Japan’s Toyo Tire Corporation says that it will build a new R&D facility building on the grounds of its Toyo Tire Serbia plant (Indjija, Serbia) as its new European R&D Centre, which will begin operations in January 2027.
The current R&D functions in Germany will be transferred to Serbia in 2026, further enhancing its European R&D functions. The company adds it will also further strengthen collaboration between its R&D functions in Japan, the US, and Europe, creating a global tripartite R&D structure befitting the next stage of technological development.
Following the opening of the North American R&D centre in the US in 2019, it established its next centre in Germany in November of the same year, establishing a global trilateral R&D structure together with the main facility in Japan.
With regard to mobility, there are emerging needs for improved energy efficiency, such as fuel economy and electricity consumption, growing safety awareness, and ensuring economy and durability. Tyre manufacturing requires simultaneously achieving conflicting performance requirements, such as reduced rolling resistance, improved wet/snow performance, weight reduction, and wear resistance.
To resolve these issues, Toyo Tire says it has strengthened collaboration between the individual functions of its R&D centres in Japan, the US, and Europe and plans to take its technological development to the next level, further strengthening focus on realising customer-oriented products through the aforementioned high-performance designs, it adds.
At the newly established Serbian centre it will further improve not only product performance but also productivity by developing new formulations and new materials and advancing mixing technology. In addition, by utilising the test course built on the factory grounds, Toyo says it will be able to conduct actual vehicle testing, thereby shortening the development cycle and accelerating new product development.