High-tech start-up develops sustainable process for recovering valuable raw materials
- The circular economy company saperatec opened its plant for recycling beverage carton and other composite packaging waste in Dessau-Roßlau today
- Plastic, aluminum and paper are separated from composite packaging in an innovative mechanical-physical recycling process. Among other things, the company uses this to produce plastic for film packaging
- Sven Schulze, Minister for Economic Affairs, Tourism, Agriculture and Forestry of Saxony-Anhalt: "Saxony-Anhalt offers attractive conditions for young and innovative industrial companies. With the establishment of saperatec, the circular economy is gaining further momentum in our state. At the same time, attractive and high-quality jobs are being created in the Dessau-Roßlau region."
saperatec officially opened its plant for the production of secondary plastic and aluminum from composite packaging waste in Dessau (Saxony-Anhalt) today in the presence of the Minister of Economics, Tourism, Agriculture and Forestry of Saxony-Anhalt, Sven Schulze, and numerous other partners and guests. In future, the plant will recycle plastic/aluminum composite films from beverage cartons and other composite packaging waste on an industrial scale.
Beverage cartons consist primarily of fiber, plastic and aluminum layers. The fiber content of beverage cartons from household collections in Germany has been recovered for decades and used in the production of cardboard packaging or tissue paper.
saperatec now also separates and cleans plastic and aluminum by type. A new type of washing process developed by saperatec is used for this. Using state-of-the-art recycling technology, the waste plastic is then purified to such an extent that, among other things, a polyethylene granulate is produced for the production of new plastic films. Packaging manufacturers can use this secondary raw material to produce new film packaging and thus close the material cycle.
Dr. Sebastian Kernbaum, co-founder and Chief Technology Officer of saperatec, explains that "as a start-up company, saperatec has systematically developed the mechanical-physical recycling process for the delamination of multi-layer composite materials over ten years, from laboratory scale to large-scale implementation. Water-based, reusable washing liquids are used to optimize the sustainability of the recycling process. In addition to the separation of plastic from metal and paper layers, the separation of glass composites is also the subject of further development work."
The company employs over 60 people in Dessau in production, research & development, engineering and administration. Thorsten Hornung, CEO of the company, explains that "the development and industrialization of the innovative process would not have been possible without the consistent support of the state of Saxony-Anhalt, the European Union and our venture capital investors such as Henkel AG & Co. KGaA and eCAPITAL.
For Sven Schulze, Minister of Economics, Tourism, Agriculture and Forestry of Saxony-Anhalt, the establishment of technology leaders such as saperatec is an important step towards the material use of waste: "Saxony-Anhalt offers attractive framework conditions for young and innovative industrial companies. With the establishment of saperatec, the circular economy in our state is gaining further momentum. At the same time, attractive and high-quality jobs are being created in the Dessau-Roßlau region."
Dr. Robert Reck, Lord Mayor of Dessau-Roßlau, commented on today's start of production: "As a traditionally innovative business location and also the headquarters of the Federal Environment Agency, the establishment of saperatec GmbH with its innovative, resource-saving recycling process is an excellent addition to the diverse industry portfolio and corporate landscape in Dessau-Roßlau. We are very pleased about the extensive investment in the site and the additional jobs created in our twin city, as well as about this successful combination of a new and environmentally friendly production and recycling process here in Dessau-Roßlau."
"As a leading adhesives manufacturer, we have been consistently driving sustainable development towards a circular economy for many years," says Björn Schlömer, Commercial Financial Director Packaging Global at Henkel and member of the Advisory Board of saperatec GmbH. "Through our strategic cooperation with saperatec, we have access to state-of-the-art recycling technology and a comprehensive range of our adhesives is proven to be compatible with saperatec's debonding processes."
saperatec at a glance
saperatec develops mechanical-physical recycling processes for multi-layer composite materials made of plastic, metal, paper and glass. At its site in Dessau-Roßlau in Saxony-Anhalt, the company operates an innovative recycling plant for beverage carton waste and other composite packaging made of plastic, aluminum and paper. With around 60 employees, saperatec makes an important contribution to the sustainability of high-performance composite materials. Further plants are being planned.
Further information can be found at: www.saperatec.de