Page 54 - Plastics News August - 2023

BUSINESS NEWS

3D Printing Suppliers Announce Partnership in Filament Production

products to their portfolio, enabled
by Essentium's expertise in fiber re-
inforcement, multi-layer filament ex-
trusion, and other innovative material
capabilities. Plans include developing
a new spool design to enhance com-
patibility with various 3D printing
systems, improve shipping efficiency,
D Fuel filament production will be dated to Essentium’s Texas facilities and reduce plastic waste. Products
3integrated into Essentium addi- for the North American market. Cus- resulting from this collaboration will
tive manufacturing material facilities tomers will have access to a compre- be branded as "3D-Fuel powered by
in Texas. hensive filament product portfolio. Essentium."
The industrial additive manufacturer 3D-Fuel has an existing relationship “Our partnership is not only about
Essentium announced a partnership with NatureWorks, a manufacturer of collaboration but accelerating 3D
with 3D-Fuel, a manufacturer of fila- polylactic acid (PLA) biopolymers de- printing adoption and innovation, this
ment for 3D printing. The partnership rived from renewable resources. This coming together will also ensure that
is aimed at simplifying the procure- collaboration will further enhance the customers can use additive manufac-
ment process for customers in the 3D production of functional 3D printing turing to bolster their supply chain
printing industry, by enabling access materials using plant-based inputs. and manufacturing processes with the
to a comprehensive range of filaments In addition to the existing portfolio highest quality, American-made print-
through a single provider. of filament lines and extensive color ing materials,” said Ryan Vano, VP of
3D-Fuel’s production will be consoli- options, 3D-Fuel will introduce new filament production at Essentium.

Polyplastics launching initiative to recycle engineering plastics

olyplastics, global supplier of en- od to melt plastic waste with heat and raw materials. Pre-consumer materi-
Pgineering thermoplastics, has process it back into pellets for reuse. als are raw materials such as hot run-
launched the DURACIRCLE initiative Polyplastics believes that DURACIR- ners and non-conforming products
for recycling engineering plastics. The CLE Re-compounding Service is a that arise in manufacturing processes
company claims that this effort applies departure from conventional recy- before products reach consumers,
to a wide variety of sustainable solu- cling. Its aim is to perform horizontal also referred to as post-industrial re-
tions that contribute toward achieving recycling which is considered difficult cycling (PIR) materials.
a 100% recycling rate for engineering with engineering plastics since these In addition to expanding DURA-
plastics, without being confined to the materials require high quality in sub- CIRCLE to markets outside Japan,
existing business model of manufac- sequent uses. Horizontal recycling is a Polyplastics plans to develop and of-
turing and selling plastics. Polyplastics' recycling method to recycle products fer recycling technologies for post-
goal is to achieve carbon neutrality by into the same products, such as re- consumer recycled (PCR) materials
2050. covering plastic bottles and recycling which are even harder to reprocess.

Phase one of the sustainability initia- them back into plastic bottles. As environmental needs evolve, Poly-
tive consists of the opening of Poly- Pre-consumer materials with manu- plastics is aiming to develop future
plastics' new DURACIRCLE (TM) Re- facturing histories that can be traced solutions for mechanical recycling,
compounding Service business which and pose no concerns of contamina- chemical recycling, and biogenic car-
aims to offer high-quality mechanically tion from environmentally hazardous bon cycles.
recycled materials starting by March substances are anticipated for use as
2024. Mechanical recycling is a meth-

54 PLASTICS NEWS August 2023
54 PLASTICS NEWS
August 2023