Synthos launches new BIO-based acrylic dispersion for transparent and pigmented wood coatings

The Sustainable Development Strategy that Synthos is pursuing until 2030 includes the production of 100% sustainable products. The company aims to achieve this goal by adding innovative solutions with a smaller environmental footprint to its portfolio and by introducing bio-based raw materials into its production.

In line with this strategy, the company is launching its first bio-based SYNEXIL AW90CX acrylic dispersion, specifically developed for transparent and pigmented wood coatings.

SYNEXIL AW90CX is manufactured using a key raw material, approximately 45% of which is derived from renewable sources, i.e. no raw materials are used that are directly or indirectly derived from petroleum. The content of BIO raw materials in the newly developed dispersion is determined in accordance with the ASTM D6866-20 standard, which specifies the vegetable carbon content in the product.

The new dispersion is characterized by a rapid hardness increase and high adhesion to substrates as well as high anti-blocking, i.e. it has excellent properties of the coatings’ ability to resist adhesion to itself. With this product, Synthos adds another product to its portfolio with a very low film-forming temperature (making it particularly suitable for the production of solvent-free products) and a low formaldehyde content and low volatile organic compounds (VOC), thus reducing environmental impact.

„The world around us needs positive change,” said Barbara Chodacka, Business Unit Director,  Adhesives and Dispersions, Synthos Group. „That is why Synthos, in its philosophy, strives to improve the solutions it offers. Any action, no matter how small, aimed at adapting a particular product to the needs of our planet and its people is extremely important.

The 2030 Sustainable Development Strategy adopted by Synthos serves as a strong guideline that clearly defines the direction we want to take. Synthos’ new bio-based acrylic dispersion is another important step in the green direction we are actively pursuing.”  

Synthos intends to accelerate the introduction of more environmentally friendly products in its portfolio, including products for dispersions and wood adhesives. Furthermore, Synthos is committed to increasing the overall share of sustainable products across its product portfolio. These activities will be strengthened by the utilization of new production capacities as part of the construction of a new facility for the production of dispersions and adhesives.

By changing Synthos, we change the world.

https://www.synthosgroup.com/

PET Technologies contributes to Suntory Technological Development Center in Tordera

“With customer satisfaction first, and safety a must, we maintain our thorough commitment to product quality in the customer experience, from the taste of our products to the ease of use of our product containers”, said Japan-based  Suntory Holdings Limited  CEO Takeshi Niinami. Austria-based PET Technologies contributed to container testing.

Natural & healthy. Suntory Holdings Limited with over 300 group companies in Japan, Europe, Asia, Oceania, North, and Latin America, has a mission is to create harmony with people and nature. It reflects in the whole product range: non-alcoholic beverages and spirits, wine and beer. Not to mention their customization depending on the region!

Have you ever tasted MayTea? This low-sugar ice tea has high demand in Spain, France, and Belgium. It is an alternative to traditional soft drinks that meet the “natural and healthy” trend. It is low in calories and does not contain sweeteners, colorants, preservatives. The leaves that decorate the PET bottle echo the product inside.
Green tea with acid notes of lemon. Green tea with a delicate mint aroma. Black tea with sunny peach flavor. These delicious tastes are a mixture of strict preparation technology, with origin at tea extraction place, and natural flavor obtained from fruits and herbs.

  Which one would you prefer to try first?

Unique & premium. Technology applied is an element of success.  Suntory Technological Development Center in Tordera (near Barcelona, Spain) contribution is difficult to overestimate. It is involved in the development of all new products for Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and the Caribbean. It includes sensorial analysis, a pilot plant for new beverages, and technical validation of packaging. PET Technologies has become part of this unit! Not long ago Suntory Technological Development Center, in Tordera, where the company invested several million euros, has installed a universal UPF-5M blow molder with high pressure up to 40 bar.

What is its application?

• To test new PET bottles design
•  To test different types of rotary blow molds                                                                                    

What are the advantages of these unique UPF-5M blow molders?

• The machine is adapted for  rotary blow molds  of all European brands;
• Blow molding conditions are close to the real when a bottle is produced at high- speed rotary blow molder with high pressure up to 40 bar;
• Opportunity to test packaging at the market before investing at, let´s say, a 20-cavity set of molds.

Prevention is better than cure.  This saying stands for Suntory Technological Development Center and for UPF-5M blow molder. They test before the final product launch to the market.UPF-5M blow molder, developed by PET Technologies, helps Suntory Holdings Limited to follow the vision provided by its CEO Takeshi Niinami: “With customer satisfaction first, and safety a must, we maintain our thorough commitment to product quality in the customer experience, from the taste of our products to the ease of use of our product containers”.

Click here

Ensuring scrap recycling in the Indian Himalayan Region

The great Indian Himalayas are facing a huge problem of managing their solid waste. For the Himalayan
community, plastic waste is a relatively new issue, traditionally, these Himalayan communities were self-
reliant and consumed only naturally sourced materials. Today, most of the hilly tourist regions are riddled with plastic litter in every corner and gorge. Lack of know-how coupled with a large geographical area possesses a nightmare for local administration and residents.

The issue of plastic waste in the Indian Himalayas have been, in recent times, highlighted by many social media forum and activist. The traveling community in India has also taken active measures to educate and aware travelers of the issue of waste mismanagement in the mountains. The issue remains to be persistent because the consumption pattern of the mountain dwellers has also evolved over time and now, food packed in plastic containers has become part of their lives.

The Indian Himalayan region is the section of the Himalayas within India, spanning 13 Indian States and
Union territories. The region is in need of Himalayan Centric solutions to manage its solid waste, we are in conversation with one such person, who has dedicated his life to providing optimal solutions to the issue of waste management in the Indian Himalayan Region.

What motivated you to leave city life and work in this sector?

The main motivation to deliver waste management infrastructure came through the observations of my ever-changing native place. The annual trips to my village in Uttarakhand made me realize how it was evolving, with better roads and health infrastructure but also with an increased number of open dumping and burning pits with each consecutive visit. It bothered me because unlike cities my village had no dustbins or waste recovery vehicles assigned for the collection of waste.

These observations stuck with me and I decided to work on providing the required waste collection mechanism to the rural communities of the Indian Himalayan Region. I took on the challenge of building a proof of concept in the most remote and inaccessible Himalayan Union-Territory, Ladakh. I moved to Ladakh U.T in the year 2018
and haven’t looked back since then.

How do you propose to challenge the current waste management practices?
To establish a sound waste recovery mechanism, we need to first make the community acknowledge the
fact that waste mismanagement possesses a great threat to them and to the natural flora and fauna. With
this acknowledgment comes the awareness of the safe disposal methods and segregation of a variety of solid household waste.

With our interventions in Ladakh, we have been able to work alongside the Rural Development Department of the U.T of Ladakh Administration in devising the waste collection mechanism in remote yet touristy sites of Ladakh. Currently, the department is running 14 Solid Resource Management Centres across both the districts in U.T of Ladakh and ‘PlanetFirst Recycling Pvt. Ltd’ Act as a Waste recycling partner responsible for Awareness, operation optimization, and recycling of the materials collected by these centers. Our model has been proven to be successful as the centers are now self-sustaining due to the user fees collected and monetary value provided to them for all recyclables by ‘PlanetFirst Recycling’.

What is the role of PlanetFirst Recycling, a subsidiary of GDB International Inc. in developing Waste
management infrastructure in the Indian Himalayan region?

I believe it is the shared vision of Mr. Sunil Bagaria, President’ GDB International Inc’, his team, and I that
I was entrusted to be part of this journey. PlanetFirst Recycling Pvt. Ltd. is established to tackle the growing problem of solid waste in India by deploying best-in-class recycling machinery in strategic locations covering both rural and urban settlements. When I was introduced to the idea and to the team it was clear how crucial their role will be in developing self-sustaining waste collection models in the Indian Himalayan Region.

Waste management remains to be a conservative business in India with the majority of the market being handled by the unorganized sector, therefore it becomes important for ‘PlanetFirst Recycling’ to incorporate the unorganized sector. Our vision is to create micro-entrepreneurs from the scrap collected and establish a Waste-to-Wealth model where every household sees value in the recyclable scrap.

We at ‘PlanetFirst Recycling’ are now in process of establishing our first self-operated Solid Resource Collection Centre in Himachal Pradesh, where we will be setting up a network to collect waste from U.T of Ladakh as well. This will be a great development for the resident of Himachal Pradesh who is well aware of the menace of solid waste due to the heavy influx of tourists all around the year.

How do you envision the future of Waste Management in Rural India?

With the increasing narrative of cleaning up the Himalayas, FMCG brands, plastic manufacturers and the government has taken cognizance in the matter of setting up better waste recovery mechanisms in the Mountains. I am currently witnessing a push in CSR activities by big PIBOs in the Himalayan region, racing to set up waste recovery mechanisms. This is mainly due to proposed bans by the concerned state governments. I see positive change in the ecosystem and I believe the Himalayan region presents us with huge investments opportunities in Waste management and the recycling sector.

Click here

ZAGG partners with Eastman to manufacture sustainable smartphone cases made with Tritan Renew

 ZAGG, a global leader and innovator in mobile device protection, today announced a new materials partnership with Eastman to incorporate Tritan  Renew copolyester into ZAGG’s Gear4 protective smartphone cases. Employing a revolutionary, material-to-material molecular recycling technology, Tritan Renew from Eastman offers recycled content and reduces the use of fossil-based resources.

The partnership with Eastman will allow ZAGG to offer select cases that are more sustainable with Tritan Renew — which contains 50% certified recycled content  — while delivering the same durability and quality for which ZAGG is known. During the fiscal year 2021, ZAGG’s efforts have helped divert 60 tons of plastic waste from landfills or the ocean, the equivalent of 5.86 million water bottles, and have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 51 metric tons compared to processes using fossil-based resources.

“Our mission at ZAGG is to protect better. That includes not only our mobile devices but also our environment and the world we live in,” said Brad Bell, senior vice president of global marketing for ZAGG. “ZAGG with Tritan Renew allows users to feel confident their device is safe and they’re making a difference in the world by protecting our planet.”

Eastman’s molecular recycling technology breaks down plastic waste into fundamental building blocks to create new materials. By replacing traditional fossil feedstocks with hard-to-recycle plastic, molecular recycling diverts plastic waste from landfills and incinerators or from becoming litter in the ocean.

As a global citizen, ZAGG is carefully considering environmental improvements to packaging, product materials, manufacturing, recycling, and more. The Eastman partnership reinforces ZAGG’s commitment to sustainability as the company believes there’s a better solution for plastic waste than landfills and incinerators. Current mechanical recycling programs can only accept certain types of plastic and usually result in materials that do not offer the same durability and clarity as to the original materials.

“ZAGG is changing the way it thinks about, designs, and produces its mobile phone accessories, and Eastman is proud to be a part of their efforts to create products that directly benefit consumers and the planet,” said Courtland Jenkins, commercial director of specialty plastics at Eastman.

www.zagg.com.

https://www.eastman.com/