Yokohama Expands Passenger Tire Capacity at India Plant

The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd., is expanding its passenger car tire production capacity in India to meet the increasing demands from the local market. With an additional investment of $82 million, the company looks to increase its annual passenger car tire production capacity in India with Yokohama India Pvt. Ltd. (YIN), its local passenger car tire manufacturing and sales subsidiary, from the current 2.8 million to 4.5 million tires.

The company said the new capacity will be installed within the premises of the Visakhapatnam Plant in the eastern part of India. The new line is scheduled to start production in the fourth quarter of 2024 and will be capable of building passenger car tires up to 22 inches.

Yokohama’s India subsidiary has been in operation since 2007 and has contributed to a sharp increase in sales of Yokohama-branded tires in the Indian market, the company said. The tires sold in India are specifically designed for Indian driving conditions. Yokohama said its Visakhapatnam Plant new plant started production in August 2022 to boost the production capacity of Yokohama Off-Highway Tires (YOHT).

India’s automobile industry has been expanding rapidly, with its total automobile sales volume in 2022 surpassing that of Japan, making India the third-largest automobile market in the world. Yokohama Rubber said it expects this growth to continue in the future.

Edwin Goudswaard is now officially serving as the head of research and development at Continental Tires. He succeeds Dr. Boris Mergell who took over as head of the user experience business area at Continental Automotive, also on September 1, 2023.

Goudswaard began his career at Continental in 2006, shortly after completing his mechanical engineering studies, the company said. Following an international R&D trainee program, he worked in virtual development and product development for original equipment tires. Between 2013 and 2021, Goudswaard assumed various management roles in R&D and in the production facilities for two-wheeler and passenger car tires in Europe and Asia. In 2021, he was appointed head of the two-wheel tire business area. He was most recently responsible for Continental’s global research and development activities in the passenger car tire replacement business.