MANUFACTURE FRANCAISE DES PNEUMATIQUES MICHELIN

Their core work

Michelin is a global tyre manufacturer headquartered in Clermont-Ferrand, France, with deep expertise in rubber compounds, polymer materials, and vehicle dynamics. Within H2020, they contribute industrial-scale manufacturing knowledge to projects spanning tyre recycling and circular economy, vehicle aerodynamics and emissions reduction, advanced robotics for handling flexible materials, and hydrogen mobility infrastructure. Their participation reflects a major manufacturer actively investing in sustainability, automation, and clean transport — not just as a sponsor, but as a technical partner bringing materials science and large-scale production expertise.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In the early H2020 period (2014–2017), Michelin focused on clean transport fundamentals — hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, energy storage, and aeronautical systems integration through Clean Sky 2. From 2019 onward, their focus shifted decisively toward sustainability and smart manufacturing: tyre recycling (BlackCycle), emissions-aware driving (MODALES), and AI-powered robotics for handling flexible materials (SOFTMANBOT). This evolution shows a company pivoting from participating in broad mobility research toward leading circular economy initiatives in their core tyre domain while integrating Industry 4.0 technologies into production.

Michelin is moving toward closing the loop on tyre materials and automating production with AI-driven robotics — expect future work at the intersection of circular economy and advanced manufacturing.

How they like to work

Michelin overwhelmingly participates as a partner (7 of 8 projects) rather than leading consortia, but when they do coordinate — as in BlackCycle — they commit heavily (EUR 3.5M, their largest single project). With 205 unique consortium partners across 22 countries, they operate as a well-connected industrial anchor that brings manufacturing scale and domain expertise to large, diverse consortia. This makes them a reliable industrial partner who can validate research at production scale.

Michelin has built a broad European network of 205 partners spanning 22 countries, reflecting the large consortia typical of transport and manufacturing Innovation Actions. Their reach is pan-European with no narrow geographic concentration.

What sets them apart

Michelin brings something rare to EU consortia: a global manufacturer willing to serve as an industrial testbed and validation partner, with direct access to real production lines handling millions of tyres annually. Their BlackCycle coordination shows they can lead on circular economy challenges specific to polymer and rubber materials. For any project needing an end-user with massive-scale manufacturing, materials expertise in elastomers, or a pathway to market for transport-related innovations, Michelin is a uniquely credible partner.

Highlights from their portfolio

• BlackCycle
  Michelin's only coordinated project and largest by funding (EUR 3.5M) — a flagship circular economy effort to recycle end-of-life tyres into new raw materials, directly aligned with their core business.
• SOFTMANBOT
  Unusual cross-sector move: an AI and robotics project for handling deformable materials, signalling Michelin's investment in Industry 4.0 automation for rubber and soft material manufacturing.
• H2ME 2
  Part of Europe's largest hydrogen mobility deployment, positioning Michelin within the clean transport ecosystem beyond their traditional tyre business.