From Moon buggies to new materials, Michelin reinvents its future

{"text":[[{"start":7.9,"text":"Michelin’s French tyre factories were once so strategic that allied forces bombed those in Nazi-occupied France during World War Two, before they were later rebuilt."}],[{"start":17.55,"text":"Today, only a subset of Michelin’s global manufacturing remains in its historic home of Clermont-Ferrand. But the tyres developed there for the Moon buggy, endurance racing and other high-spec products are the buttress the company is counting on to keep its plants in France alive, as Chinese rivals start to encroach on the industry. "}],[{"start":37.75,"text":"“Historically, Michelin went from Clermont to conquer the world. Today that model is no longer possible,” said Michelin’s chief executive Florent Menegaux, warning of a gulf in production costs with Asia which had made exporting mass market products from Europe “virtually impossible”. "}],[{"start":null,"text":"

"}],[{"start":53.65,"text":"To fight back, Michelin is focusing on high-end production in France and also expanding its research into new areas, including polymer composites or materials used in sealants or to coat fabrics, with new investments worldwide. "}],[{"start":67.85,"text":"Although a seemingly niche market, these materials have applications spanning aviation to energy and construction, giving them “immense” potential, Menegaux said. "}],[{"start":77.5,"text":"Michelin’s strategic focus comes as Europe prepares measures to combat Chinese imports of cheaper tyres with potential tariffs, as well as its “Buy European” framework that would boost the bloc’s automotive suppliers by establishing thresholds for local component requirements. "}],[{"start":93.45,"text":"But while companies like Michelin are undeniably in favour of trade barriers, Menegaux also warned the protections should not become a form of “stipend” that would stifle European manufacturers’ incentive to innovate and compete. "}],[{"start":106.4,"text":"At Michelin, part of that effort is made at Ladoux, an enormous light-filled research site just outside Clermont-Ferrand in the rural Auvergne region, the group’s base for nearly 140 years. "}],[{"start":119.10000000000001,"text":"The laboratories here straddle test tracks for motorbikes and sports cars trying out the wear and tear of racing tyres. Several thousand engineers and scientists have contributed to the latest generation of materials that will be used in aeroplane landing gears and the tyres Michelin hopes Nasa will select for the moon rover for its Artemis missions.  "}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":140.9,"text":"Nearby, another factory also makes tyres for races like the Moto Grand Prix, using a production technique resembling 3D printing."}],[{"start":148.8,"text":"This specialisation has not protected all of Michelin’s sites in recent years. The company closed two truck and van tyre plants last year, at Vannes in Brittany and Cholet in western France, with over 6 per cent of its French workforce, or 1,200 jobs, disappearing."}],[{"start":166.05,"text":"Clermont, where the company’s founding brothers André and Édouard Michelin built their industrial empire, employs about 10,000 people, a third of staff levels in the 1980s. The Cataroux plant that was once razed and rebuilt, has been largely disused for years and is being converted into a start-up hub, part research centre. "}],[{"start":185.65,"text":"Romain Baciak, of the left-wing CGT union, said employees feared more cuts could happen as the rest of its factories around France are running below capacity, with only the aeroplane tyre factory at Bourges doing well. "}],[{"start":201,"text":"“The Chinese will get into aeroplane tyres and it will be over,” Baciak said, adding he disagreed with Michelin’s decision to pursue higher price points and what he called “luxury” tyres. “They’ll keep the research here as long as the state gives out research subsidies,” he added. "}],[{"start":216,"text":"Menegaux said focusing on cutting-edge technologies and high value-added products was its only way of keeping manufacturing in France given that the country’s employment costs, inflation and energy prices had “exploded” compared to Asia in the past six years."}],[{"start":231.7,"text":"“If we don’t stay at this level of excellence, we’ll disappear,” he said."}],[{"start":237.1,"text":"France remains Michelin’s biggest manufacturing base in Europe, home to half its 30 factories in the region. It has roughly as many plants in the Americas today and 15 in Asia. "}],[{"start":248,"text":"Tyre-making is one corner of the auto industry where Chinese rivals have yet to completely upend the world order. Though China has long been a big player in truck tyres, its breakthrough into homegrown passenger cars through electric vehicles has been recent."}],[{"start":263.05,"text":"Like its big rivals Continental of Germany, Italy’s Pirelli or Goodyear of the US, Michelin has been around almost as long as the first cars, and along with Bridgestone of Japan, the five groups dominate global volumes and revenues. "}],[{"start":276.35,"text":"But smaller Chinese groups such as Zhongce Rubber and Sailun Group are snapping at their heels, and in passenger tyres, cheaper Chinese imports have made big inroads in Europe. "}],[{"start":null,"text":""}],[{"start":288.45000000000005,"text":"Kepler Cheuvreux analyst Thomas Besson said the risk from China was that “some consolidation or national champion could arise, though this has been expected over the last decade and still has not happened”. "}],[{"start":302.1,"text":"Diversification strategies like Michelin’s suggested they believed this could “be the case in 10 to 15 years’ time”, he added. "}],[{"start":310.15000000000003,"text":"Michelin made three polymer composite acquisitions in the US last year, for a combined enterprise value of around €1bn, and planned to make at least as many every year globally, Menegaux said. "}],[{"start":322.05,"text":"The division accounted for €1.3bn in sales in 2025, or €1.7bn when including Michelin’s latest purchases — still a fraction of the group’s €26bn revenues for 2025. However, the unit, with 15 per cent in margins last year, is the most profitable across its business. Michelin’s revenues fell 4.4 per cent in 2025, largely on a softer truck market in the US. "}],[{"start":348.65000000000003,"text":"“We’re not leaving tyres,” Menegaux said of its diversification. “But this strategy will allow us to better resist the ups and downs of cycles by positioning us well beyond just the mobility sector.”"}],[{"start":368.15000000000003,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1776657791_1864.mp3"}