Application News
Application News Sustainable clothing and packaging Inspired by the advent of sustainable clothing and fair-trade initiatives, JOOB was founded by husband and wife team John Ames, Jr and Nicha Sangiampornpanit with a goal for total supply chain transparency and zero-waste in mind. Based in Ann Arbor just out of Detroit, USA, John and Nicha are working to develop a company that gives back to mother nature. They design stylish, sustainable, functional outdoor clothing. Their latest addition to their sustainability repertoire is the compostable packaging of TIPA Corp, Hod Hasharon, Israel. For Joob, one of the biggest challenges to sustainability in the trends of Fast Fashion and Fashion in general that pushes sales of new items every season - “it’s just insane”. Joob is advocating to buy less, not more. Joob is a direct to consumer (DTC) company, they have no presence at any online retailers or local shops, which makes their packaging the first direct point of contact with their customer. To stay true to their values they choose TIPA ® compostable packaging. Tipa’s Stock Program offered reasonably priced packages that fit their small company’s budget, while helping them navigate the different types of compostable packaging that are “out there”, providing documentation on the research being done by them and others in the field of sustainable packaging. The activewear company was convinced by Tipa’s technology. The fact that the bags turn to CO 2 , water and biomass after composting for 12 months was a key selling point for them. Tipa packaging has gone through numerous studies to be certified home compostable, which was very important for Joob as they did not want to use a greenwashing solution. But Joob’s sustainability efforts go beyond just their packaging, it’s in the very fibres of their products. Their fabrics are a mix of technical performance and sustainability, like their 100% recycled PET tees or their Check button down made from sustainable beech trees and silk In face of the global pandemic they recently launched reusable masks for everyday use, to help reduce the use of single use masks. They are made from 100 % recycled PET bottles, and have an antibacterial treatment made from shrimp and crab shells. Super smooth to the touch, quick dry, re-usable. The company has been following innovative textiles made from banana leaves, flax seed, and coffee beans - but as many are blended with less sustainable materials like spandex or cotton - they decided to take the same approach as their fashion, a slow one. AT Join us at the 15th European Bioplastics Conference – the leading business forum for the bioplastics industry. REGISTER NOW! https://tipa-corp.com 30 NOV - 03 DEC 2020 VIRTUAL EVENT www.european-bioplastics.org/events @EUBioplastics #eubpconf2020 www.european-bioplastics.org/events For more information email: conference@european-bioplastics.org 42 bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/20] Vol. 15
Applications Consistent sustainability for all case users W.AG (Geisa, Germany) has accomplished a milestone in the field of case production. After the successful completion of a development project lasting almost two years, the company is now in a position to manufacture all their case series in its new ORGANICLINE material line from a material consisting of up to 93 % renewable raw materials. The special ARBOBLEND ® compound from the biopolymer producer Tecnaro (Ilsfeld, Germany) recently received the seal of approval from the international brand evaluation organization Green Brands. “The highlight is the resource-saving material mix of glucose, natural waxes, minerals and natural fibres, which can be processed using established methods of plastics technology,” says Tecnaro Managing Director Jürgen Pfitzer. The glucose, that is obtained from sugar cane and sugar beet, is technical sugar that does not compete with food. Numerous series of tests and successful customer projects now underscore the suitability of the material as a substitute for many wellknown engineering plastics. “The compound gives the cases and boxes of our new Organicline a robustness comparable to polypropylene,” confirms Björn Ullrich, the head of research and development at W.AG. Since the material is also produced in a closed CO 2 cycle and with a high degree of petroleum abstinence, the cases made from it score with an excellent ecological balance. For manufacturers and users who place particular value on sustainability and environmental protection during transport, presentation and provision of their products (such as components, tools, equipment and many other products from a wide range of industries and applications), the design cases of the Organicline from W.AG are therefore the first choice. Another advantage is that the carbon required for the production of Arboblend is extracted from the CO 2 in the atmosphere, so that subsequent thermal utilization is CO 2 - neutral, thus ultimately creating a closed CO 2 cycle. „Perfect Material Alternative“ Environmentally conscious users do not have to make any compromises with regards to the design of the surfaces. Because the cases and boxes of the Organicline can easily be individualised with all print and decoration processes offered by W.AG. Specifically: conventional screen and pad printing can be applied as well as the photo-realistic colour prints of In-Mould-Labelling (IML) and also digital prints which are economical for smaller series. Within the scope of the application of IML, W.AG is even able to equip the Organicline cases with the Digimarc digital barcode, which is not perceptible to the human eye. “It was a central concern for us to find an environmentally friendly material for our sustainable case solutions that does not set any limits for our customers in terms of printing and individualisation. The Arboblend Bio-Compound is the perfect material alternative in this respect as well,” emphasises W.AG Managing Director Bertram Göb. Sustainable from the inside as well Another key benefit of Arboblend has been shown to be that the material can be foamed and the semi-finished foam products made from it can then be processed into individual inserts using water jet, laser cutting and milling techniques. As a result, W.AG can also manufacture all product and customer-specific inlays from the bio-compound. In the case and boxes of the Organicline, not only the cases (halfshells) and clip closures are made of the resource-saving material, but also the complete interior. Full range Parallel to the current plastic case collections, W.AG is now realizing about 100 sizes of its well-known product lines Tekno, Twist, Jazz, Swing, Beat and Heavy in a wide range of colors, also in the innovative Bio-Batch. This means that a large part of the entire range is available to the company’s customers in the alternative Organicline from the very beginning. MT www.wag.de | www.tecnaro.de The W.AG Organicline range of cases made of Arboblend consists of up to 93 % renewable raw materials (Photo: W.AG) bioplastics MAGAZINE [05/20] Vol. 15 43
