Brussels, 18 October 2017 -  ETRMA welcomes the adoption of the Report of the High Level Group on the Competitiveness and Sustainable Growth of the Automotive Industry in the European Union (GEAR 2030).

Amongst the several topics of interest of this very comprehensive report, ETRMA was particularly pleased with the emphasis put on three elements: the need for legislation to be predictable, reliable and enforced; the urgency for the EU to reinforce the institutional and industrial dialogues with major trading partners towards market access as well as a fairer trade worldwide; the impact of automation and connectivity in shaping the automotive industry of the future, including the need to access in-vehicle data for the entire automotive value-chain.

All these elements – and others such as the importance of anticipating and developing the right skills for the jobs of the future – are essential to maintaining and fostering the competitiveness of the tyre industry.

The connected and automated vehicles strategy is a new area of activity for the High Level Group. The increasing connectivity of vehicles is a game changer for the entire automotive value chain of which tyres are an essential element. As stated in the report, to continue innovating and improving the general vehicle safety, there will be the need for provisions for direct, safe and secure access to a wide set of vehicle data for the provision of connected services, and this will remain an area of intensive work going forward.

“The very intensive work of GEAR2030 for the past 18 months confirms the fundamental and structural changes the automotive value chain is undergoing” said Mrs Cinaralp, Secretary General of ETRMA “ this report constitutes a stepping stone for all stakeholders to start working and putting actions next to the recommendations there included. The work is now ahead of us and we are ready for it!” she concluded.

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For further information, please contact Marta Conti, Communication Manager

Notes for the editors:

- The report can be downloaded at the following link https://ec.europa.eu/docsroom/documents/26081/attachments/1/translations/en/renditions/native

- Photo from the event at this link: http://ec.europa.eu/avservices/photo/photoDetails.cfm?ref=P-035448/00-01&sitelang=en#0

Credits: © European Union , 2017   /  Source: EC - Audiovisual Service   /   Photo: Jennifer Jacquemart

The industry employs directly more than 360 000 people with a turnover of €73B in 2016, which constitutes about half a point of the EU turnover. ETRMA’s membership include the following tyre manufacturers: APOLLO VREDESTEIN, BRIDGESTONE EUROPE, BRISA, COOPER TIRES, CONTINENTAL, GOODYEAR DUNLOP TIRES EUROPE, HANKOOK, MARANGONI, MICHELIN, NOKIAN TYRES, PIRELLI TYRE, PROMETEON Tyre S.r.l., and TRELLEBORG WHEEL SYSTEMS. Associations in the following countries are also members of ETRMA: Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and the UK.

ETRMA – European Tyre & Rubber Manufacturers’ Association

Tel: +32 2 218 49 40