Freudenberg Performance Materials has been shortlisted for the Plastics Recycling Awards Europe 2020, in the category Building and Construction Product of the Year for the project The virtuous lifecycle of a PET bottle.

Every year, the prestigious awards aim to recognize important achievements and developments in the use of recycled materials, product design and innovative manufacturing within the European plastics recycling industry. The initiative is jointly organized by Plastics Recyclers Europe (PRE) and Crain Communications, which organizes the Plastics Recycling Show Europe.

“It is a great honour to be nominated as a finalist for the Plastics Recycling Awards Europe 2020. It reaffirms our global commitment to sustainability,” says Dr. Frank Heislitz, CEO Freudenberg Performance Materials.

The history of recycling at Freudenberg dates back to the 1990s.  Ever since, the company has been converting post-consumer PET bottles into polyester nonwovens. This material is then used to produce carriers for bituminous waterproofing membranes. At its recycling plants in Novedrate and Pisticci (Italy) and in Colmar (France), Freudenberg currently recycles around 2.5 billion PET bottles every year.” Laid end to end, that number would go around the earth 15 times,” the company says.

“We see plastic as a resource and not as waste. It enables us to do business while at the same time we are protecting the environment. It is an important achievement to be selected among the finalists for this award,” commented Federico Pallini, General Manager Building Materials Division.

By recycling PET bottles, Freudenberg replaces virgin raw materials with recycled polyester of the same quality. This saves natural resources and reduces waste that would otherwise be incinerated or sent to landfill. Furthermore, eliminating the energy consumption associated with producing virgin polyester means fewer CO2 emissions in the atmosphere.

The award winners will be announced on 26 March during the second day of the Plastics Recycling Show Europe, which is this year being held in Amsterdam. The Plastics Recycling Awards Europe are open to any organizations and individuals across the continent who are involved in recycling plastic materials.

Further information about the awards can be found here: https://prseventeurope.com/prse2020/en/page/awards

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