at Honeywell. He started up as the head of Honeywell's nylon-based film and active resins division, which supplied materials for composites and food and industrial packaging. Later on, he oversaw Honeywell's Research Chemicals division, which included integrating a USD 120 million purchase.

In addition to Wilson, the other members elected to the association’s Executive Committee for the year 2025–2026 include Masayoshi Iwasa of Asahi Kasei Corporation as President of the Asia Pacific Section and member of the FPAC; Giovanni Cassuti of Versalis as EMEA Section Vice-President; Brian Chapman of Kuraray Americas as Member of the FPAC; Shiga Satoru of ENEOS Materials as Vice-President of the Asia Pacific Section; Robert Rikhoff of Lion Elastomers as President of the Americas Section; Zhuang Yi of Sinopec as past President-International and Roxanna Petrovic of IISRP as Managing Director, Assistant Treasurer and Recording Secretary.

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Goodyear has launched a ‘Golden Ticket’ sweepstakes offering one lucky enthusiast and a guest the chance to fly on the iconic Goodyear Blimp. The promotion runs from 15 September through 15 October 2026.

Participants can enter by purchasing a set of four Goodyear tyres through Goodyear.com or at Goodyear Auto Service and Just Tires stores, then submitting the entry form on the dedicated sweepstakes page. A random drawing will determine the winner, who will receive a flight certificate for two passengers.

The certificate can be redeemed at any of Goodyear’s three US airship bases: Akron, Ohio; Carson, California or Pompano Beach, Florida. The sweepstakes arrives as summer ends and weather becomes less predictable, encouraging drivers to prepare their vehicles.

Eligible purchases span Goodyear’s portfolio, including the Eagle F1 All Season, Wrangler Outbound AT, Assurance WeatherReady 2 and ElectricDrive 2. Buyers using Goodyear.com may also select Goodyear Mobile Garage, which dispatches a van and certified technician to install tyres at a chosen location. To enter without making a purchase, persons may submit an entry via the Official Entry Form.

David Cichocki, Managing Director, Americas & Chief Sales Officer at Goodyear, said, "We've been known to say, 'Blimps Are Cool. Buy Tires’, and this sweepstakes brings those two things together in a memorable way. Whether you purchase from the comfort of home through Goodyear.com or visit a Goodyear Auto Service or Just Tires location, you'll be driving on tyres you can brag about and have the chance to experience something truly iconic – a ride on the Goodyear Blimp."

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Continental has broadened its Conti Scandinavia winter tyre lineup with a new 315/60 R 22.5 steering axle tyre. The range is engineered for demanding winter road conditions, delivering dependable traction on snow, ice and wet surfaces while sustaining high mileage and efficient rolling performance. Retread solutions complement the portfolio to support long-term tyre management.

Developed specifically for challenging winter environments, the Conti Scandinavia family covers various axle positions. Optimised tread patterns and winter compounds provide traction and handling on snow-covered, icy and wet roads while meeting the durability demands of regional and long-haul transport. Continental's two-layer sipe technology plays a central role, supporting traction, driving stability and handling throughout the tyre's service life while contributing to mileage and rolling efficiency.

Special tread compounds stay flexible at low temperatures, maintaining grip without sacrificing operational performance. Low noise levels and year-round applicability add further versatility. Hinnerk Kaiser, Head of Bus and Truck Tyre Development at Continental, noted that winter tyres must deliver reliable traction and handling in challenging conditions without compromising mileage or efficiency, and that the Conti Scandinavia portfolio addresses these requirements while the new dimension expands customer choice.

The added 315/60 R 22.5 steering axle tyre strengthens Continental's winter offering for commercial vehicles and widens the portfolio's application range, giving customers greater flexibility in tyre configuration. Alongside new tyres, retreading extends casing utilisation, allowing fleet operators to maximise tyre assets over a longer period while upholding commercial transport performance requirements.

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Michelin unveiled the MICHELIN X Multi T2 at IAA Transportation 2026 in Hannover, presenting the trailer tyre in the widely used UK and Ireland size of 385/65 R22.5. Designed for regional and mixed transport operations, the tyre is engineered to manage heavy loads, resist lateral forces during manoeuvring and remain dependable across fluctuating operating conditions.

Compared with its predecessor, the X Multi T2 delivers as much as 15 percent greater mileage and up to 6 percent reduced rolling resistance. Its development centres on carcass stability and robustness, making it suited to demanding trailer duties spanning general cargo, containers, refrigerated goods, tankers and bulk haulage, along with car, specialised and heavy-haul transport. Such operations frequently involve peak loads, tight manoeuvring and inconsistent road surfaces, all of which affect tyre life, so a durable carcass and damage-resistant tread directly support cost-effectiveness.

Four principal innovations underpin the tyre. REGENION technology continuously forms new grooves as the tread wears, preserving grip and mobility throughout service life. The CARBION compound enhances mileage, rolling resistance and wear resistance. Within the structure, OPTICOIL is a weight-saving bead architecture, while DURACOIL strengthens the tyre-to-rim bond for greater stability. Michelin also employs POWERCOIL, a newer generation of lighter, longer-lasting steel cables.

As a multi-life product, the X Multi T2 can be regrooved and retreaded for notable total cost of ownership (TCO) savings. Regrooving takes place once tread depth reaches 3–4 mm, extending casing life in its most fuel-efficient state. Worn regrooved tyres can then be retreaded as Michelin Remix tyres at the company's Stoke factory, a process adding roughly 20 kg of raw materials versus about 70 kg for a new tyre. Retreads follow the local-to-local principle, being used exclusively within UK and Ireland, supporting skilled domestic jobs and avoiding export-related environmental impact. The tyre carries rolling resistance class B, wet grip class C and external noise class A under EU labelling, plus 3PMSF and M+S winter markings.

Andrew French, B2B Sales Director, Michelin UK & Ireland, said, “Alongside durability and versatility, Michelin recognises the growing pressure hauliers face to reduce rolling resistance, as trailers form an integral part of the total cost of ownership (TCO) equation. This is something our latest generation trailer tyre can help operators to achieve.”

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Goodyear Chile has reinforced its dedication to sustainability and the circular economy through programmes that encourage responsible handling of end-of-life tyres while supporting environmental protection across the country.

Beyond producing and selling tyres, the company ensures its discarded products are managed in an environmentally sound manner. These tyres are collected and treated at authorised recycling plants, where mechanical processes convert them into reusable materials suitable for new products and applications, in line with Chilean regulations for out-of-use tyres and the firm’s sustainability goals.

Goodyear Chile also continues working to meet requirements under Chile’s Extended Producer Responsibility Law. It currently uses two management mechanisms tied to regulatory categories. For Category A, covering tyres with rims under 57 inches except those measuring 45, 49 and 51 inches, the company participates in NEUVOL, a collective nonprofit system focused on collecting and recovering end-of-life tyres. Together with NEUVOL, Goodyear Chile sends these tyres to Polambiente, a Santiago-based recycler specialising in mechanical recycling that turns them into raw materials and products for new uses.

For Category B, which includes tyres with rims of 45, 49 and 51 inches and wheels 57 inches or larger, Goodyear Chile has operated under a management plan approved by the Ministry of the Environment since 2022, becoming the first Category B tyre company to secure such authorisation in Chile. It has consistently met annual collection and recovery targets for 2023, 2024 and 2025. These tyres go to Rembre Tires in northern Chile, where granulation recovers 100 percent of the tyre, separating rubber and steel for various applications.

Goodyear Chile’s responsible tyre management predates the REP Law targets and reflects its broader effort to cut environmental and social impacts. For over 10 years, it has advanced recycling initiatives and maintained a zero-waste-to-landfill policy while continuing research into more sustainable materials, including alternative raw materials, to help Chile reduce waste and build a more sustainable future.

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