Apollo Tyres gets NABL certification to conduct wet-grip, coast-by noise tests

In a first for a tyre manufacturer in India, Apollo Tyres has been accredited with ISO/IEC 17025 for wet grip and coast by noise tyre tests on the track. This follows its collaboration with the Global Automotive Research Centre (GARC) to pioneer the indigenisation of tyre labelling and certification tests in India.   

This testing capability is linked to the Indian government’s plan to implement ‘Star Rating’ of tyres, in line with the Tyre Labelling regulation in Europe. This is with the objective to ensure safety, economic and environmental efficiency of road transport by promoting fuel-efficient and safe tyres with low noise levels. A new automotive industry standard – AIS 142 – in line with UNECE R 117 is prepared. It comprises evaluation of tyres with regards to rolling sound emissions, adhesion on wet surfaces and rolling resistance.

The major impediment to the government’s plan of implementing star ratings for tyres was the unavailability of adequate NABL-accredited testing infrastructure in India. NABL or the National Accreditation Board for Testing & Calibration Laboratories, has now given the certificate of accreditation to Apollo Tyres Test Centre for ‘General Requirements for the Competence of Testing & Calibration Laboratories’ extended with the track tests of wet grip and coast by noise for C1, C2 and C3 categories of tyres which are covered under the labelling programme.

Daniele Lorenzetti, Chief Technology Officer, Apollo Tyres, said: “The new testing capabilities, developed by Apollo Tyres, shows very good level of accuracy and reliability, and the test results are well accepted by European homologation authorities. This will enable Apollo Tyres to reduce time to market its products, along with the reduction in testing costs.”

Commenting on the NABL accreditation, Satish Sharma, President, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa (APMEA), Apollo Tyres Ltd said, “We would like to further the cause of testing the tyres and provide highest quality tyres to our customers across geographies. We are proud to be the first among Indian tyre manufacturers to get the coveted accreditation, meeting UNECE R 117 standards in India, thereby upping India’s self-sufficiency in tyre technology. This facility will not only help us test the tyres for the Indian market, but also the ones that are exported, and need to meet the regulatory and labelling requirements.”

This additional capability gives a new charge to Apollo Tyres, which has continuously been investing in R&D, bringing the best-in-class testing machines and equipment, and benefiting from its specialists’ acumen at the state-of-the-art Global R&D Centre, Asia.