TTE News: Tire Manufacturing Innovation of the Year

Tire Technology International Awards for Innovation and Excellence 2019 shortlist – as supplied by organisers UKI Media & Events. Winners to be announced at gala dinner event on 6 March 

Computype – Chromaffix

Updated Chromaffix tread label automation system, designed to seamlessly integrate with existing manufacturing workflows to consistently print and apply branded tread labels to tires. Centered on the linkage between the bead barcode label and the retail-facing tread label, Chromaffix prints variable information to combine product data with color logos for the correct combination of static and variable label presentation.

Festo – Motion Terminal VTEM

The Festo Motion Terminal VTEM turns tire production into the IoT (Internet of Things) era. Like the smartphone, functions of more than 50 individual components are integrated in one product. Software apps enable flexible control. With digital pneumatics, Festo is creating new opportunities for tire production, such as: optimization of process times and reduction of vibrations; reduction of compressed air consumption and detection of leakage; continuous condition monitoring for demand-oriented service assignments. First successes have been achieved in the following applications: flexible tension control of rubber layers; precise pressure control in the multidisc application; adaptive loading procedure in the curing press. Advantages of loading procedure in figures: 60% reduced air consumption; 33% improved cycle time; 2.7 gained production days per year. The Festo Motion Terminal VTEM will continue to improve new as well as established tire production lines.

HF Group – TBM One

Tire building machine that can build multiple tire types and construction on the same basic machine structure. Can build very wide and very narrow tires on the same machine with short changeover times. It is, according to the company, the only TBM in the market which provides the flexibility to produce tires with inflated (Unistage process) or flat turn up (two stage process). Changing between the processes takes only 20 mins and is comparable to a normal code change. With this flexibility, the machine offers not only standard tire designs like SOT/TOS but also a wide BP turn up, the so-called C-ply construction, as well as ply up / down constructions. Also, E-Mobility with very narrow tires is considered as the machine drum concept allows low final bead positions (180mm). In addition, the machine offers also run flat capability.

Uzer Makina – Pre-heating presses

Has developed a new way of changing curing molds – pre-heating the presses and using cranes to move molds. This can cut down the time tire factories must spend heating molds and prevents them from sitting unoccupied for as long. Can enable up to eight additional tires to be made per mold change – multiplied up that can be a significant saving. Is also safer than usual methods of using forklifts to move heated molds around a factory.

Intralox – use of VR technology

Virtual reality setup and interactive software for conveyor line design and maintenance. VR models can be used to test alterations to manufacturing lines without the cost of trialing them, and remote maintenance can be taught to on-site staff. It can also be used for training personnel.