Solutions that are born from innovation at Grupo Plastilene

Soluciones que nacen de la innovación en Grupo Plastilene

Hablar de innovación en Grupo Plastilene es hablar de evolución constante. Es una forma de construir soluciones que generan valor desde diferentes frentes: materiales, procesos, circularidad, desarrollo tecnológico, investigación y cultura laboral.

Durante el Día de la Innovación, destacamos algunos avances que hoy reflejan esa trayectoria y demuestran cómo la innovación también puede ser circular, funcional y estar orientada a un propósito.

La innovación también es circular.

En Grupo Plastilene, cada desafío se convierte en una oportunidad para mejorar, ser más eficientes y planificar con anticipación.

Como el papel: nuevas soluciones monomateriales

Una de estas iniciativas es Paperlike , una familia de materiales desarrollados para sustituir estructuras multimateriales. Esta innovación representa un compromiso con soluciones más sencillas, comenzando por su composición, con una mayor probabilidad de ser recicladas y altamente funcionales en sus aplicaciones.

Actualmente, Paperlike se utiliza en sectores como el lácteo, la panadería y la cárnica. Esto demuestra que es posible desarrollar materiales que respondan a las necesidades del mercado, al tiempo que se avanza hacia soluciones alternativas con mayor potencial de circularidad.

ReTray: una bandeja reciclable como alternativa al EPS.

A partir de Paperlike, el Grupo desarrolló ReTray, una bandeja concebida como sustituto del EPS. Este desarrollo busca preservar el rendimiento técnico que requieren ciertas aplicaciones, al tiempo que propone una solución alineada con una visión más circular.

ReTray refleja cómo la innovación puede tomar una necesidad concreta del mercado y convertirla en una alternativa con mejores perspectivas para el presente y el futuro del embalaje.

Ciclolene®: Resinas PCR 100% nacionales

La innovación de Grupo Plastilene también se manifiesta en la transformación de residuos. Mediante Reciclene, los residuos plásticos se convierten en resinas recicladas certificadas que dan origen a Ciclolene®, resinas 100% nacionales procedentes de material posconsumo.

Este desarrollo demuestra que la economía circular no es solo un concepto, sino una posibilidad real para nuevos procesos y productos. Es una forma concreta de reincorporar los materiales al ciclo productivo y aumentar el valor de lo recuperado.

El Grupo ha incorporado el PCR a soluciones comerciales, como el envasado retráctil para bebidas, las bolsas de la compra y el embalaje secundario para la industria láctea.

Innovar también implica mejorar los procesos.

Innovation does not always start with a new product. Many times it is also found in improvements. In this way, all the companies of the Group have developed structural improvements and processes that allow reduction in time, material optimization, and decreasing the weight of certain packaging.

These improvements have an important impact on operations and reflect a key idea: innovating is not only creating something new, but also finding new, more efficient, sustainable, and functional ways to work.

The innovation is also built on research

Looking into the future also requires strengthening development capabilities. That’s why, at the Group we have promoted its long-term flexible film R&D development in the US, a bet that broadens the reach of research and opens up new possibilities for processes and products tomorrow.

This center represents a strategic capability of exploring new structures, validating materials, evaluating performance, and accelerating the development of solutions that answer to needs that are increasingly more specific in the market.From there the research turned into a tool to forecast trends, strengthen technical knowledge and support projects that require more depth when it comes to formula, tests, and validation.

The bet for R&D also allows to connect innovation better with customer and industry challenges. This is not only about creating new materials, but understanding how they must behave in real life conditions, what properties must be met, how they can support process efficiency and how they can align to sustainability, circularity, and performance objectives that the market is demanding today.

That’s how research turns into a base to make better decisions, develop more concrete solutions, and move innovation forward in the Group towards new applications, sectors, and opportunities.

A culture that invites innovation

Besides the technical development, innovation at Grupo Plastilene also starts from the creation of a more involved culture. Today, the innovation team, led by Yohana, works on consolidating a strategy that organizes, makes visible, and strengthens innovative projects within the Group.

This process has involved an important change. Before, most developments came directly from the development area. Today, at the Group there is an innovation line focused on new and disruptive projects with a high impact potential, especially for those that require more investment, research or articulation between different areas.

As part of this journey, members of the team participated in a training process with the Chamber of Commerce regarding the implementation of innovation based on technical legislation. That’s where a key need surfaced: to learn to improve communication of what we do in innovation, bring this closer to facilities and administrative personnel, as well as open spaces where more people can bring ideas forward.

Innovation intranet: a space to connect ideas

One of the first steps was the creation of the innovation intranet, developed on Google Sites by Cindy and Yohana, alongside Claudia and Laura Moya. This platform was born as an internal space to gather key information regarding the innovation strategy of the Group, its goals, mission, vision, values, pillars, processes, current projects, success stories, leaders, mentors, and innovation ecosystem.

More than an informative site, the intranet seeks to become an idea and needs center. A place where employees can learn about what is being built, understand the innovation process step by step and propose ideas that respond to real challenges within the organization.

The platform opens automatically when employees with computers and corporate emails enter with Chrome, making the information easily available to those who are part of the Group and promoting a better connection with innovation projects.

The first innovation challenge of the Group

As part of this strategy, we launched the first innovation challenge, focused on responding to a concrete question: how do we improve the innovation intranet?

We received a total of 11 proposals, an important sign of the existing interest of being a part of a more innovative work culture and sharing ideas.

The first place went to Byron Tecún, Technical Marketing Specialist at Technofilms, with his proposal “Connection InnoHub 360”. His idea was to transform the intranet from a static site into a more participatory platform, organized in three axes: a repository of collaborative challenges, where management can publish real problems and employees can propose solutions. A radar of circular economy trends, new packaging materials, carbon footprint reduction, and bioplastics. A visual database of prototypes to showcase developing projects, avoid doubling, and promote collaboration between facilities.

The second place was for María Paula Vélez, Postconsumer Polyolefins Buyer at Reciclene, with her proposal “Learning Roadmap” a strategy that focuses on bridging the gap between technology and employees in a simpler way. Her proposal includes microlearning capsules, digital insignias, public recognition, internal benefits, and mentorships for pairings of innovation leaders in each area.

Besides the winning proposals, this first challenge included the participation of employees who also provided valuable ideas to keep strengthening the intranet and the Group’s innovation culture. We especially thank  Catalina Contreras, Gabriel Jaramillo, Jennifer Zambrano, Nelson, Emerson, Néstor David Sombrero, Diana Karina Aguirre and María Paula Ricardo Incapienes, who were all part of this first call for proposals.

Su participación demuestra que la innovación no depende únicamente de un área o un proyecto específico, sino de la capacidad de escuchar diferentes puntos de vista, reconocer oportunidades de mejora y construir soluciones a partir de la experiencia de quienes viven estos procesos a diario.

Continuamos innovando con un propósito.

En Grupo Plastilene, la innovación forma parte de nuestra manera de entender el presente y de mirar hacia el futuro. Está presente en los materiales que desarrollamos, en los procesos que mejoramos, en las soluciones circulares que reforzamos, en la investigación que nos impulsa hacia nuevos caminos y en las ideas que nacen de nuestros equipos.