JK Tyre & Industries has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Automotive Test Tracks (NATRAX) towards the development and polishing of a wet grip test track at NATRAX Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh.

NATRAX is one of the state-of-the-art automotive testing and certification centres under NATRIP, a flagship project of the Ministry of Heavy Industries, government of India. NATRAX consists of 16 test tracks, covering aspects such as speed, braking, off road, comfort, sustainability, noise and friction among others.

The Wet Grip Test Track will be used to test the safety aspect of tyres that includes Wet Grip as per ECE R117 regulation, Wet Braking, Peak Brake Force Coefficient (PBFC).

The tyre maker says it already houses facilities ranging from static to highly dynamic tests, and also has the capability to conduct regulatory tests to performance level tests. It also uses state-owned testing centres under NATRIP (National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project) across India to perform both subjective and objective vehicle level tests. It is constantly upgrading its test facilities that includes modernisation of existing equipment and adding new equipment to meet the emerging needs of OEMs and regulatory requirements (national & international).

VK Misra, technical director, JK Tyre and Industries said, “We are honoured to be part of the government’s flagship project towards building competencies in automotive sector that are at par with the global standards.  We have been working towards driving innovation and tech-excellence in the Indian tyre industry. With our experience and expertise, we are rightly placed  to lead this project with NATRAX.”

Upon completion, JK Tyre will be testing its future range of new products at this test track. The wet skid pad is a track with a low grip in which tests of TCS, development of tyres and electronics can be conducted.