On 9th of August 2023, RITTEC 8.0 Umwelttechnik GmbH was chosen together with the Brazilian startups AIPER Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento de Bioprodutos Sustentáveis Ltda. and ESG Now Tecnologia Ltda. as winner of the Sustainability Open Innovation program from Lojas Renner S.A. From more than 150 solutions presented from 17 different countries, RITTEC with its revolPET® technology was selected as the best recycling solution. To follow the next steps, RITTEC will work together with Lojas Renner S.A. starting a proof-of-concept process with the aim of entering a long-term cooperation.

In November 2023, RITTEC organized a second roadshow in Brazil. Between 6th and 17th of August 2023, the revolBRAS project coordinators Carsten Eichert and Renan Louro Cardoso Franco visited Brazil to take the ideas and business models of the revolBRAS project further towards realization. During the two-week roadshow, the RITTEC representatives had the opportunity to meet in person with the revolBRAS project partners AHK- São Paulo, USP-Ribeirao Preto and Weee.do in order to continue the project in direct discussions. Visits also took place at potential future Brazilian partners, such as PET recyclers, PET manufacturers, brand manufacturers, associations and waste collector cooperatives. “The roadshow was a successful trip,” stated Renan Louro Cardoso Franco. “We were able to convince some customers that our revolPET® technology and our ideas for a long-term cooperation along the PET value chain are meaningful and were therefore able to take another important step towards technology implementation in the partner country.” 

Lastly, the first in-person revolBRAS project meeting took place in Germany on 26th of January 2024. All project partners had the opportunity to get to know the revolPET® technology in detail and to exchange ideas with each other. In addition to the accompanied visit at the revolPET® pilot plant at RITTEC, there was a tour at the Institute for Chemical and Thermal Process Engineering (ICTV) at the Technical University of Braunschweig. The new project partner HORIBA Europe GmbHintroduced itself there and was directly integrated into the discussion rounds on “technology” and “life cycle assessment”. The partners were particularly pleased about the two representatives from the University of Sao Paulo, who are currently in Germany as part of an exchange program and who took part in the project meeting.