“Innovation Based on Basic Science,” the theme of this year’s International Rubber Conference (IRC) held in Kitakyushu, Japan, aptly describes an important challenge the rubber industry is facing in moving forward, said Tadanobu Nagumo, honorary chairman of the IRC organizing committee, chairman of the Japan Rubber Manufacturers Association (JRMA) and president of Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. (TYO:5101), at the conference’s opening…