Teknos will collaborate with a research project in order to develop nearly fully bio-based products.
The coating manufacturer Teknos is part of a new research project aiming to develop bio-based binders and coatings as a new sustainable alternative for fossil-based materials: the SUSBINCO project.
The SUSBINCO project has been created in 2021 by a consortium of Finnish businesses and research institutes hoping to develop new bio-based product portfolios. The main purpose is to achieve between 80 and 100% bio-based content in binders and coatings. It will be possible to use them for packaging, paints, adhesives, sealants and abrasives.
“Sustainable binders and coatings are becoming more and more important. To combat climate change and resource scarcity, companies in all industries need to develop low-carbon, bio-based alternatives to fossil-based materials. In the coatings industry, the availability and price of materials as well as the high technical requirements have limited the usage of bio-based solutions. Therefore, it is important to develop new bio-based alternatives,” stated Pasi Virtanen, Group R&D Manager, Innovations at Teknos. “The ambition of this project is very high; enabling products with at least 80% of bio-content means doubling the current available bio-level. By the end of the project, we hope to have a range of polymers with high bio-based content that we can utilize widely in our own solutions. This is an important project, which also provides excellent support for our current corporate strategy.”
Business Finland, the Finnish export promotion institute, has provided funding to help the SUSBINCO project to become the market leader for bio-based solutions. In addition to Teknos, the consortium is formed by Brightplus, CH-Bioforce, CH-Polymers, Kiilto, MetGen, Metsä Board, Mirka, Montinutra, UPM-Kymmene, Valmet Technologies, Åbo Akademi University, VTT Technical Research Center of Finland, Lappeenranta-Lahti University of Technology (LUT), University of Oulu, Natural Resources Institute of Finland (Luke), Tampere University and University of Eastern Finland.
“It is great to be part of such a wide and experienced consortium. As a coating manufacturer, Teknos aims to widen the end use applications of the coatings and binders developed in the project. In addition, we bring expertise on the technical requirements of the raw materials used in the coating industry. As a global company, we also expect to bring enhanced export potential to the solutions developed,” concluded Virtanen.