We hear a lot of talk about open innovation. How does it work at Arkema?
Denis Bortzmeyer – Open innovation has always been part of the Arkema mindset. Our R&D is rooted in openness and collaboration. Public-private platforms for collaborative research are real catalysts where we can pool our resources, share the most advanced equipment and pool a wide range of expertise in complementary fields. We feel it’s important to go out in search of “intellectual capital,” and the growing number of highlevel scientific initiatives that Arkema is forging with university researchers and major laboratories is really a reflection of that. Downstream, there’s no substitute for collaborative projects with companies from large industrial sectors. Our major research projects — whether they involve composite materials, hydrogen, electronics, batteries or a host of other technologies — are all conducted alongside application partners, institutes, start-ups, SMEs or large corporations, all recognized for their expertise in their fields. In our view, bringing different ecosystems together is the best way to address each market’s needs and bring projects to fruition, and hence to the market, more quickly.
In concrete terms, how do you go about setting up a technical partnership?
Denis Bortzmeyer – There are several examples I could give. In France, in early 2020, Arkema joined forces with a start-up, Nexoon, and the M2P Technological Research Institute (IRT-M2P) in Metz to develop a new modular construction concept using components in composite materials. Arkema is providing its Elium® resin, which is the world’s only liquid thermoplastic resin that can be used to make recyclable composites, while Nexoon is contributing its expertise in the construction of modular buildings. The IRT-M2P boasts incredible expertise and equipment for developing profiles using the pultrusion process. That same resin is key to another collaboration as well, aimed this time at manufacturing the first fully recyclable wind turbine blade. Arkema is tackling that challenge as part of the Zebra consortium (Zero wastE Blade ReseArch), a top-level project led by the IRTJules Verne research center near Nantes; the consortium includes leading manufacturers and tech centers (CANOE, Engie, LM Wind Power, Owens Corning and Suez). We’re also forming collaborations of that kind in Asia and the United States, where we have a very active R&D operation.
How do you build sustainable development and ecodesign into your collaborative projects?
Denis Bortzmeyer – For the past several years, the need for sustainable development has been a guiding principle of our innovation strategy. Companies like ours have some of the best records of commitment in social and environmental responsibility. Take Zebra, for example: that project dovetails perfectly with Arkema’s policy of creating a circular economy for both its operations and its products. Recycling — and ecodesign more broadly, encompassing a product’s entire life cycle – need to be our watchwords when we’re developing new materials. Currently, more than 70% of our patents are connected in some way with sustainable development. Where our R&D efforts converge is their focus on responsible innovation that furthers Arkema’s aim of providing solutions that contribute to the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
