At the end of January, Dow inaugurated its new BLUEWAVE™ unit at the Dow Coating Materials site in Lauterbourg (Alsace region, East of France). Suitable for a wide range of applications, this line will meet the demand for more easily recyclable products that require fewer resources. The inauguration was attended by public representatives from the Grand-Est region, the project team, employees, subcontractors, and members of Dow Europe management.
“Dow is an example of a company that has invested heavily in R&D; these investments are strategic for the future,” explained Marc Ferracci, French Minister of Industry and Energy, in a video message. This multi-million dollar investment received a grant from the Grand-Est region and created 23 new jobs. “A few years ago, Dow Lauterbourg was selected to make this investment due to its strategic location in Alsace, a competitive region for project development, particularly due to its advanced infrastructure and industrial capabilities,” said Fabrice Jerineck, Director of the Lauterbourg site.
BLUEWAVE™ technology allows Dow to increase its production capacity for barrier coatings used to create differentiated and innovative paper packaging with an improved environmental profile. The BLUEWAVE™ facility and the RHOBARR™ products used as coatings allow a thin barrier layer to be applied to a substrate, thus preserving its integrity without impacting the substrate’s recycling rate. Suitable for adhesives as well as primary and secondary packaging, both food and non-food, these products offer improved recyclability compared to current products. As a consequence, according to Dow, they will provide industrial solutions to the recyclability and sustainability objectives set by European legislation, particularly the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), as well as to France’s circularity ambitions, as set out in the AGEC law (Anti-Waste for a Circular Economy) and the 3R strategy for single-use plastics (reduce, reuse, recycle).
“In a challenging economic climate, where energy costs represent a significant share of the competitiveness of the chemical industry in France and Europe, we are delighted with the completion of this project and hope to be able to sustainably implement others in the years to come,” concluded Jean-Michel Duplouis, President of Dow France. “In this regard, the support of public authorities will be essential for us to meet the growing needs for sustainability and circularity.”
V. L.
Photo: Dow
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