Michelin's Tweels combine the tyre and the wheel into one unit that can't get a puncture
Michelin is opening a factory that will focus on making airless tyres that don’t get punctures.
The $50 million plant will be used to make the 'Tweels', which bring together the tyre and the wheel into a single solid unit.
Tweels have a moulded-treat rubber band like conventional tyres mounted on a metal hub in the centre. Between the tread and the metal hub are flexible spokes which can deform under pressure.
But there's no pneumatic element to the these wheels, meaning an end to flat tyres. This means no maintenance and no downtime.
At the moment these Tweels are being developed for commercial vehicles involved in agriculture, construction and refuse and recycling - but further development could bring the technology into the passenger vehicle space.
The Tweel was first introduced back in 2005, but this marks the first commitment to mass producing them for commercial vehicles. They do still need replacing with wear, but nowhere nearly as quickly as pneumatic tyres.
There are other airless tyres on the market including some completely solid rubber ones, but Michelin says that it’s version doesn't lead to diminished traction and handling.
