Croatian manufacturer and converter of biodegradable films, EcoCortec, has officially started up its second production plant in Beli Manastir, Croatia.
Part of Cortec Corporation of St Paul, Minnesota in the US, EcoCortec produces corrosion protection films using the parent group's VpCI (Vapor phase corrosion inhibitor) technology.
The new 2,000m² production unit at the existing Croatian facility houses “state-of-the-art” E5 extrusion lines, which include features such as: 6.2m wide film, bags on roll and perforated sheets.
Partly-funded by the Croatian ministry of economy, the expansion doubles production capacity at EcoCortec.
Apart from extrusion, the operation also has bag converting and printing facilities to meet the market's custom product demands.
The company said in a 15 Nov statement that 2018 has been an "especially successful" year for EcoCortec, with the company completing its expansion and entering new projects.
The projects include a “Europe's first” collection and recycling initiative for used films and plastic bags.
As part of the programme, launched late last year, EcoCortec's customers send their waste material back to the Croatian plant where it is recycled and used for manufacturing a new product.
Over the past few years, the Croatian company has participated in a number of large European-funded projects, such as ‘Marine Clean' through which it developed its EcoOcean flexible marine biodegradable packaging from biobased PHA polymers.