Dissemination of the european project Life Comp0live at the Transfiere Rorum in Malaga

The Plastic Technology Center (Andaltec) has traveled to Malaga to participate in the Transfiere Forum, considered the most important event on research, development and innovation in southern Europe. Daniel Aguilera, head of Business Development of Andaltec, has presented to companies and institutions the results obtained so far in the European project LIFE Comp0live, led by Andaltec.

This initiative is working to demonstrate at industrial level the use of olive pruning residues as reinforcement in biocomposites with applications in the automotive sector and domestic and urban furniture, among others. The center’s technicians have already achieved important advances in the characterization and pre-industrial scaling of the new bio-based composite, of which more than 100 kilograms have already been produced. The project has generated good expectations among the companies to which it has been presented, which have shown interest in the new material for the manufacture of sustainable products.

The Transfiere Forum has more than a hundred activities scheduled over two days, divided by themes and approaches between the Innovation Room, the Technology Room, the Science Room, the Open Innovation Area -with its Demo Center-, the Boosting Zone and the Driving Innovation Area. The first edition of the forum was held in 2011 and, since then, 10,054 entities, 1,474 speakers and 31,623 professionals from several countries have participated.

The LIFE Comp0live project arises from the need to revalorize olive residues, given the volume generated annually throughout the Mediterranean area and the scarce applications that currently exist. Thus, the main objective is to develop a new generation of biocomposites based on olive pruning residues for industrial applications, promoting the substitution of non-renewable resources through the sustainable design of wood-based fiber products. The aim is to revalorize these residues and reduce CO2 emissions caused by the burning of olive pruning residues.

On the other hand, the aim is to create three new business models related to waste management within the new value chain of the olive sector: fibers for the automotive industry, outdoor furniture and home furniture. In addition, it aims to enhance the sensitivity and awareness of the primary sector by promoting an economic and ecological management of olive residues. The project consortium is made up of Andaltec, Caliplast (France), Plasturgia (France), Ford-Werke GmbH (Germany), the University of Jaén, Citoliva and Matricería Peña (Spain).