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In the power tool game, having your branding down is everything, and DeWalt has remained pretty consistent with its products over the past few decades — when customers see black and yellow in a tool context, their mind automatically goes to DeWalt. With that said, the company isn’t afraid to make minor, yet noticeable tweaks here in there. One of the most recent is a change to one of DeWalt’s many battery types, specifically the 20V XR battery offerings. Looking closely at the labels on the sides of these batteries and at their online descriptions, there is a noticeable change to how these batteries are categorized and advertised.

For example, the 20V Max XR compact battery has only recently taken on this naming. Not long ago, it was known as the 20V Max XR PowerStack compact battery, with the PowerStack branding removed from the online DeWalt listing, and this change is reflected on the battery itself. This change is observed through the 20V Max XR compact battery kit listing on the DeWalt website, which features images of previous designs with the large and small PowerStack logos. On top of this, PowerStack and PowerPack logos have been removed from many other 20V DeWalt batteries.

All in all, this isn’t too massive of a change, especially for those who aren’t all that picky about their DeWalt batteries so long as they get the job done. The question is, though, does this slight rebrand mean anything for the batteries’ performance level? Thankfully, based on the image changes, DeWalt’s battery system hasn’t changed outside of these missing PowerStack and PowerPack logos.

Has DeWalt made functional changes to its batteries?

At the end of the day, a missing logo and some description changes doesn’t make too much of a difference. However, if DeWalt altered how its batteries work, that would be cause for customers to be disgruntled. As mentioned before, they’re still the same shape and size across the board, and for those worried they’ll have to delve into the pros and cons of power tool battery adapters, the manner in which they connect to DeWalt power tools hasn’t changed.

With that said, there is the question of the fate of the PowerStack and PowerPack lines. PowerStack batteries were introduced as a more powerful and efficient series of batteries, notable for their flat pouch cells over standard cylindrical ones. PowerPack batteries offer similar benefits utilizing multi-tab battery cells as opposed to traditional single-tab cells. Nothing has come to light that confirms the demise of these sublines or the technology behind them, so we’ll just have to wait and see if DeWalt sheds any light on the disappearance of these labels down the line.

While the fate of the PowerPack and PowerStack labels remains something of a mystery for the time being, there don’t seem to be many significant battery changes in DeWalt’s lineup. Based on the revised images, the impacted battery models are likely to connect and get the job done as they always have, just with a little less paint and branding on their sides.





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Thanks to World War 2 changing the way we make car tires, synthetic rubber is the primary material used in today’s tires. However, that doesn’t mean that tire manufacturers have stopped innovating. In fact, Goodyear has used a soybean oil compound in its tires since 2017. It might sound like a bizarre concept, but there’s actually a very good reason the company began using soybeans, and why it still does so today.

Goodyear incorporates the soybean blend because it’s more cost-effective than traditional petroleum-based oils used in years past. It’s also more eco-friendly, and in terms of production, it mixes with rubber very easily. Because of this, the soybean oil compound makes for a more efficient process, while also using less energy as well. Soybean oil technology, which is also used to make biodiesel fuel, causes tire tread to become more flexible as the temperature changes. This means that Goodyear tires are designed to have better grip in dry, wet, and even winter, environments.

Goodyear was the first tire manufacturer to utilize a soybean formula and did so with support from the United Soybean Board. At the time, the move was promoted as the company’s effort to develop high-performing tires while also experimenting with non-traditional raw materials. The fact that soybeans are a renewable resource only boosted Goodyear’s positioning.

Goodyear’s soybean oil expansion and future plans

In 2022, the company manufactured new commercial tires, the Metro Miler G152 and G652, for city transit systems. These tires would replace some of the existing petroleum-based tires. Goodyear maintained that the new additions would still have the same performance as before, while also moving away from the traditional tires used up to that point. That same year, the company also introduced a soybean oil compound in its Endurance WHA waste haul tire.

Goodyear later expanded even further, incorporating the soybean formula across several additional tire lines with some of the best treadwear ratings. This includes the Assurance WeatherReady tires, the Assurance ComfortDrive all-season tires, as well as two Eagle lines. The company used the same technology in its Wrangler Workhorse HT, which is mostly installed on SUVs and light pickup trucks. Goodyear’s widespread use of the compound is actually part of a bigger strategy, as the goal is to produce a fully sustainable-material tire by 2030.

The company appears to be on track for that timeline, as, in 2023, it made a demonstration tire made with 90% sustainable materials. The new tire passed the rounds of internal and external testing, in which it exhibited lower rolling resistance than similar traditional models. This means better efficiency and fuel economy overall.





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