Sustainable Plastics - May/June 2021 - 25

value chain collaboration
ing because plastic packaging
is leading the way in sustainable
development, with many
impactful studies showing that
valuing used plastic packaging
is a huge opportunity for
the circular economy. By understanding
that collaboration
means joined up thinking, it requires
adequate infrastructure
for collecting and sorting used
packaging as well as raising
awareness of how we treat used
packaging.
Part of an eff ective circular
economy is about how raw materials
for plastic packaging are
eff iciently utilised, so that right
from the first step, plastic packaging
is responsible. First recycling
steps were taken by NEO
GROUP in 2011, when it started
to recycle residual PET coming
directly from the production
process into Aromatic Polyester
Polyols (APP). In terms of
secondary post-consumer PET
packaging, NEO GROUP has
achieved a real breakthrough
in this area from 2017-2020, by
inventing its own solution to
turn them back into new, same
quality, PET resins called NEOPET
CYCLE. Volcek explains,
" NEOPET CYCLE includes 25%
of rPET flakes directly integrated
into the virgin PET, so converters
can use just one product
instead of two or more in their
production process. We've created
it using a type of gentle
glycolysis process and the result
is a food-grade resin that's
available at industrial volumes. "
What is worth mentioning that
the technical preconditions for
the latter innovation were created
by the technology of polyol production,
which was developed
more than a decade ago. Volcek
adds, " One of the keys to both of
our innovations - NEOPET CYCLE
and polyol production - is
the preparation of raw materials
by glycolysis process. "
Talk openly
In true 'sister company
helping sister company' style,
developing NEOPET CYCLE
harnessed the collaborative capabilities
of RETAL too, as the
testing phase was performed
by the team at RETAL Lithuania.
Many of the teams know
each other and are aware of
specific expertise, as well as
NEO Group is testing PET
resins with 25% rPET.
Trusting your colleagues
is what collaboration
is about
being able to talk openly about
market trends and practical
challenges. Janas Maculskis,
RETAL Production Director EU
& US Region, says, " We have a
long history of working closely
with the NEO GROUP team, so
we could ask lots of questions
and get right to the crucial issue
of being able to reliably produce
plastic preforms with a consistent
level of rPET. We looked at
our portfolio to establish exactly
how the potential new raw material
could best be utilised. We
knew we needed 25% rPET to
guarantee our customers the
solutions they want. So, we
challenged NEO GROUP to
go for higher recycled content
and, as always, they rose to the
challenge and created NEOPET
CYCLE. The increase to 25% in
industrial quantities is expected
during Q2 2021. "
RETAL agrees that maintaining
a commitment to sustainable
development via CSR
performance is paramount,
which goes beyond the production
processes and materials
used in its preform production
to include the entire business
operation. Sustainability Director
Emmanuel Duff aut says,
" Collaboration is at the heart
of sustainability and the circular
economy; such global
and complex issues require a
multi-stakeholder approach.
Reaching plastic circular economy
is only possible by combining
the experience, knowledge
and competence of all the value
chain actors. Our collaboration
with NEO GROUP on their new
process allowing to integrate
rPET in vPET process is a clear
example of that. In addition, this
new product not only contributes
to PET circular economy
but also mitigates GHG emissions
- another key topic of our
sustainability action. "
The distance is as important
as the closeness when it comes
to value chain collaboration, as
each player can focus on their
own particular area of expertise,
safe in the knowledge that their
fellow players have their back
- but aren't getting under their
feet. RETAL Project Manager
Pavel Matuska explains how
bringing diff erent elements together
to create a tangible solution
needs careful planning. He
says, " Online communication
tools are very helpful in allowing
for real-time collaboration, especially
during times of working
from home, with clear timelines
for each project and each member
of the project team knowing
exactly what their role is and
their deliverables. We use MS
Teams for video calls and chats
as well as documentation, as
well as our own SharePoint intranet.
Trusting your colleagues
is what collaboration is about;
each bringing your expertise to
create something that's bigger
than you. "
All this collaboration is good
for the whole value chain too,
as the speed in which decisions
can be made and challenges
overcome allows for customer-focused
solutions like NEOPET
CYCLE to reach market
quicker. But, perhaps more
importantly, positive modelling
on how companies across the
plastic packaging value chain
can work together shows that
the circular economy is not a
pipe dream. The sophisticated
infrastructure needed to support
a viable circular economy
has many components and
needs many supporters - yet it
is the initial rallying cry of 'count
me in!' that brings together the
people, organisations, associations
and governments that can
make it a reality.
Successful value chain collaboration
is as much to do with
defining necessary projects as
it is finding people that share
your values. Once common
goals are identified and expertise
is harnessed, wonderful
things can happen. And when
those wonderful things are focused
on quantifiable sustainability
actions that will bring
opportunities for CSR progress
throughout the plastic packaging
value chain, it benefits us all.
May/June 2021
25
Sustainable Plastics - May/June 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sustainable Plastics - May/June 2021
