Reffnet-Fall Sustainable climbing holds
Climbing holds from the company Auftriib As part of a Reffnet consultation, we supported the company Auftriib in its efforts to develop sustainable climbing holds. Today, most climbing holds are made of polyurethane or polyester. After heavy wear, damage or when the climbing holds become "out", the old holds are burned. Auftriib now aims to develop a sustainable, [...]
Using life cycle assessments to create a sustainable shopping cart
Background to the project Weita AG distributes consumables in Switzerland as part of the internationally active Bunzl Group. Its range includes around 100,000 products in the categories Foodservices, Cleaning, General, Safety & Hygiene and Healthcare. The topic of sustainability is also becoming increasingly important here, with sustainable product alternatives being demanded. Various sustainability indicators can be used [...]
Life cycle assessment and evaluation of the recyclability of food packaging
As part of her Bachelor's thesis in Environmental Engineering at the ZHAW, Lea Schneider is working on the recyclability and life cycle assessment of food packaging. Problem definition The substitution of plastic packaging with paper, cardboard or other fiber packaging (fiber-based packaging) is a trend in the food sector. Packaging should be recyclable, as resource-efficient and environmentally friendly as possible while at the same time protecting the contents. The idea is [...]
VOBU study "Specification for material recycling of EPS and XPS insulation materials"
Background According to the federal government's environmental targets, the proportion of secondary raw materials used should be massively increased by 2030. There is great potential in the construction industry for plastic insulation materials. In Switzerland, most of the plastic insulation waste consisting of expanded polystyrene (EPS) and extruded polystyrene (XPS) is currently recycled thermally rather than materially. This is due to the [...]
Reffnet case Resource efficiency in mattress production
BICO is a renowned manufacturer of high-quality mattresses and bed systems. The company is part of the international Hilding Anders Group and attaches great importance to quality, comfort and innovation. Hilding Anders Switzerland is committed to sustainability by using environmentally friendly production processes and recyclable materials. They are also part of the recently founded Mattress Alliance, which is committed to [...]
Construction of closed circuits for food contact rPP (FCMrPP)
In our new, recently approved, Innosuisse project we are researching a closed loop for post-consumer food packaging made of polypropylene (PP) - together with our research partners, KATZ (Plastics Training and Technology Center) and the Institute for Technology Management of the University of St. Gallen (HSG-ITEM) and our industrial partners BASF Schweiz AG, Coop Genossenschaft, Emmi Schweiz AG, Greiner Packaging AG, InnoPlastics AG, Migros Industrie AG, Silac AG and Säntis Packaging AG. The project will start in October [...]
Industrial and commercial packaging survey
Packaging is responsible for 40% of plastic consumption and for a large part of cardboard consumption. However, while consumer goods packaging has been in the spotlight in recent years and various projects are underway to optimize it, there is a lack of corresponding knowledge about industrial and commercial packaging (I&G packaging). So far, there are no overarching statistics of the volume flows or quantities used [...].
The future of separate collections of recyclable materials in Switzerland
The aim of the study was to show how the collection of waste materials in Switzerland should be designed in the future. Is there any ecological and economic potential at all for further (separate) collections in Switzerland? If so, what specific products and packaging are involved and how should these be prioritized? Because in the sense of the principle of eco- and impact efficiency [...]
Circoplast - Circular Construction Plastics
In Switzerland, more than 1 million tons of plastics are consumed annually, 22% of which are used by the construction industry. In order to extend the lifetime of these 220,000 tons of plastics, realcycle GmbH (formerly REDILO GmbH) has launched the Circoplast project. In cooperation with stakeholders from the construction and plastics industry, recycling companies and the [...]
Innovative logistics for plastics
This pilot project as part of the realCYCLE project made possible by the Migros Pioneer Fund is being designed and implemented together with players in the plastics value chain. The overarching theme of realCYCLE is to understand and align the entire value chain of plastic packaging as a cycle. The systemic prerequisites and framework conditions for scalability are examined and concrete possibilities are identified to enable a comprehensive and [...]