Continental's CARE (Connected, Autonomous, Reliable, Electrified) project was named as overall winner and winner of the Tire Technology Award at the inaugural Journey to Automation Awards, which recognized leaders in the field of automation and digital transformation in the global tire industry.
The winners were announced at a virtual ceremony as part of the International Tire Exhibition & Conference on Sept. 16.
The six winners of the J2A Awards, organized by European Rubber Journal, were Tire Manufacture—Producers (Michelin), Tire Manufacture—Suppliers (Cimcorp), Tire Technology (Continental), Tire Supply Chain (Rubberway), Tire Sustainability (Trelleborg TWS) and Specialist Engineering SMEs (Black Donuts).
J2A Award overall winner Conti CARE is an umbrella strategy and tire technology platform covering a range of IT sensor and material-based technologies, all part of a tool kit designed to enable the automotive industry transition to electric, autonomous and other new mobility platforms.
The award judges praised Continental for successfully combining innovation, IT and physical technology. For example, integrated mini pumps adjust tire air pressure to make fuller use of data generated. The project also was marked out for its proactive approach to meeting OEM requirements with technology that leverages significant impact on the wider automotive industry.
Other winners were:
- Tire Manufacture—Producers Award: Michelin won for its Connecting Tires to their Ecosystem through RFID. Judges commended Michelin's achievement in embedding RFID tags in tires and making the process affordable. Applying global-standard RFID to tire manufacturing and through the entire lifecycle of a tire will have a highly positive impact on the tire industry.
- Tire Manufacture—Suppliers award: Cimcorp's Improving Data Analytics of the Tire Factory earned the top prize. Cimcorp has developed a tire production dashboard and is leveraging data from different sources to improve the complete flow of tire manufacturing from material handling to finished goods. J2A Award judges recognized that this automation route can significantly improve the efficiency and output of tire plants.
- Tire Supply Chain Award: Rubberway won for its Engaging your Supply Chain Toward Sustainability. This large-scale project to improve the sustainability of the natural rubber supply-chain was marked out for having created tools that are appropriate to the operating environment to provide both ease of use and a clear analysis.
- J2A Tire Sustainability Award: Trelleborg earned a nod in this category for its CTIS+ Smart Product for Sustainable Farming, Fleet Management and ELT Management. The judges recognized that this was a real advance in preserving the condition of the tire and adapting its performance to varied road surface and field conditions.
- Specialist Engineering SMEs Award: Black Donuts took the prize for its eKanban project, praised by the judges as a very ingenious system that has been successfully implemented in a tire manufacturing plant.
"From the level of support and the quality of the shortlisted and winning entries, the J2A platform clearly has solid foundations and is set to become established as a regular fixture on the industry calendar," said Patrick Raleigh, editor of European Rubber Journal. "At the heart of the J2A program is the judging process, and we strongly recognize the work of our expert panel in establishing the J2A Awards as an important, new reference point for the digital transformation of the global tire industry."
The judging process was overseen by a senior official from the International Society of Automation Europe. The judging panel was brought together by European Rubber Journal and Crain Global Polymer Group sister titles Rubber & Plastics News and Tire Business.
J2A Awards 2020 Winners and Highly Commended:
Tire Manufacture—Producers
- Winner: Michelin: Connecting Tires to their Ecosystem through RFID
- Highly Commended: Hankook Tire
Tire Manufacture—Suppliers
- Winner: Cimcorp: Improving Data Analytics of the Tire Factory
- Highly Commended: VMI Group
Tire Technology and Overall Winner
- Winner Continental: C.A.R.E (Connected. Autonomous. Reliable. Electrified)
- Highly Commended: Goodyear
- Tire Supply-Chain
- Winner: Rubberway: Engaging your Supply Chain Toward Sustainability
- Highly Commended: Michelin
Tire Sustainability
- Winner: Trelleborg (TWS): CTIS+ Smart Product for Sustainable Farming; Fleet Management; ELT Management
- Highly Commended: TRM Retreading Technologies
Specialist Engineering SMEs
- Winner: Black Donuts: eKanban
- Highly Commended: D&A
The inaugural J2A Awards were supported by Platinum Sponsor VMI Group and Gold Sponsor Rockwell Automation.
Media partners and supporters are: Rubber & Plastics News, Tire Business, IRjournal.com, Automobilwoche, Automotive News Europe, ETRMA, BRV (German Tyre Retail and Vulcanisation Trade Association) and The Tire Cologne.