Events

Circular Economy and Industrial Symbiosis at SMAU trade show with Sfridoo

Sfridoo, the Circular Economy company, is excited to announce its participation in the prestigious innovation fair SMAU, which will take place in Milan on October 18 and 19.

Sfridoo Staff

Pictured is the Sfridoo team, wearing white coats , inside a factory filled with production waste

Sfridoo at SMAU Milano

Sfridoo, the Circular Economy company, is excited to announce its participation in the prestigious innovation fair SMAU, which will take place in Milan on 18 and 19 October.

SMAU has always been a reference point for innovation and technology in Italy, attracting the brightest minds and most innovative companies in the country.

This year, Sfridoo joins the prestigious list of participants, bringing with it its mission to promote the circular economy and industrial symbiosis.

Sfridoo is one of the 10 startups selected by the Emilia-Romagna Region to participate in SMAU for its outstanding contribution to the Circular Economy, providing companies with a matchmaking platform for the exchange of waste, by-products and secondary raw materials.

This innovative approach not only reduces waste, but also creates new sustainable business opportunities.

The growth of resource consumption, opportunities, and the European framework

By 2050, resource consumption will have tripled compared to today, according to the European Scaler project.

This makes it crucial to incentivise efficient production and better reuse of resources.

Europe, with the highest net imports per person in the world, is heavily dependent on raw material and energy inputs.

Secure access to resources has become a strategic economic issue, with potential negative social and environmental impacts on third countries.

In 2007, the total amount of raw materials used in the EU economy exceeded 8 billion tonnes.

Greater reuse of raw materials through improved ‘industrial symbiosis’ in the EU could generate significant savings of EUR 1.4 billion per year and revenue of EUR 1.6 billion from sales.

Industrial Symbiosis in Italy: between savings, enhancement and collaboration

The Italian industrial landscape is going through a phase of profound transformation, driven by a growing desire for sustainability and circular economy.

One of the protagonists of this revolution is undoubtedly Industrial Symbiosis (IS), a practice that is demonstrating how, through collaboration and innovation, waste can become real resources.

Here are three figures that underline this trend according to the companies surveyed in the Circular Economy 2022 report of the POLIMI Graduate School of Management:

  1. Waste turned into resources: in 95 per cent of cases, the waste used by companies in the IS landscape consists of materials as waste or products. This indicates a remarkable capacity for reuse and valorisation of what was once destined for landfill.

  2. Sustainability and economic efficiency: even more impressive, in 92 per cent of cases, companies that have adopted IS solutions have experienced significant savings in waste materials. Tangible proof that sustainability and cost-effectiveness can go hand in hand.

  3. Inter-company collaboration: another significant figure is that of inter-company collaboration. In 84% of the cases, companies gave their waste to third-party companies specialising in upcycling and downcycling. This indicates a network vision, in which the ‘waste’ of one company becomes the ‘resource’ of another.

During SMAU, the Sfridoo team will present the latest innovations and digital solutions developed to generate crucial data in the waste sector.

With the goal of becoming a waste data company, Sfridoo is revolutionising waste management and the approach to secondary resources.

Marco Battaglia, CEO of Sfridoo, comments:
“SMAU is an extraordinary opportunity to share our vision of a more sustainable future with a large audience. We are excited to present our innovative solutions and connect with other creative minds in the industry. We are proud to have been selected by the Emilia-Romagna Region for this important international trade fair and we thank for the opportunity”.

Sfridoo Staff

Sfridoo is the Italian company that, through the principles of Circular Economy, helps small-medium enterprises and large industrial groups, to innovate, thanks to the adoption of different solutions, their waste management processes

Article updated on 17/11/2023