ECOR Global, Inc., manufacturer of the world’s first commercial scale eco-panel, has launched a recycling program for silica coated paper called ECOR-Circular.
ECOR Global converts agricultural byproducts and post-consumer urban waste into new durable, sustainable building materials. Unlike the traditional wood products ECOR will replace, ECOR adds no urea formaldehyde nor any toxic glues or binders.
Many consumer products require colorful labels. The label industry creates a byproduct called a label release liner or backing that is quite problematic to recycle due to the silica content that allows the labels to come off. This particular type of paper makes a very useful feedstock for ECOR’s conversion process to make panels. In order to obtain quantities of the feedstock, ECOR has created a recycling system to pick up the label release paper around greater Kraljevo. Using ECOR branded trucks, pick-ups are already underway, within 100 kilometers of ECOR’s Kraljevo production facility.
The program has been launched with two well-known local companies: Vodavoda which produces high-end bottled water, and automotive manufacturer LEAR. In return for the material pick-up, ECOR documents the amount of the recycled material. and provides a certificate for the customer.
The Circular Economy starts with focusing a product’s end of useful life. By designing manufacturing that incorporates this end of life into the process is the key. Frequently, on the most challenging aspect of true circularity is getting the waste or byproducts returned back to be incorporated into the manufacturing process. The ECOR-Circular program is a bold first step to solve this difficult problem.
Over the years, ECOR has tested and developed hundreds of fiber recipes using our collaboration partners’ waste. We have already established that waste can be transformed from an expensive problem into a valuable resource. By taking the proactive step to pick up the waste, we are jump-starting the creation of viable circular systems. Also, by providing a system of tracking and issuing receipts or “recycling certificates” we are providing transparency and visibility to showcase our customer’s commitment to recycling and sustainability.