AQUAFIL wins the German Sustainability Award 2014 for “best resource efficiency”

Arco (Italy) / Dusseldorf, 30.11.2014 At the prestigious awards ceremony the jury honored the commitment of Aquafil throughout the value chain with the development of ECONYL® regeneration system and the special services in the fight against one of the greatest environmental problems of our time: marine pollution.

On Friday evening, Prof. Dr. Michael Braungart delivered the German Sustainability Award in the category “Resource Efficiency” to Giulio Bonazzi, CEO of Aquafil group. In their statement, the jury says: “The company has introduced new processes and technologies across the value chain and build new partnerships with partners to close fiber circuits and to improve resource efficiency.”

In the last 3 years already over 30kt waste collected

The cycle begins with the purchase: The ECONYL® Reclaiming Program is a global network constructed in 2011 to establish fiber waste collection points. Pre-consumer waste (eg oligomers, production waste,etc) and post consumer waste (eg fishing nets, part of carpets), originating from countries around the world, can be used in the regeneration process. Aquafil cooperates with numerous partners: Together with the European Centre for Nature and Conservation and the Socks manufacturer Starsocks, “Healthy Seas” was launched – with fishing net collection projects in the North Sea to the Adriatic and the Mediterranean.

In the Net-Works project  Aquafil is partnering with the carpet manufacturer Interface and the Zoological Society of London, to get fishing nets that have been collected in local communities (eg Philippines) by the fishermen.

Every 10,000t ECONYL® caprolactam produced it saves 70,000 barrels of oil and 42kt CO2 emissions

Espacially Aquafil’s innovative brand ECONYL® is all about regeneration. From the collected waste quality products are created again and thus raw materials can be saved and large amounts of waste avoided.

Sustainability plays a major role throughout the AQUAFIL group. Since 2007, greenhouse gases have been reduced by up to 25% and already 36% of the electricity comes from renewable sources.

According to the jury of the German Sustainability Award – Aquafil is a role model for the industry.


About AQUAFIL

Since 1969, Aquafil has been one of the leading players, both in Italy and globally, in the production of polyamide 6. The Aquafil Group has a presence in eight countries on three continents, employing more than 2400 staff at 15 plants located in Italy, Germany, Scotland, Slovenia, Croatia, the USA, Thailand and China.

Always committed to taking real measures to protect the environment, in 2011 Aquafil started the ECONYL ® Regeneration System project. It is an innovative industrial regeneration process that produces nylon 6 polymer from:

Post-consumer waste, i.e. end-of-life products made from polyamide 6, including fishing nets, fluff (from the top of carpets and rugs) and textiles;

Pre-consumer waste such as oligomers, scraps, etc., generated from the production of nylon.

About the German Sustainability Award

The award is an initiative of the German Sustainability Award eV – a cooperation with the federal government, municipal associations, business associations, civil society organizations and research institutions. Jurys of renowned experts from business, politics, research and civil society – including Prof. Dr. Klaus Töpfer, Gesine Schwan, Wolfgang Thierse, CDU politician Julia Klöckner and NABU President Olaf Tschimpke – decide on the winners. Finals of the competition is the German Sustainability Day on 27 and 28 November 2014 in Dusseldorf. On the afternoon of 27 November, the Congress took place; on the evening of 28 November, the German sustainability award was presented in a festive atmosphere.