Winners of the first European Plastics Innovation Awards, organised by industry bodies PlasticsEurope and the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE), were announced at a special reception in Brussels on 25 January, attended by EU officials and industry executives.
“The awards, divided in seven different categories, distinguish companies demonstrating outstanding and highly innovative developments in the field of plastics technology,” said the organisers.
The winners of the seven categories are:
Best Plastic Design: DSM Engineering Plastics (The Netherlands), High Performance Edging Chassis
Best Design for End-of-Life: Top Clean Packaging (France), Wine/Champagne Pack
Material Innovation: Evonik Industries (Germany), VESTAMID® NRG
Hybrid Product: DuPont International Operations (Switzerland), Offshore Mooring Tether Incorporating Wave Protection for Floating Structures
Best Substitute Product for Enhanced Sustainability: Dow Europe (Switzerland), Flexible Bottle with PacXPERT Packaging Technology
Best Lightweight Innovation: Treofan/Borealis (Germany/Austria), PHD1.9 – Polypropylene Capacitor Film of 1.9 μm thickness
New Surfaces for Plastics Parts: Borealis Polyolefine (Austria), Lightweight Primerless Paintable Bumper
Speaking at the reception, Kurt Vandenberghe, who is the European Commission's Director for Climate Action and Resource Efficiency, DG Research and Innovation, addressed the importance of research and innovation to ensure the competitiveness of Europe. “Europe needs more innovation for the creation of jobs and growth. Only by fostering innovation we will turn sustainability into a competitive advantage”, he said.
Patrick Thomas, President of PlasticsEurope and CEO of Covestro, said: “The plastics industry is at the forefront of innovation in Europe. With 1 out of 25 patents coming from the industry, plastics are at the heart of many of today's technological advances. Ongoing investment in innovation is essential if we want to tackle some of the major challenges Europe is facing today.”
Willem De Vos, CEO of SPE, said “The hard work, dedication and enthusiasm in our industry have helped to achieve new innovative solutions to today's societal challenges.”
The second European Plastics Innovation Awards will take place in mid-2017 and the call for parts will be sent out towards the end of this year.