Henkel named CRDC as winner of unique ‘Seal the Cycle’ initiative

Henkel Adhesive Technologies as a global leading supplier for adhesives, sealants and functional coatings has announced the winner of its ‘Seal the Cycle’ initiative. With this international open innovation call in collaboration with Chile Global Ventures, the venture capital arm of Fundación Chile, the partners aimed to find technology solutions enabling the recycling or reusing of the millions of silicone cartridges for adhesives and sealants applications marketed around the globe annually. The initiative is complementary with Henkel´s sustainability ambitions and underlines the company´s commitment to further drive progress towards a circular economy.

Henkel and Chile Global Ventures selected six companies from a total of 27 submissions, following a four-months process, to present their solutions in a Pitch Day. Finally, a jury of senior executives from Henkel awarded the company CRDC Global Limited ‏(CRDC). Founded in 2018, CRDC has the mission to create value from the world’s plastic waste by converting it into RESIN8™, an Eco-Aggregate that improves concrete. This presented technology has the potential to address the challenge of recycling millions of utilized silicon cartridges. CRDC´s patented solution enables to convert the cartridges into a fine grain synthetic lightweight aggregate for further utilization across the industry, for example in products that improve insulation, reduce weight and lower water absorption globally. These features are especially beneficial in the production of cementitious based building blocks for sustainable and affordable housing. Among others CRDC used the RESIN8™ technology in 2021 to build social housing in Costa Rica in partnership with Habitat for Humanity. Henkel nominated the RESIN8™ technology for its innovative potential to increase the affordability of construction products using less materials and reducing weight while maintaining the key properties of strengths.

“We are very proud about the tremendous outcome of our unique international ‘Seal the Cycle’ challenge,” said Roberto Pavez, Regional Development Manager for Latin America at Henkel Adhesive Technologies. “First of all, we need to thank Chile Global Ventures for their great support. And secondly, we are impressed about the high level of innovation capabilities the participants have provided. It really has been difficult to nominate a winner among all proposals. We finally selected CRDC due to its unique combination of environmental and social benefits that increase the affordability of climate resilient housing especially in the developing world.”

“We first of all like to congratulate CRDC for winning our global initiative”, commented Albert Lipperheide, General Manager for Consumer Adhesives at Henkel in Chile. “Based on their outstanding problem-solving concept we look forward to partner for the adaption of their technology with the focus on eliminating plastic waste and creating a positive impact on the environment.”

“The ‘Seal the Cycle’ initiative has been a real challenge as we aim to create an impact at global scale,” added Marcos Kulka, CEO at Fundación Chile. “It was key for us to collaborate with Henkel as world-leading adhesives supplier to identify the best start-ups for the specific requirements in plastic recycling. This is another great proof point for the capabilities of ChileGlobal Ventures to tackle disruptive challenges through corporate venturing.”

“We’re inspired by our mission to create value from the world’s plastic waste and by our commitment to regenerative design – where the output is greater than the sum of the inputs – which remains at the core of our mission,” stated Donald Thomson, Founder and CEO of CRDC after having been awarded. “Winning ‘Seal the Cycle’ is a major step on our journey to contribute to the world’s transformation towards sustainable development. We want to thank Henkel and Chile Global Ventures for their leadership in this important area. Winning this award underscores the importance of working collaboratively with the private sector, governments, NGOs, and other startups to achieve better economic, environmental, and social outcomes for all.”