Helmut Lingemann declared the 8th Global Bioplastics Award winner

(Berlin, Germany) closed the first day with the announcement of the 2013 winner of the Global Bioplastics Award. Somewhat surprisingly, the winner came from an industry not normally known for embracing the use of bioplastics: Helmut Lingemann GmbH & Co.KG, a company specialized in the production of aluminum profiles for the insulated glass industry. It was presented with the award for its development of a new spacer system for double and triple insulating glass units called Nirotec Evo, in which functional use is made of bioplastic.

As presenter of the award Michael Thielen of Bioplastics Magazine noted: "It's what happens when modern thermal insulation technology meets modern materials. Plus, it's an application that offers potential for high volumes of bioplastics." Fortuitously, it's also one that fits particularly well with this year's conference's motto: "Building a Biobased Future for Europe."

Wolfgang Bauer, who accepted the award on behalf of Helmut Lingemann, expressed his thanks, saying that it was an honor the company had not expected. "Many people worked hard to transform an idea into a great product. Thank you very much," he said.

Two contestants, who finished with the same number of points, were tied for second place. They were: Kuender & Co. and SUPLA Material Technology Co, who collaborated on the world's first bioplastic AIO (all-in-one) touch screen computer housing; and Pharmafilter, a Dutch company offering offers a complete new waste management system for care centers (hospitals, nursing homes, etc.).

The international panel of five judges selected Helmut Lingemann as the winner because, as one of the judges noted: "We were particularly impressed by the way this company was thinking out of the box. They could have gone the traditional route and used a petroleum-based plastic, but instead decided to be truly innovative."

The company's innovative Nirotec Evo spacer is a so-called warm-edge profile, produced from stainless steel foil combined with a tailor-made blend of biopolymers based on PLA modified with additives, which fully meets the requirements for this application. Warm edge spacers significantly reduce the problem of condensation water forming - a problem that occurs when the surface temperature of a thermal glazing windowpane inside a room drops below the dewpoint temperature of the ambient air. Their use improves the heat insulation values of windows and doors in the transition sections from glass to sash profiles.

Helmut Lingemann previously manufactured these systems from stainless steel alone. When the company decided to use another material, it spent four years on testing and development.

"From the outset, we thought if we were going to use something other than steel, we wanted to make a sustainable choice. We are the only ones who use bioplastic - all our competitors use traditional plastics," Bauer said. "The material meets all our requirements - providing high strength and structural reinforcement, low thermal conductivity, no electrostatic charging, optimum adhesion characteristics - with the extra advantage that, with the biopolymer, there is absolutely no fogging at all."