South Korean tyre maker Hankook Tire has signed a second memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Netherlands-headquartered synthetic rubber producer Arlanxeo to co-develop synthetic rubber technologies for high-performance tyres. Under this agreement, the two companies will jointly study the development of new high-performance synthetic rubber grades and applications, which will increase the performance of tyres from early stages of product development.
The partnership between Hankook Tire and Arlanxeo, a joint venture of German chemicals firm Lanxess and Saudi Aramco, started in 2008, with the supply of raw materials such as solution styrene butadiene rubber (S-SBR) and neodymium performance butadiene rubber (Nd-PBR).
In 2014 the first MOU was signed to expand and collaborate on the development of core synthetic rubber solutions for high-performance tyres.
This form of technical partnership represents Hankook Tire’s continued R&D efforts. Coupled with the company’s continuous investment in Hankook Technodome, an R&D centre located in Korea, this additional R&D effort is expected to accelerate Hankook Tire’s pursuit to further advance its technological prowess beyond competition, the company says.
Hyung Nam Kim, CTO of Hankook Tire, said, “Continuous R&D efforts and investments were made to further solidify Hankook Tire’s position as a global top tier company. The strong relationship with Arlanxeo has been great, and will continue to result in great technological advancement between the two companies.”
Jorge Nogueira, Arlanxeo CEO said, “This new agreement strengthens our long-standing trustful co-operation with Hankook Tire. As before, we will continue to assist Hankook Tire as a reliable partner to develop its market position as key global tire maker with innovative high-quality products. ”