8 NEWS PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 04/22 www.petpla.net Erema establishes new R&D centre for recycling technologies Construction machinery rolls into action again at the Erema site in Ansfelden, Austria. The ground-breaking ceremony on April 6 signals the start of work on a new R&D centre. Two halls with a total area of 1,550m2 and a new office building with 50 workplaces will be built. The centre will offer cross-departmental and cross-company test machines and laboratory for research and development of plastics recycling technologies to further advance the circular economy. Completion is scheduled for February 2023. In recent years, approximately 5 per cent of turnover has been reinvested annually in R&D. Employees from different departments handle process engineering challenges, developments in mechanical engineering and automation technology, and special technologies with a view to further improving the quality of recycled pellets. They also focus on new recycling technologies for waste plastic materials for which there is currently no satisfactory circular economy solution. The decisive factor here is also to exploit the potential of digitalisation. By collecting and analysing machine data, not only can recycling processes and product quality be further improved, but the digital service offering for customers can be developed. Such offerings include customer-specific information tools that feature plant and process data, predictive maintenance and online support as well as commissioning via remote access. For material tests, an expanded machine park will be available following completion of the new centre. Here, the recycling process can be evaluated end-to-end, including upstream and downstream processes such as shredding and further processing of the recycled pellets. The material tests are supported by analysis in the professionally equipped laboratory, which will be relocated to the new premises and upgraded where necessary with the latest lab equipment. “The necessity of investing in the circular economy and in plastics recycling is clear from the current crises, which will be with us for some time to come,” says Manfred Hackl. “Both coronavirus and the consequences of the invasion of Ukraine have shown us the reality of the EU’s dependence on resources. Our mission “Another life for plastic. Because we care.” is more relevant today than ever before.” www.erema-group.com From left: Markus Huber-Lindinger Managing Director Erema GmbH, Markus Achleitner Upper Austria´s Minister for the Economy, Manfred Hackl CEO Erema Group GmbH and Christian Partoll Ansfelden´s Mayor (photo: Land OÖ/Kauder) Tony Radoszewski departs Plastics Industry Association Former President and CEO Tony Radoszewski is no longer with the Plastics Industry Association. Radoszewski’s last day was March 25, as announced by Tad McGwire, Chairman of the Board: “Tony Radoszewski is no longer with the Plastics Industry Association. His last day as President and CEO was Friday, March 25. We are grateful to Tony for his service to the plastics industry. Tony served our association during a period that included significant challenges, but Plastics remains as strong as ever. We extend Tony our best wishes in his future endeavours and extend our sincere thanks for his commitment and contributions”, McGwire stated. Radoszewski had assumed the role of President and CEO in 2019 after the death of his predecessor Bill Carteaux. Radoszewski’s successor has not yet been announced. www.plasticsindustry.org
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