Page 53 - Plastcs News January 2019

Business news

PolyOne takes over Fiber-Line Coca-Cola – Ioniqa deal to boost

hard-to-recycle PET
olyOne Corporation, a premier global provider of
Pspecialized polymer materials, services and solutions,
has taken over Fiber-Line, a global leader in customized oca-Cola has entered an agreement with Ioniqa
engineered fibers and composite materials for $120 CTechnologies to accelerate the development and
deployment of high-grade recycled content PET for
its bottles.The US agreement extends a loan to Dutch
firm Ioniqa to facilitate the development of Ioniqa’s
proprietary technology to produce high-grade recycled
PET content from hard to recycle PET waste.It allows
packages such as coloured PET bottles that may have
been excluded from certain recycling streams, to be
recycled into food-grade quality packaging. Ioniqa has
developed a proprietary recycling technology that, is
able to convert hard to recycle PET-containing waste
like colored bottles to purified polymer building blocks
that can be later re-formed into high quality PET.
Robert Long, chief innovation officer, The Coca-Cola
Company, said: “Our investment in new and pioneering
recycling technologies is an opportunity for significant
movement toward closing the loop and creating a
million.Fiber-Line, founded in 1987, serves the fiber
optic cable, oil & gas, industrial and consumer industries. circular economy for PET.” Tonnis Hooghoudt, chief
The company has five manufacturing locations in North executive of Ioniqa, added: “Partnering with The Coca-
America, Europe, and Asia. With its customer-centric Cola Company is a further validation of our journey to
culture and specialty innovation strategy, Fiber-Line launch this unique process for transforming hard to
provides material science and polymer formulation
expertise to engineer performance characteristics such as
strength, abrasion and chemical resistance, and specialty
colorants. Robert M. Patterson, chairman, president
and CEO, PolyOne Corporation, said, “Fiber-Line is an
innovative and unique addition to our portfolio of fiber
and composite solutions with tremendous upside for
growth. They provide an immediate leadership position
in serving the build out of fiber optic cable and future
5G networks”. He, added, “This acquisition represents
a significant investment for our Specialty Engineered recycle PET-waste to high quality food-grade material.
Materials segment. We expect it to add nearly $100 Ioniqa is a clean-tech spinoff from the Eindhoven
million in revenue in 2019 and be immediately accretive University of Technology, specialising in creating value
to EPS.”The leading technologies of Fiber-Line add to from waste through proprietary circular technology.
the existing specialty composite solutions and wire Ioniqa is able to close the loop for plastics, starting
& cable applications of PolyOne, who will utilize its with PET plastics. Up-cycling processes for other types
proven invest-to-grow integration strategy to increase of plastic are being researched and expected to be
innovation for Fiber-Line customers, by leveraging deeper launched in the near future. The Ioniqa process allows
formulation expertise and a global commercial presence for significant recovery and reuse of plastic materials
that accelerates growth.Dale Outhous, CEO, Fiber-Line, that might otherwise not be recycled while delivering
commented, “Joining the PolyOne team represents quality food grade PET. The launch of our plant next
another important and exciting milestone for Fiber-Line year will be a step change in the transformation of
employees and our valued customers. hard to recycle PET plastic into a more widely usable
recycled material.”

55
53 Januar y 2019 Plastics News