Research & Development

Stena Recycling Lab

Stena Recycling Lab is our arena for innovation and collaboration. Here we offer entrepreneurs, partners, researchers and students the opportunity to develop future recycling technology and products together with us.

We can offer a co-working area and easy access to material and machinery at our state-of-the-art industrial recycling facility in Halmstad – Stena Nordic Recycling Center. That said, the collaborations can take place anywhere in the world. A collaboration is carried out together with our experts, in the form of projects. Normally, a project spans somewhere between one and 18 months.

Stena Recycling is also one of fourteen leading companies in Sweden that have come together to form Restart the Future. A one-year initiative to help build 1000 new companies in Sweden by 2022.

Our focus areas are

Automation

Increase efficiency in recycling processes, to achieve better sorting and to create safer work environments.

Digitalization

Create more efficient processes.

Product development

Aiming at creating new products from materials that today are considered waste residue or that otherwise go to energy recovery.

Examples of projects

We cooperate with entrepreneurs, partners, researchers and students to meet challenges and find new opportunities, aiming at streamlining recycling processes and create new products from unwanted materials. Here are some examples of completed research projects.

AUTOMATED SORTING

Using advanced sensor technology from Combitech and the latest robotics from ABB we developed a robotic solution for more efficient sorting of plastic in electronics. We showed that it’s possible to sort high grade plastic from the electronics, so that it can be recirculated as new raw material. With the aid of new technology and digitalization we can create purer flows of material, thus supporting sustainability in both society and manufacturing industry. The lab in Halmstad provided both the sufficient space and large amounts of products for the tests.

SOUNDS ABSORBERS OUT OF OLD CAR SEATS

Waste ends being waste as someone develops a new use for it. By constantly challenging ourselves we can create new products. The collaboration between Volvo Cars, Repur and Stena Recycling resulted in a car hood sound absorber. The material comes from old car seats, showing a new way to close the loop. At Stena Recycling Lab the project used equipment and expertise in order to manufacture the prototypes.

Hacking societies’ challenges!

Stena Recycling is a proud sponsor of Openhack Gothenburg. Openhack is a digital collaboration arena where ideas and knowledge are exchanged to solve humanitarian challenges.

Openhack Gothenburg acts as a platform for meetings to give life to new innovations. Technical volunteers, NGOs, influencers and sponsors gathered in this arena to collaborate. The event was free and open for everyone with no previous experience of coding required – the only requirement was ideas and the motivation to create new technical solutions for humanity.

Welcome with your input

Do you have an idea or rough sketch of how we can achieve smarter resource management or sustainable products? Want to collaborate with us? If so, send us your thoughts. Looking at contributions, we select ideas that we think can be put to market. If your idea is picked, we will soon start a collaboration project.

Idea - Send your idea or rough sketch to us.
Concept identification - By understanding the challenges and seeing the possibilities we identify winning concepts.
Project - Together with expertise and partners we create solutions and concepts.

Resources at Stena Recycling Lab

Stena Recycling Lab offers a creative and inspiring collaboration arena, with access to Stena Recycling’s own experts in recycling and materials. At our site in Halmstad, we can offer large-scale testing in real-world conditions, with access to state-of-the-art machinery and large material flows. In our material laboratory, materials and products can be tested, in order to evaluate and develop recycling potentials.

Library of materials

We have a library of materials consisting of a variety of types of recycled materials or residual products. The materials consist of everything from different types of plastics to mixtures of metals and mineral materials. The purpose of the library is to inspire and simplify the development of new materials, products and processes.

Machinery and equipment

Stena Recycling Lab provides access to the material test equipment at Stena Recycling. There are also laboratory machinery, such as a small mill for crushing materials, ovens for drying, as well as fume cupboards and storage space.

Interact with experts

Here you can also access expertise from different parts of Stena Recycling. Both experts on various materials and personnel with detailed knowledge of the processes currently used in recycling. Prior to each collaboration project, we assemble a project-tailored team.

Coworking arena

As you carry out projects in the Stena Recycling Lab, we also offer office space and fully equipped conference rooms. All in an inspiring environment, with access to coffee and tea. On site there is also access to a lunch room and dressing rooms with showers.

Joint venture financing

New Ventures is a unit within Stena Metall that can join and start new businesses together with the originator. New Ventures can invest in startups as well as in more established companies that create new opportunities for and by recycling. Stena Recycling Lab is by this also a facilitator, enabling you to faster reach the market with new solutions.

https://www.stenarecycling.com/research-development/innovations/

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