Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. has sets its global goals for 2023, and part of the company's vision is to increase both original equipment and replacement tire sales while focusing on its Advan and Geolandar lines, as well as its winter tire sales.
In the big picture, as part of its "Yokohama Transformation 2023", the tiremaker is aiming for sales of 700 billion yen and business profit of 70 billion yen by 2023 — and 770 billion yen and 80 billion yen for 2025.
In the consumer tire market, that will require a focus on high-value-added tires, the company said. Yokohama will expand size lineups while working to increase Advan sales by 50%, Geolandar sales by 15% and winter tire sales by 20% (from 2019 figures.) Combined, this will raise these tires sales ratio from 40% to 50%.
Yokohama will also position its passenger tire plant in India as its lowest cost tire factory worldwide, while creating a new "low-cost production model." This will help it meet the expected growing demand for lower cost tires, the company says.
The company will do the same with its truck and bus radial tire plant in Thailand.
In the U.S. Yokohama "will continue its efforts to bolster its Mississippi plant's ability to provide a stable supply of truck and bus tires." The company plans to increase its TBR production capacity to meet demand and expand sales revenue to 100 billion yen by 2025.
In response to the market changes coming from connected, autonomous, shared services, as well as mobility as a service, Yokohama's commercial tire business "will search for new ways to provide value" while also strengthening its off-highway tires and truck tire businesses. Some of that value will come from cost efforts, like those in production, as well as service opportunities as vehicle ownership transitions to more corporate entities. Yokohama "will package tire-related after-sales services with the tires it sells." That includes strengthening its service system and increasing its service trucks.
Yokohama will also work to develop tire sensors and new value-added services by expanding its services and customers as more functions are added to tire sensors.
Expanding its commercial product lineup will be necessary too, as transportation and logistics industries will need to meet mileage and usage conditions as electric and driverless vehicles become more common.
In the off-highway-tire business, Yokohama sees more opportunity in its integrations of Alliance Tire Group and Aichi Tire and a multi-brand approach. Yokohama says it is "aggressively investing to expand production capacity" as it wants off-highway-tires sales to reach 140 billion yen in 2025.
