An innovative collaboration between Touchpoint and Hesburger came up with the idea of reusing plastic boxes used to transport raw materials. Touchpoint, a business focused on sustainability, identified opportunities and an industry expert to make the idea a reality. Wiitta was involved in the brainstorming process.
Touchpoint is a workwear company focused on sustainable business. The company operates as a sales, marketing and production company, which subcontracts its production. Touchpoint’s mission is to find ‘closed-loop’ models that make the life cycle of workwear as ecological as possible.
The many lives of materials
– We implement the circular economy by using recycled materials in all possible applications. In addition, at the end of the working garment’s life cycle, we aim to produce a new raw material instead of it ending up as waste,” says Outi Luukko, Touchpoint’s Managing Director.
In addition to workwear, Hesburger sought new sustainable solutions from its partner Touchpoint. According to Luukko, Hesburger is constantly considering different models for implementing sustainable processes.
Open brainstorming
-We organised a brainstorming session with Hesburger and went through what kind of reusable materials they have. It turned out that the company has a lot of end-of-life plastic boxes, which are mainly used for transporting raw materials. So we set out to find ways to turn the boxes into trays, an essential utility for Hesburger’s restaurants.
This is where Wiitta stepped in, and was also involved in the brainstorming process. A collaboration was born, in which the raw material from Hesburger’s own plastic boxes was used to make trays.
Genuinely green
In addition to saving about 85% in the carbon footprint compared to new plastic, the project is also very domestic: the plastics are crushed and granulated in Western Finland (Suomen Käyttömuovi, Pomarkku), the mould was designed in Lahti (TSD & Engineering Oy, Lahti) and manufactured in Sastamala (SP-Koneistus, Sastamala). Finally, the trays will be manufactured at Wiita’s factory in Heinola. The project is therefore a model example of the domestic circular economy.
Luukko is also pleased with the cooperation.
– My hats off to Wiita for her entrepreneurial spirit and agility during the project. Their approach is very straightforward and very professional. In none of the cases has the lowest fence been breached, but the project has been taken forward in a considered manner, taking into account the development needs.
The cooperation has highlighted Wiita’s end-to-end product development expertise and customer-friendly service spirit.
Innovation made real
The project has already taken some time because, for example, food labelling takes time.
– When a project has a long time span, it requires a long surface from all parties involved. Changes in operations and processes take time. Getting food labels required several months of research,” says Luukko.
However, the restraint paid off, as the aim is to make all Hesburger trays from recycled materials in the future. And if it’s up to Luke, in collaboration with Wiita.
– We want to continue on the same path with Wiita because of their expertise and diligence. Based on this experience, I can wholeheartedly recommend venturing into circular economy projects with domestic forces!
Touchpoint is an internationally expanding workwear company that is a pioneer in the industry, providing sustainable solutions to the market and influencing the textile industry’s future through material choices and circular economy. Find out more about Touchpoint here!
Do you need a top professional to manufacture a plastic product? Contact us.
0