In addition to hearing presentations by corporate officials and leaders, participating in a wide range of educational sessions, and taking part in ride-and-drives with Goodyear’s new winter tire, dealers attending the Goodyear North America Customer Conference on Feb. 2-4, 2020 meandered through the 130,000 sq.-ft. trade show to see firsthand all that Goodyear and a variety of vendors had to offer.
During the trade show tours, attendees visited vendor booths, learned about the features and benefits of the Goodyear tire lineup, technology solutions and services that were all on display, and participated in “Show & Go” sessions with Goodyear subject matter experts to learn about things like tire compound development, intelligent/connected tire technologies and sustainable sourcing innovations like the use of soybean oil in tire manufacturing.
Bob Woloszynek, chief engineer of polymer science and technology, said that soybean oil is one of those raw materials that checks all the boxes to expand the tire performance triangle, noting that Goodyear was the first tiremaker to make passenger car tires containing soybean oil. He said currently, four of Goodyear’s premium tires are realizing the performance and processing benefits of soybean oil—Eagle Enforcer All Weather; Eagle Exhilarate; Assurance WeatherReady; and Assurance ComfortDrive.
He said the benefits of using soybean oil include: its domestic, abundant and renewable; offers improved compatibility with tire polymers; it can improve fuel/manufacturing efficiency; and it has a very low glass transition temperature. Another key attribute is that it helps the tread stay pliable and grip the road in cold temperatures.
The future of mobility trends and Goodyear’s role in tomorrow’s transportation was covered by Chris Queen, director of innovative technology, global. Queen discussed the impact of FACE vehicles—Fleets, Autonomous, Connected and Electric—as well as technologies like predictive tire monitoring that helps increase time on the road while reducing repair costs and optimizes replacement cycles based on remotely monitored and predicted tire health.
Todd Macsuga, general manager of brand marketing for North America, talked about Goodyear’s new brand campaign, “Movement,” that will build off of the former “More Driven” campaign to showcase how Goodyear’s products, technology and services enable movement for its customers.
MORE FROM GOODYEAR’S 2020 CONFERENCE:
- Goodyear Gives Tools for Dealer Success at 2020 Customer Conference
- Goodyear Presents New Ways to Drive Demand
- Goodyear to Release Assurance ComfortDrive All-Season Tire
- Goodyear Releases WinterCommand Ultra Tire
- Goodyear Introduces Complete Tire Management for Fleets
- Goodyear Launches New Sizes for Fuel Max RTD
