Green Dot Bioplastics, Inc. held a groundbreaking ceremony last week to mark the start of construction on its expansion project at the Green Dot facility in Onaga, Kansas.
Back in 2011, the company, which in April celebrated its 10-year anniversary, started modestly with the launch of a single product called Terratek Flex. Building on the success of that product, which was also the world's first biodegradable elastomeric rubber, ten years later the company has grown into a full-scale production facility, complete with a development lab and a portfolio of sustainable products including biocomposites, biodegradables, elastomers, and natural fibre reinforced polymers.
Green Dot is continuing to expand this product portfolio, and has announced it will be introducing two new product categories for use in compostable packaging applications, including film.
To accommodate this growth, the company is now starting construction to add floor space to house additional equipment and warehouse space. The expansion will allow the company to double its production capacity.
The project is being led by Kansas-based KBS Constructors, experts in critical environment construction, and is expected to be completed in September 2021.
The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by Green Dot CEO Mark Remmert, Director of Research & Development Mike Parker, Engineering Manager Amanda Childress, Plant Manager Bill Barnell, and Dan Foltz, President of KBS Constructors. Lydia Kincade, co-founder of iiM, and Dave Nelson represented Green Dot's Board of Directors and investors, respectively.
"Green Dot has enjoyed exceptional growth during our first decade and we are poised for even bigger things in our next decade," Remmert said. "This expansion comes in advance of adding two new product categories to our portfolio of sustainable plastics and effectively doubles our production capacity. It's an exciting time to be in bioplastics!"
Headquartered in Emporia, Kansas, Green Dot Bioplastics, Inc is a full-service bioplastics company. Its Terratek line of bioplastics has been developed to meet the growing demand for biobased and compostable materials with fewer of the drawbacks associated with traditional plastics.