Extrusion International 4-2023-USA

28 Extrusion International 4/2023 INDUSTRY NEWS Investment in Startup BASF Venture Capital GmbH (BVC), the corporate venture company of the BASF Group, an- nounced an investment in the Swiss startup DePoly SA (DePoly), a sus- tainable plastic solutions provider developing a unique chemical re- cycling technology. Founded in 2020, the company has developed a chemical recycling technology that converts mixed post-consumer and post-industrial polyester plastic waste streams, as well as polyester- containing fabrics and fibers, back into their precursors at virgin-grade quality. This process is energy effi - cient – operating at room tempera- ture and standard pressure, without the need for pre-sorting, pre-wash- ing, or removal of contaminant materials. For BVC this investment underlines BASF’s ongoing commit- ment to developing sustainable so- lutions for a circular economy. Plastics are an essential part of everyday life. But only about 10 percent are recycled, with the ma- jority going to incineration or land- fill. As brand owners increasingly aim for higher recycled content rates in their products, the demand for advanced recycling technolo- gies is expected to grow. DePoly offers a unique solution to address this need. “Our technology has the potential to fundamentally change the lifecycle of PET plastics and re- inforce the global efforts in tack- ling the climate challenge. We are thrilled to have BASF Venture Capi- tal and other strategic investors in this round supporting us in imple- menting our solution on a larger scale,” said Samantha Anderson, CEO and co-founder of DePoly. BASF aims to move toward a more Circular Economy by increas- ingly using recycled and renewable feedstocks, shaping new material cycles and creating new business models. BASF is therefore running a Circular Economy Program. By the year 2030, the company aims to double its sales generated with so- lutions for the circular economy to €17 billion. One example for these efforts is BASF’s ChemCycling® business. The investment in DePoly is another commitment towards supporting this goal. BASF Venture Capital GmbH (BVC) www.basf-vc.de Further Managing Director Appointed With immediate effect, Wilfried Jobst was ap- pointed Managing Director of K.D. Feddersen GmbH & Co. KG. Jobst will assume responsibility for the activities of the Plastics Distribution business segment in Asia, which he has already managed for many years as Managing Director of K.D.F. Distribution (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. Together with Dr. Stephan Schnell, he will ensure that the regions of Asia and Europe, which have so far operated largely independently in terms of external presentation, will in future present them- selves uniformly on the market and thus strengthen the perception of K.D. Feddersen Distribution as an international brand extending beyond the respective region. In addition to his role as Managing Director of K.D. Feddersen GmbH & Co. KG, Jobst will continue to act as authorised signatory of BIO-FED, branch of AKRO- PLASTIC GmbH. Dr. Schnell will continue to be responsible for the activi- ties of the Plastics Distribution business area in Europe. K. D. Feddersen Holding GmbH www.feddersen.group , www.kdfeddersen.com Dr. Stephan Schnell (left) and Wilfried Jobst (right) Sadness at the Death of Wilfried Ensinger Wilfried Ensinger, who estab- lished the family-run plastics pro- cessing company that bears his name, passed away on 23 May at the age of 87. The employees of the Ensinger Group mourn together with his family members. With the loss of its founder, the company says farewell to a pas- sionate engineer, creative inven- tor and dedicated entrepreneur who – even in the decades follow- ing his retirement from the Man- agement Board – was fully commit- ted to the welfare of the company