At the end of their service life, energy chains often end up as industrial waste and are therefore incinerated. The problem: the emissions pollute the environment and valuable resources are lost forever. Igus has been counteracting this since 2019 with the 'Chainge' recycling program. Customers send discarded energy chains - from any manufacturer - to Cologne. There, Igus processes them into regranulate so that the material can be reused. In return, customers receive a voucher for sending in their old chains. "What started out as a small idea has rapidly gained momentum. Since the launch of 'Chainge', we have already collected and recycled over 60 tons of high-performance plastics. Half of this in 2022 alone," says Michael Blass, Managing Director of e-chain systems at Igus. Now they are thinking "recycling even bigger": in the future, other components made of engineering plastics will be included in the recycling program in addition to energy chains.

To speed up the recycling process, Igus is launching the new 'Chainge' online platform in October 2022. Owners of old plastic parts - such as semi-finished products or gear wheels - can submit a recycling request there, process returns and manage credits for the purchase of new Igus products. As part of the expansion of 'Chainge', Igus will also include additional locations in the program and further expand the recycling network. "As a result, we will no longer only be able to carry out recycling at our company headquarters in Cologne, but worldwide. Additional capacities with which we can make an even greater contribution to the circular economy," says Blass. In addition, the regranulate, which has so far only been used in the company's own injection molding, will be offered for sale on the platform. "This means that customers around the world can now also easily buy recycled material so that new, high-quality plastic components can be made from it."