The Centre for Research and Innovation in the Bio-Economy (CRIBE) is partnering with GreenCore Composites to develop a new green technology process that will allow wood fibre to be used in a number of new products for the packaging and building applications, such as pallets and various containers.
This new mixing process will be added to GreenCore’s existing NCell technology allowing GreenCore to widen the type of products in which glass fibre and other compounds such as plastics can be replaced with wood fibre composite materials.
The centre is providing $320,000 to GreenCore Composites for the project that will position GreenCore as a leader in natural fibre composites and Ontario as a leader in creating a more sustainable and greener economy.
GreenCore has already demonstrated that they are capable of replacing glass fibre reinforced compounds which are used in a wide variety of products but are extremely energy intensive to produce.
This wood fibre composite has been successfully piloted in many applications, from automotive parts, to rigid containers, furniture, and industrial products. The benefits include enhanced sustainability, reduced energy costs and lower carbon emissions. This technology is expected to grow GreenCore’s workforce from its current level of 6 employees to 40-45 by 2016.
Lorne Morrow CEO of CRIBE said;
There are so many benefits if we can replace the glass and plastic compounds used in a variety of consumer products with a compound made from a natural product like wood, not only are these type of products less energy intensive to produce but they are environmentally friendly and provide a new market for Ontario’s sustainably managed forest industry.
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