Continental celebrates 150 years of innovation

Continental, one of the largest tyre and automotive technology suppliers in the world, is celebrating its 150^th year in business.

The company was founded in Hanover, Germany, in 1871. Over the next 15 decades, Continental has transformed from a local manufacturer of tyres and soft rubber products to an international technology company.

The firm states that worldwide, three out of every four vehicles on the road are equipped with Continental tyres or its automotive technologies.

Before cars were even invented, the company began by manufacturing horse 'hoof buffers' along with solid tyres for carriages and bicycles. In 1904, Continental was the first company in the world to develop automobile tyres with a patterned tread, and four years later invented the detachable rim.

On the year of its 50^th anniversary, in 1921, Continental produced its first commercial truck tyres, and became the first German company to produce tyres reinforced with pliable cords rather than linen fabric. Six years later, it launched the very first pneumatic tractor tyre in Europe.

Since then, innovation continued to remain core to the firm. In 1955, Continental was the first company to develop air springs for trucks and buses, and the first German company to start manufacturing tubeless car tyres, which it had patented after World War II.

By the 1960s, widespread production of radial tyres had begun, and Continental employed 26,800 people. It revolutionised the solid tyre segment, which are used on forklift trucks, airport vehicles, and other heavy-duty industrial applications, with its ContiSuperElastic tyres, leading to what is today the industry standard abbreviation for the category: CSE.

In 1967, the company opened the Contidrom test track, which is still used as a global standard today in tandem with the Uvalde Proving Grounds in Texas, where tyres have been tested since 1959.

By 1988, the company had almost doubled in size, employing 45,900 people around the world. It had acquired Uniroyal and Semperit in Europe, and General Tire in the U.S.A. Within the next 10 years, the company reinforced its position as a global tyre manufacturer by adding sites in Central and South America, Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia.

The Asia Pacific region will continue to be one of the company's key focus markets for growth in the replacement and truck tyre segments.