We have a lot of personal experience using winter tires and after our first cold snap of the year we were left wishing we already had ours installed on our cars. So, while we’re having that taken care of we invited Daniel Kelly, a product manager with Bridgestone to join us to talk about the differences between a winter tire and an all-season tire and why winter tires perform so much better in the cold.

Everybody is getting into mobility services these days, even tire companies. Bridgestone just bought a company called Azuga that handles fleet management, so it can offer cloud-based solutions for real-time vehicle operations and data analytics. Paolo Ferrari, the President and CEO of Bridgestone Americas, spoke with us to share why it wanted to acquire Azuga and its recent investment in Kodiak Robotics which is developing Level 4 long-haul trucks.

Fives is an industrial engineering and equipment group that serves many industries, including automotive. Marco Andriano, President and CEO of Fives Cinetic in North America, says artificial intelligence is going to help make manufacturing smarter. He believes manufacturing needs to be more collaboration between machines and workers, and that these machines need to be simpler to operate. Put it all together and these are the building blocks that are needed to reach his vision for the factory of the future.

No one would dream of dumping a motherboard in a bucket of water. Except actnano. It’s developed a nano-based waterproofing compound that can seal all electric and electronic components. And that could save automakers a fortune in warranty costs.

Tesla was the first to put a giant computer screen in the middle of the dashboard. Now everyone else is jumping on the bandwagon. But Mitsubishi Electric has a different idea. Instead of one giant screen, it’s using multiple screens and placing them within easy reach of passengers as well as the driver. Moreover, it’s linking the screens so they can act in unison. Mark Rakoski, a vice president with Mitsubishi Electric, explains what the different screens can do and the benefits they can offer in the future.

ZF calls it coAssist. It’s an ADAS system with adaptive cruise control with automated lane changes, traffic jam assist, traffic sign recognition and automated garage parking. And it’s available on the Dongfeng Aeolus Yixuan, a compact sedan that sells for under $15,000. Christophe Marnat from ZF explains how they designed coAssist for low cost cars.

With all of the automotive world moving toward electric, shoppers will start flooding aftermarket parts sites looking for the components to keep their vehicles operating properly. CarParts.com is already making the transition and Mia Bevacaqua, the company’s Chief Mechanic and Technical Writer, takes us through some of the parts it’s offering. We also get into some of the other challenges the industry will face as more EVs start hitting the street.

BorgWarner is undergoing a transformation from a 100-year old supplier with expertise in combustion technology, to a leader in electric vehicle systems and components. It’s making major investments in EVs, knowing they will not pay off for years. But it knows that’s where the industry is headed, and it’s going to be ready. Fred Lissalde, President and CEO, explains BorgWarner’s strategy and how it’s rolling it out.

Dave Robins is an entrepreneur who started Intrepid Control Systems 25 years ago. He admits it was tough to get things going and that he starved during his 20’s. But over time he was able to grow the company. Today Intrepid is a leader in its field with offices around the world and a customer list that includes most of the world’s automakers.

Graphene is an allotrope of carbon and has some pretty amazing properties. It’s really only been around for the last 15 years or so, which means we’re just starting to scratch the surface of its possible uses. Join us in this interview to learn about the benefits Canadian supplier Martinrea is seeing from applying a graphene coating to brake lines.