Press Release

Hyogo, Japan – October 2, 2025 – Toyo Tire Corporation (Headquarters: Itami City, Hyogo Prefecture; President & CEO: Takashi Shimizu; hereinafter, “Toyo Tire”) announced today its plan to establish a new R&D laboratories building on the premises of the Toyo Tire Serbia Factory (Municipality of Indjija, Republic of Serbia). The facility, which is scheduled to become operational in January 2027, will become a new European R&D hub and further strengthen the Group's R&D capabilities in Europe. (The current European R&D function in Germany will be closed by the end of 2026.) This move will establish a global trilateral framework, further strengthening collaboration among R&D functions in Japan, the U.S., and Europe, and ushering in the next stage of technological development.

(Designer’s rendition of the R&D center in Serbia)

Toyo Tire opened an R&D center in North America in January 2019 and another in Germany in November of the same year, establishing a global trilateral R&D framework alongside the core Tire Technical Center in Japan.

To facilitate mobility, there is a growing need for improved energy efficiency, i.e., fuel/energy efficiency, enhanced safety performance in line with rising public safety awareness, and assured economic efficiency and durability. In tire manufacturing, on the other hand, it is necessary to meet contradictory performance requirements simultaneously, including lower rolling resistance, higher wet and snow performance, reduced weight, and improved wear resistance.

To address these challenges, Toyo Tire has strengthened collaboration among its R&D centers in Japan, the U.S., and Europe, enabling mutual access to their unique functions. In its Medium-Term Business Plan (Medium-Term ’21 Plan), we identified three areas of key differentiation technologies and has focused on honing them: 1) Advanced design, for achieving multiple performance requirements at a high level, 2) Customer-oriented product development, for creating products with  
differentiated features and appeals in a timely manner, and 3) Next-generation technology, for advancing technologies in anticipation of future societal needs.

Going forward, Toyo Tire aims to take technology development to the next stage by further strengthening this technological process, from advanced design to the commercialization of customer-oriented products—in other words, by further promoting the advancement and social implementation of technologies.

Accordingly, Toyo Tire has positioned the strengthening of “processing technology,” a key to this initiative, as one of the evolving technical themes for its European R&D functions. At the new R&D center in Serbia, we will focus on developing new rubber compounds and materials, as well as advancing mixing technology, to further enhance both productivity and tire performance. In addition, the proving ground within the Serbia Factory premises enables immediate driving tests with actual vehicles fitted with our tires, which is expected to shorten development cycles and accelerate product development.

By applying these enhanced technologies to our manufacturing operations, we aim to raise the value of TOYO TIRES-branded products and strengthen our competitiveness in the global market.
 

■ Outline of the new facility