Biopolymer supplier agrees exclusive Cirql partnership with OrthoLite
Open cell foam technology developer OrthoLite has announced a new exclusive partnership with biodegradable and compostable bioplastics developer Novamont.
It will work with Italy-based Novamont to create marterial for Cirql initiative. OrthoLite launched Cirql a year ago, calling it the first chemicals-free, plant-based foam for use in footwear manufacturing and saying it would help to put the athletic footwear industry on the road to a circular, sustainable future.
It now has a dedicated Cirql division of the business, based in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam.
OrthoLite worked with Novamont to develop the patented recyclable, biodegradable and industrially compostable foam solution that the Cirql division is making, using responsibly sourced plant-based materials.
Under the new agreement between the two companies, OrthoLite has said it will be able to scale up Cirql’s production.
“This partnership is built on trust and transparency,” said OrthoLite founder and chief executive, Glenn Barrett, “as well as a relentless commitment to equip our 500-plus global footwear brand partners to have access to single-source circular materials, starting with the midsole.”
His counterpart at Novamont, Catia Bastioli, said she believes Novamont has proved that it is possible to do more with less. “Our philosophy has always been to avoid the problems of pollutant accumulation in the environment, and the fruitful collaboration with OrthoLite, a company that is also committed in finding solutions and not just products, allows us to bring our approach to the footwear industry for the first time.”
Novamont has developed a tailor-made bio-polymer material for Cirql. For this, biopolymer pellets are melted and mixed with liquid nitrogen under high pressure in a customised injection moulding process to create finished parts with no waste.
