Goodyear has launched a new fuel-efficient long haul drive tire that improves highway fuel economy by an average of 2 percent compared to the Michelin X Line Energy D, the next most fuel efficient tire on the market.
The tire, called Fuel Max LHD G505D, saves around $1,444 worth of fuel per truck per year, compared to the Michelin X Line Energy D. The Fuel Max technology incorporates innovative fuel-efficient compounds, tire constructions and tread designs to lower the rolling resistance of the tires, which reduces truck fuel consumption.
Fuel is the biggest expense for most trucking fleets. Professional truck drivers traveled 421.3 billion miles of road in the United States in 2013, consuming more than 52 billion gallons of fuel along the way, according to data from the American Trucking Associations.
In addition to superior fuel economy, Fuel Max also features a highly siped center rib and lateral grooves to help enhance all-season traction; Goodyear's Tredlock Technology, which contains interlocking micro-grooves and a wide tread to help stabilize the tread for long life and enhanced toughness; a steel-belt casing package for toughness, endurance and robust retreadability; and penetration protectors to help resist stone drilling, which also enhances casing retreadability.
This is a great example of how a product designed to improve efficiency and save money also has positive environmental consequences. Lower fuel consumption translates into reduced costs, which leads to improved environmental sustainability for the trucking industry.
Last month, Goodyear announced it will begin using ash left over from the burning of rice husks to produce electricity and an environmentally friendly source of silica for use in its tires. Silica is mixed with rubber in tire treads to increase the rubber’s strength and help reduce rolling resistance, which improves fuel economy and can improve a tire’s traction on wet surfaces. Goodyear said it has tested silica derived from rice husk ash over the past two years at its Innovation Center in Akron, Ohio and found its impact on tire performance to be equal to that of traditional sources.
Goodyear is also among 12 industry leaders that make up the Roundtable for Product Social Metrics, which earlier this month unveiled its Handbook for Product Social Impact Assessment, a practical tool for assessing a product’s social impacts throughout its life cycle.
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Founder & Principal Consultant, Hower Impact
Mike Hower is the founder of Hower Impact — a boutique consultancy delivering best-in-class strategic communication advisory and support for corporate sustainability, ESG and climate tech.
Published Oct 9, 2014 12pm EDT / 9am PDT / 5pm BST / 6pm CEST