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Michelin’s latest sustainable mobility solution will improve a ship’s fuel efficiency by 20 percent. WISAMO is an innovation initiative from Michelin Group and develops an inflated, foldable and automated wing using wind propulsion as an hybrid solution to reduce fuel consumption and then greenhouse emissions like CO². The wing can be adapted to any kind of vessels.

Designed to make transportation more efficient while conserving resources, Michelin’s latest solutions presented during Michelin Movin’On summit represent core enablers in the efforts to foster mobility that is gentler on the planet. The two innovative solutions Michelin presented at this year’s global sustainable mobility summit offer tangible, real-world proof of the determination to make mobility increasingly sustainable.

The WISAMO project is an innovative solution to help decarbonize maritime shipping.

The WISAMO project is Michelin’s contribution to enabling greener, softer maritime mobility in advance of future
regulations. Michelin is also taking action to reduce the environmental impact of its supply chain.

The Wing Sail Mobility (WISAMO) solution is an automated, telescopic, inflatable wing that can be fitted on vessels, merchant cargo ships and pleasure ships.

This innovation has been developed through collaboration between Michelin Research & Techniques and two Swiss
inventors that share the Group’s “all-sustainable” vision.

The WISAMO inflatable wing sail harnesses the wind—a free, universal and inexhaustible source of propulsion. Its
revolutionary design enables a ship to reduce its fuel consumption and thereby have a positive impact on the environment by lowering greenhouse emissions such as CO2.

Designed, developed and improved by the WISAMO project team, the system can be adapted to ro-ro ships, bulk carriers, oil and gas tankers as well as sailing and yacht boats. It can be fitted as original equipment on new-built ships or retrofitted on in-service vessels.

The WISAMO wing has one of the broadest ranges of use on the market with proven effectiveness on many points of sail, and it is particularly efficient upwind. It can be used on any maritime shipping route. The telescopic mast is retractable, making it easy for a ship to enter harbors and pass under bridges. In all, the system can improve a ship’s fuel efficiency by up to 20%.

Michel Desjoyeaux, a famous French navigator and world-renowned skipper, is WISAMO ambassador and tester. His input and technical knowledge enables Michelin to test the innovation in actual maritime shipping conditions. As Desjoyeaux points out, “the advantage of wind propulsion is that wind energy is clean, free, universal and totally non-controversial. It offers a very promising avenue to improving the environmental impact of merchant ships.”

The WISAMO solution will be fitted on a merchant ship in 2022 when Michelin expects it to go into production following completion of the trial phase.

A track-proven tire with 46% sustainable

Michelin is showcasing its ability to incorporate an ever-higher proportion of sustainable materials into its products without compromising on their performance. This year, Michelin announced its commitment to using 100% sustainable materials in all its tires by 2050.