GREENVILLE, S.C. – The 2015 Create the Future Design Contest judges have recognized the Michelin X Tweel Turf with an honorable mention in the automotive/transportation category. 

Chosen from more than 1,150 new product ideas submitted from 60 countries, the 22 winners and honorable mentions were judged on innovation, manufacturability and marketability in 7 categories.  Launched in 2002 by the publishers of NASA Tech Briefs magazine to help stimulate and reward engineering innovation, the Create the Future Design Contest annual event has attracted more than 10,000 product design ideas from engineers, entrepreneurs and students worldwide. More than 55 judges worldwide on the magazine’s editorial board of readers and contest sponsors reviewed the submissions in these categories: aerospace & defense, automotive/transportation, consumer products, electronics, machinery/automation/robotics, medical products, and sustainable technologies.

"Michelin is extremely honored by this recognition from such an esteemed group of judges from the engineering community," said Olivier Brauen, head of Michelin Tweel Technologies.

Launched in October 2014, the Michelin X Tweel Turf is Michelin’s highly advanced airless radial tire that is currently being sold in the marketplace for use on John Deere zero-turn radius commercial mowers used in the turf and landscaping industries. This non-pneumatic tire uses traditional radial tire technology but requires no air, thereby eliminating the risk of a "flat tire". It's the first airless radial tire that is globally available for mowing equipment. Operators experience greater performance versus a pneumatic tire, including increased uptime, enhanced hillside stability, reduced operator fatigue and improved productivity, resulting in a lower total cost of ownership.

The Michelin X Tweel has received multiple recognitions in recent years:

• 2015 John Deere "nnovation of the Year Award
• 2014 Manufacturing Leadership Awards by the Frost & Sullivan’s Manufacturing Leadership Council
• 2014 top 25 Newsmakers of the Year for Dr. Tim Rhyne by Engineering News-Record for his work on the revolutionary technology
• 2014 Innovations Awards by Equipment World as one of the “five game-changing” construction products of 2013
• 2013 Silver Award in the Transportation category from the Edison Awards
• 2013 Contractors’ Top 50 New Products by Equipment Today                                         

To learn more about the MICHELIN Tweel, visit www.michelintweel.com.