Who is behind arweco?
Introduction of the company
We are a medium-sized company from Visbek which is located in the federal state Lower Saxony. We have our roots in the production and distribution of wood flours, wood fibers and wood granulates. And we have been doing so for almost 75 years. True to our motto “Modern Material Milling”, we have also focused on the production of fibers from other natural materials, preferably from waste or side streams. The processing of grain husks has therefore been successfully implemented with a separate production line. We source the untreated raw materials from the wood-processing and food industries regionally from a radius of approx. 200 km around our premises. The safety of the raw materials is continuously guaranteed by internal and external quality controls. The processing of the natural fibers at our main plant is realized by using intelligent, adapted and material-friendly grinding and screening processes.
Advanced Biobased Compounds
The origins of arweco
Innovation and courage to go new ways are deeply rooted in our company DNA. This is why, with our many years of experience in the preparation and processing of various sidestream materials, we have also looked for opportunities to return them to the material cycle in a value-adding and meaningful way. About 5 years ago, we started researching and developing bioplastics filled with natural fibers. Our primary goal was to create a sustainable, bio-based alternative to conventional plastics. We can now be proud of the fact that we have a wide range of natural fiber compounds for various applications in our portfolio, which we market under the brand arweco “Advanced biobased Compounds”.
Our goals
Our philosophy
We have aimed to develop sustainable, bio-based compounds. Our philosophy is that the origin of the components used should be as regional as possible, the production of the compound should leave the lowest possible CO2 footprint and the energy required should be generated sustainably for the most part.
We achieve this through efficient process and supply chains, avoiding long transportation routes, processing side streams from the wood and food industries, patented processes and recipes using sustainable energy such as PV electricity or biomass combustion for drying and heating. The “end-of-life” classified sidesteram materials are not in competition with the food or animal feed industry.
Based on our many years of experience in the processing of natural fibers, we have two product lines for bio-based compounds in our range. The names indicate which natural fiber has been incorporated into the compound. While Lignura® Compounds contain wood fibers from domestic and PEFC-certified forestry, the Otura® Compounds are filled with processed oat husks from organic cultivation.
For both composites, different biopolymers with different levels of natural fiber content can be selected, allowing us to respond to a desired product property profile, e.g. biodegradability/composting in certain environments. On the other hand, we can also respond to different technical requirements for processing in injection molding, extrusion or 3D printing. The higher the proportion of natural fibers in the compound, the higher the price advantage!
Sustainability
Throughout the process chain
Sustainability and thus the reduction of our CO2 footprint is not only crucial to our products, but also to our processes. For us, sustainability begins with the selection of raw materials. Our raw materials from side streams come from sustainable cultivation and are sourced regionally. We prove this with PEFC certification for wood fiber and with the EU organic label for our oat hulls.
The regional sourcing of materials and the energy-saving and environmentally friendly mechanical processing using new patented methods and processes have a positive effect on the CO2 footprint. The recycled fibers are then processed together with the bioplastics to create our innovative bio-based compounds.
Sustainability is underlined by the inclusion of renewable energies in our process management. Heat for drying is generated by a biomass heating system, we have PV systems on the roofs to generate electricity and even the waste heat is fed back into the system via a heat recovery system. We committed ourselves to continuous improvement in the area of energy and environmental management according to DIN EN 50001 and DIN EN 14001.
Sustainable for us means that our products are largely biobased, i.e. made from renewable raw materials. This means that the carbon absorbed from the atmosphere during the growth phase of the plants remains bound in both the biopolymer and the natural fiber. Consequently, when composted or incinerated at the end of its life, only as much CO2 is released as was initially absorbed.
