NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Bridgestone Americas Inc. will be the exclusive U.S. tire supplier for Einride A.B. electrified and autonomous Class 8 vehicles, the companies announced.
Bridgestone will provide Einride with smart-sensing tires, integrating its advanced mobility technologies into Einride's onboard vehicle platforms.
"Together, the companies will work towards a more sustainable future for large commercial truck fleets," Bridgestone said in a news release announcing the collaboration.
Einride will supply connected electric trucks and digital services under a subscription agreement to join Bridgestone's U.S. logistics network. The partnership aims to grow Bridgestone's electrified vehicle fleet over time and reduce the company's carbon footprint, Bridgestone said.
The initial truck deployment will transport Bridgestone tire inventory between the company's LaVergne, Tenn. commercial truck tire manufacturing plant and Lebanon, Tenn. distribution facility.
"We are incredibly excited about this partnership and the opportunity to accelerate our shared goal of creating innovative solutions for fleets while advancing the transformation of Bridgestone into a sustainable solutions company," said Nizar Trigui, chief technology officer and group president, solutions businesses, Bridgestone Americas. "There is a very high ceiling for innovation within this relationship, including the use of vehicle and tire data and advanced analytics to drive efficiency, safety and low-carbon fleet mobility."
Bridgestone's global environmental goals include a 50% reduction of its carbon footprint by 2030, and carbon neutrality by 2050, as well as tires made from 100% renewable materials by 2050.
"Partnering with Bridgestone is a great match for us both from a commercial and technical standpoint,'' said Niklas Reinedahl, general manager, Einride North America. "We have an ambitious business plan for electric and autonomous transportation in the U.S. as well as innovative plans to improve our capabilities by leveraging tire-as-a-sensor technology and insights derived from the tire telematics data."
Einride was the first in the world to operate an electric, self-driving truck on public roads for commercial purposes in 2019. The company develops and provides freight mobility solutions based on electric and autonomous vehicles.
Fisker Inc., a manufacturer of electric vehicles, has selected Bridgestone Corp. to be the exclusive tire partner for its Fisker Ocean all-electric SUV, which will debut debut at the 2021 Los Angeles Auto Show, with production starting on Nov. 17, 2022.
