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LIFE Call for Proposals: Italian company is looking for a commercial partner to distribute architectural water based paints produced from secondary raw materials. (Deadline 19 September 2024)

Summary

Profile Type
  • Research & Development Request
POD Reference
RDRIT20240610020
Term of Validity
12 June 2024 - 12 June 2025
Company's Country
  • Italy
Type of partnership
  • Research and development cooperation agreement
Targeted Countries
  • Spain
  • Germany
  • France
  • Netherlands
  • Czechia
  • Austria
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General information

Short Summary
The project aims to implement a new plant to generate secondary raw materials from water based paints destined to disposal. The recovered dry solid material, mostly composed by fillers and inorganic substance, will be used to produce and sell new full circular water based paints.
To complete the consortium, the Italian company is searching for a commercial partner to distribute the new products in the European market.
Full Description
The project, as born in 2023, aims to implement a new plant to generate secondary raw materials from water based paints destined to disposal. The recovered dry solid material, mostly composed by fillers and inorganic substance, will be used to produce and sell new full circular water based paints.

The project is composed at the moment by three entities: Partner 1 (the project group leader), Partner 2 (a SME Research company, Italy), Partner 3 (Department of Industrial Chemistry, University of Pisa, Italy). The project, already submitted in September 2023 and rejected a first time, will be resubmitted with some modifications and implementations downstream of the evaluator's comments, which indicated, among the points for improvement, the need for at least one partner who is a distributor of the technology and potentially able to scale it up to the European level.

The coordinator (described as Partner 1) looking for a partner is a leading European company in the production and sale of paints and varnishes for the building industry located in Italy with production amounting around 36 million kg of water-based paint products for decorative use per year.

The project is starting with a proof of concept phase with the support of the Partner 2, which will support the project by implementing the process in small scale and suppling Partner 1 with the secondary raw materials obtained which will be then used to produce the first prototypes. Partner 3 will be in charge of the characterization studies, as well as the development of new composite materials starting from selected samples.

After the proof of concept phase Partner 1 will be in charge of implementing the same process in industrial scale, after purchasing and installing the machine in industrial plant. There will be then a development phase in which the secondary raw materials will be generated in industrial scale by Partner 1, and used to develop of different circular type of paints which will be selected, characterized and validated with the support of Partner 1 and 2.

The entire process implementation will be put in place by purchasing and optimize a new plant specifically designed for the purpose. The plant acquisition is in the scope of the project. The necessary studies on the secondary raw materials, in terms of chemical-physical characterization, will be followed by Partner 1 with the competencies and instruments of Partner 2 and 3. Such testing phase will be necessary to carry on the development phase and the optimization of all variables involved in the process, in order to generate a sustainable and stable industrial process of raw material recovery and reuse. The studies will be accompanied by a full process energy balance evaluation, with the support of Partner 2 which owns the competencies to generate LCA’s (Life Cycle Assessment)
Advantages and Innovations
The Second LIFE Paints will expect to process up to 90% of its yearly non-compliant volumes generating reusable powders to be reintroduced the paint production cycle but also potentially applied in other industrial fields, as the materials are hybrid organic/inorganic system that can potentially act as a filler, additive or process aid.
Technical Specification or Expertise Sought
The partner requested is a distributor of paints and should already have a European market to sell the new products. The partner will be able to identify the best market for the new products given its knowledge of the paints market.
The partner can also be a producer of chemical specialties which could integrate in its products the secondary raw materials produced by Partner 1, as a low cost filler in order to give them a circular character.
It should be able to accomplish the integration process (formulation) by using its own specific competencies in the field of application.
Stage of Development
  • Lab tested
Sustainable Development Goals
  • Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
  • Goal 13: Climate Action
  • Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being
  • Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
  • Goal 5: Gender Equality
IPR status
  • Secret know-how

Partner Sought

Expected Role of a Partner
The partner requested will be interested on giving commercial value to the circular paints produced by Partner 1, by promoting and selling them in point of sales and/or to private specialists. The action perimeter will be EU area and will have to disseminate the technology through one or more EU countries.
The same partner could also be a producer of chemical specialties which could integrate the secondary raw materials produced by Partner 1 in its products, as a low cost filler in order to give them a circular character. It should be anyway able to accomplish the integration process (formulation) by using its own specific competencies in the field of application.
The partner will be able to account all related project costs, including personnel, promotion, services etc.
Type and Size of Partner
  • Big company
  • SME 50 - 249
Type of partnership
  • Research and development cooperation agreement

Call details

Framework program
  • Climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials
Call title and identifier
Circular Economy and Quality of Life - Standard Action Projects (SAP)
LIFE-2024-SAP-ENV
Anticipated project budget
2.200.000
Coordinator required
No
Deadline for EoI
Deadline of the call
Project duration in weeks
104
Project title and acronym
Second LIFE Paints

Dissemination

Market keywords
  • 08004002 - Chemical and solid material recycling
Sector Groups Involved
  • Construction
Targeted countries
  • Spain
  • Germany
  • France
  • Netherlands
  • Czechia
  • Austria