Circularise Plastics: an open standard making the plastics supply chain more transparent, fair and profitable
Blockchain technology has been proposed - and is being piloted - for all manner of supply chain applications, particularly for verifying the provenance or source of materials, commodities, food or goods. And now two European companies, polyamide supplier Domo and polymer manufacturer Covestro, are collaborating with Dutch technology startup Circularise to create a system for tracking plastics.
The ultimate goal is to create an open standard for sharing data about where resins or materials originate - information that is important for moving to circular production models that help the plastics industry increase the use of recycled content and decrease the use of virgin plastic.
The three companies above have created a consortium dubbed Circularise Plastics to develop and pilot the system. They encourage other companies to become involved, and have already presented the technology to BASF and its customer Stanley Black & Decker as part of the US chemical company's Circularity Challenge accelerator programme.
Read an interview with one of Circularise's founders Jordi De Vos, who explains how to apply blockchain technology to plastics.
Expected results:
- "Having this standard would improve transparency throughout the whole plastics value chain" according to a spokesperson for Domo.
- "It will also make providing evidence of provenance for an object, as well as communication of such information as recycled content, audit reports and certificates to our customers and end consumers a lot easier", according to the same spokesperson.
- Burkhard Zimmermann, Head of Strategy, Sustainability and Digital, Covestro's Polycarbonates segment, has added: "For materials suppliers, processors and molders, participation means increased material value and trust in your production. For [original equipment manufacturers] and brand owners, it helps on the road to achieving sustainability targets and a strengthened brand position."