UKCPN & KTN will be hosting a series of workshops to support collaboration for the next Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging competitions this summer.
The UK Circular Plastics Network (UKCPN) is pleased to announce that it will be holding a series of workshops via webinars in order to generate and support collaboration for the next funding competitions which will be released from the Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging challenge this summer.
The series will run weekly from 30th April and will cover the below topics. Please click on the individual links to submit an expression of interest to attend the webinar.
Collaboration workshops:
30 April 2020 – Realising food grade PP in the UK marketplace
07 May 2020 – Compostable packaging – what are the solutions for EoL?
14 May 2020 – Small format and medical packaging – solutions to divert from incineration
21 May 2020 – Low carbon non fossil polymers for packaging applications
28 May 2020 – Business models leading to reduced waste plastic going to landfill
04 June 2020 – Behaviour change leading to less packaging waste
11 June 2020 – Marking and tracking of packaging to make the supply chain more sustainable
18 June 2020 – Solutions for Films and flexibles in packaging applications
25 June 2020 – Packaging solutions suitable for reuse, refill and online delivery
The events will run over the course of a morning. The agenda for each event will cover the scope of the Smart Sustainable Plastics Packaging Challenge and the WRAP Pact targets . There will then be an opportunity to meet virtually with your co-attendees and then work together in an interactive focussed workshop session to generate some ideas for the solutions for each of the themed events.
These online events will give details about the ISCF Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging Challenge (SSPP) – a £60m business grant support initiative from UKRI, and will provide you with the opportunity to:
- Identify and link with new partners within the workshop theme
- Build, and/or join, consortia forming around forthcoming projects
- Discuss and refine your projects ideas with potential partners
- Gather information on forthcoming ISCF SSPP grant awards
These events are aimed at companies and research organisations that are interested in Smart Sustainable Plastic Packaging projects and will include information about support from UKRI for businesses, the scope and eligibility, and the kind of projects UKRI are looking for. The workshop will then be a highly participative guided and facilitated consortia/project building and proposal development exercise.
Following the event the KTN is committed to supporting the building of projects that will be able to apply for funding from this funding stream, calls which are expected in the summer of 2020.
Who should attend?
The event is suitable for anyone with an interest in participating in projects within the scope of the event theme. The aim is to have a variety of supply chain experience, with representatives from industry (small and large), academia, RTOs and other types of organisations with appropriate skills and expertise to address the SSPP challenge.
Note, the number of spaces available for each type of organisation is limited and we reserve the right to limit participation to one representative per organisation.
During the workshops:
You will be assigned a working group based on the information you provide us with during registration. We endeavour to match you with other partners with similar interests in order to get the most value from the collaboration. The working groups are potentially the starting point to a consortium – a REAL consortium. You may swap working groups if you realise that your expertise/interest is more in line with another group/call topic.
To start the series, a one-off open session, was held to determine some of the factors affecting the ability for the plastics community to function in the current Covid crisis. This webinar was held on 24th April – please click on the link below to view the recording of the webinar (please skip to 59 seconds for the start of the recording).
Recording: How is Covid-19 affecting your ability to innovate towards zero plastic waste?
Covid-19 is affecting us all, both personally and for the businesses we work in. View the recording of the webinar to hear from UKCPN Programme Lead, Sally Beken and Paul Davidson of UKRI about the funding opportunities that are planned for this summer and industry representatives with their thoughts on innovation.
