Empire State Development, New York’s chief economic development agency, recently announced a $2.36 million investment in six technology research projects that will increase the reuse, retreading, and recycling of end-of-life tyres generated in New York State. ESD’s investment includes $1.4 million in state funding through the NYS Waste Tire Program, which is managed by the REMADE Institute. REMADE was selected to develop and administer the program in 2025 on behalf of ESD.
Development Projects Seek to Increase Reuse, Retreading, and Recycling of Waste Tyres
ESD President, CEO and Commissioner Hope Knight said, “New York is turning an environmental challenge into an economic opportunity. Through the NYS Waste Tire Program and our partnership with REMADE, we are supporting innovative technologies that reuse, remanufacture and recycle waste tyres—advancing circular economy solutions while helping grow New York’s clean technology and advanced manufacturing sectors.”
REMADE CEO Nabil Nasr said, “These projects seek to not only address the challenges associated with these waste tyres, but to develop innovative technologies to increase their reuse, remanufacturing and recycling and create economic value to New York State. The NYS Waste Tire Program is a major step in the right direction and has the potential to be an example for other states to follow. With this program and more, the Empire State is quickly emerging as a Circular Economy leader here in the United States.”
Approximately 18 to 20 million waste tyres are generated in New York State every year, according to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. The NYS Waste Tire Program is a local example of the global effort to advance the circular economy — a system that promotes a “make-use-reuse-remanufacture-recycle” lifecycle for products and materials instead of the traditional linear “take-make-dispose” model. Conserving resources like rubber and tyres through reuse, retreading, and recycling is a key part of this transition.
The six waste tyre recycling projects were selected by REMADE through the Institute’s formal merit review process in concurrence with ESD. A Request for Proposals was issued in September, and proposals were due in November. All proposals were required to have a New York State-based partner as the source of waste tyres within the state. The selected research initiatives represent a broad cross-section of technical innovation, ranging from predictive analytics to advanced material recovery.
Michelin North America, in collaboration with Northwestern University and Pitt Ohio Supply Chain, is developing physics-based machine learning models to estimate the remaining life of commercial vehicle tyres to increase retreading rates, while Fusion One, LLC and S&M Tire Recycling are focusing on “TireVision,” an AI-driven feedstock intelligence system for end-of-life processing. Chemical and mechanical advancements are being spearheaded by Prism Worldwide, which is refining its Ancora and Ennova rubber-modified olefins through enhanced devulcanisation and VOC control, and is also partnering with Liberty Tire Recycling, Michigan Tool Works, L&J Manufacturing Services, and Abrasive Waterjet of Indiana to manufacture recycled cargo trailer floor mats. To improve manufacturing efficiency, Tire Conversion Technologies, the Rochester Institute of Technology, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Hart Tool Company are exploring automation to mass-produce crumb rubber products. Additionally, the University of Akron and Rubberform Recycled Products, LLC are investigating the ultrasonic devulcanisation of waste tyre rubber for use in injection-moulded construction materials.
