Plastotecnica is proud to present the results of the LCA study, Lyfe Cycle Assessment, realized in collaboration with Spinlife, a spin-off of the University of Padua, sustainability advisor for companies.
Plastotecnica wishes to contribute in the right way to greater responsibility in packaging consumption, as underlined by Valentina Betto, R&D and Sustainability Manager at Plastotecnica:
“The packaging proposed by Plastotecnica can already be recycled with existing technologies, and is frequently enhanced with a second life. Therefore, in order to improve our environmental performance, we focused on the analysis of the emissions associated with our products through the LCA methodology. This will help us to give our concrete contribution to reduce global warming.”
The LCA study quantifies the potential environmental impacts that occur in the different stages of the product life cycle, according to ISO 14040 and ISO 14044 standards.
This type of research has been selected to monitor our production processes and their related activities, with particular focus on the research and development phase of the products, and at the same time to be able to better advise our customers and partners towards a packaging with a lower environmental impact..
We have analysed according to this scientific approach all the phases of the life of our articles, starting from the production and transport of the raw material, following with its processing and transformation, and ending with the packaging and the exit from the plant (model Cradle to Gate).
The LCA analysis proved to be a very useful tool to actually determine the main areas of strategic intervention, and to identify any critical issues and opportunities for improvement.
In detail, we have compared 5 films that differ in:
- Production technology (blown or cast extrusion);
- Thickness;
- Film composition (exclusively virgin granule and / or recycled PE content)
Taking into consideration specific environmental indicators (Global warming – Acidification – Eutrophication – Abiotic depletion, fossil fuels – Abiotic depletion, elements – Photochemical oxidation – Water scarcity – Ozone depletion) and after defining the appropriate functional units of the products to work on, we were able to point out very interesting conclusions:
- The main source of the environmental impacts of the products analyzed is RAW MATERIALS.
- By maintaining the same application performance (technical and qualitatve), THICKNESS REDUCTION is rewarding in all impact categories.
- The use of POST-CONSUMER OR REGENERATED RECYCLED RESOURCES allows for a reduction in impacts compared to the same product made with 100% fossil raw materials.
Professor Alessandro Manzardo, co-founder of Spinlife, reiterates the importance of the applied methodology:
“This study has a value that goes far beyond the individual results. Thanks to our collaboration, Plastotecnica owns now an innovative model to develop new products according to the principles of eco-design.”