Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.’s new development center in Pulandian, China, will expand its capabilities in the Asia Pacific region and enable it to increase the speed and efficiency of high-value-added tire development, especially for China-based automakers, according to the tiremaker.
“China is the world’s largest and fastest-growing market for passenger cars and commercial trucks, and critical to Goodyear’s growth strategy,” said Rich Kramer, Goodyear chairman and CEO. “The new China development center will be an integral part of our network of global innovation centers and strengthen our innovation leadership role in the global tire industry.”
Locating the center at its existing manufacturing facility in Pulandian will support Goodyear’s market-back approach by providing direct interactions between customers and designers, and the building of local capabilities. It also will allow the company to enter new OE platforms in China, including new energy vehicles, Goodyear added.
“The time is right for us to increase our capabilities in China to ensure we remain first with our customers,” said Kramer. “We have built strong relationships with OE manufacturers and our investment in this new 
development center will allow us to expand our new product offerings, accelerate our speed to market and increase the value we deliver to these key customers.”
Core tire technology will continue to be developed in Goodyear’s global Innovation Centers in Akron, Ohio, and Colmar-Berg, Luxembourg, with China development activities focused on product customization for OE fitments and project support services.
In addition to the two global innovation centers, Goodyear also operates development centers in Hanau, Germany, and Hebron, Ohio.
