Press Release
Uniroyal Tire Steals the Show with the Red Dot
Award
Hanover, April 4th, 2014. The coveted Red Dot Design
Award is awarded to a Uniroyal wet tire this year. The 40member jury gave the award to the RainSport 3,
particularly praising the tire's innovative "shark skin
technology," which ensures rapid drainage of water
when driving in the rain. "A number of attractive details
clearly highlight the core competence 'best in the wet',"
said the specialists in their verdict.
The RainSport 3 from Uniroyal is a new summer tire that is
due to be launched this season. "The design of the Uniroyal
RainSport 3 is very different to other products on the tire
market," concluded the jury, justifying its decision to award
the tire. "A number of attractive details clearly highlight the
core competence 'best in the wet.' We should especially
mention the innovative "shark skin technology" here. This
product clearly demonstrates what industrial design is
capable of achieving in markets that are already saturated.
Through deliberately focusing on semantic effects in design,
a mistakable and arbitrary product can be made into a
product that is in demand and has a clear, unique
performance promise."
Tire design is becoming increasingly important in terms of
making a particular tire stand out from the many competitor
products and highlighting its performance – in this case its
rapid water drainage capability. Product designers in the tire
sector therefore work closely together with development
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engineers to deliver reliable and attractive design elements
for a tire's tread pattern and side wall.
"I am particularly delighted to receive this award. It is already
the second design award for the RainSport 3 this year,"
explains Stefan Rittweger, Senior Designer at Continental's
R&D Center where the design for the Uniroyal wet tire was
developed. "To my knowledge, we have never achieved this
with a tire before and this shows that we have succeeded in
creating something very special here. Obviously, the
achievement belongs to the whole team. A product like this
can only be developed through close collaboration between
tread pattern engineers, compound developers, and tire
designers. Only by working in this way is it possible to fuse
optimum aquaplaning resistance, convincing wet grip, and all
of the other safety-relevant features of the highest standard
with an award-winning design. We are excited to see
whether drivers will be just as impressed with the new
Uniroyal RainSport 3."
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The Belgian manufacturer of rubber goods, Englebert, had been
producing tires (for Continental AG, among others) since 1895. Following
the merger with US Rubber in 1958, the company came to be known as
Uniroyal Englebert. Uniroyal, the inventor of the wet tire, has been a
European brand of Continental AG, Hanover, since 1979.
www.uniroyal.de
Continental AG
With sales of around €33.3 billion in 2013, Continental is among the
leading tire manufacturers, automotive suppliers, and industrial partners
worldwide. As a supplier of tires, technical elastomer products, brake
systems, systems and components for powertrains and chassis,
instrumentation, infotainment solutions and vehicle electronics,
Continental contributes to enhanced driving safety and global climate
protection. Continental is also an expert partner in networked automobile
communication. Continental currently employs more than 178,000 people
in 49 countries.
www.continental-corporation.de
Tire division
As one of the world's leading tire manufacturers with more than 44,000
employees, the Tire division achieved sales of €9.6 billion in 2013.
Today, the division has 24 production and development locations
worldwide. The broad product range and continuous investments in R&D
make a major contribution to cost-effective and ecologically efficient
mobility.
Passenger Car and Light Truck Tires
Continental is one of Europe's leading passenger car and light truck tire
manufacturers and is the world's fourth-largest passenger car and light
truck tire manufacturer in the original equipment and replacement
business sectors. The product development focus of the Continental
premium brand is to optimize all safety-relevant characteristics, while
simultaneously minimizing rolling resistance.
www.continental-reifen.de
Sponsorship
Continental's Tire division is an official sponsor of the German DFB Cup,
Major League Soccer in the U.S.A. and Canada, the 2014 FIFA World
Cup in Brazil, and UEFA EURO 2016TM in France.
www.ContiSoccerWorld.com
Media database
www.mediacenter.continental-corporation.com
Contact:
Alexander Bahlmann
Head of PR, Passenger/Light Truck Tires
Continental AG
Tire division
Büttnerstraße 25, 30165 Hanover, Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 511 938 2615
Fax:
+49 (0) 511 938 2455
alexander.bahlmann@conti.de
www.continental-reifen.de
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Klaus Engelhart
Press Spokesman
Passenger and Light Truck/Two-Wheel Tires
Germany/Austria/Switzerland
Continental AG
Tire division
Büttnerstraße 25, 30165 Hanover, Germany
Phone: +49 (0) 511 938 2285
Fax:
+49 (0) 511 938 2455
klaus.engelhart@conti.de