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Please list some of your products, which offer improved environmental performance.
Plastic Additives:
- Vitamin-E based additives for food contact plastics and pharma blister packaging
- Additives which facilitate the recycling of plastics (Ciba® RECYCLOBLENDTMand Ciba® RECYCLOSTAB® )
- Environmentally degradable agricultural films
- Anti-fogging additives for greenhouse films, which reduce the need for additional heating
- Anti-algicide marine paint additives which contain no metals
- Plastics additives extend useful life; reduce need to dispose
- Metal-free and ashless forms of oil additives (Ciba® IRGALUBE®)
Coating Effects:
- Solvent-free additives for powder coatings
- Photo-initiators for UV cured coatings (no solvent waste)
- Heavy-metal free organic pigments
- High-end pigments with superior light fastness and covering properties (reduced amount of pigments and less re-painting)
Water & Paper Treatment:
- Flocculants for cleaning effluent
- Mineral tailings removal products (less waste to dispose)
- Paper whiteners in slurry formulation avoiding urea as solvent
Home & Personal Care:
- Environmentally friendly optical brighteners
- Active ingredients reducing the need for aggressive chemicals during the hair-dyeing process
An example of the continuing trend towards stricter legislation is the European Union’s Council directives regarding the use of volatile organic compounds (VOC). The largest industry sector using organic solvents is the paints industry, which accounts for 38% of all solvents used in the EU. Ciba helps reduce VOC emission through the development of new aqueous pigment dispersions like Ciba® UNISPERSE® S.
New pigment concentrates have been specially developed to provide reliable pigmentation of solvent-free powder coatings. This technology is poised to take over from the traditional wet coating, which uses organic solvents. While today most of the powder coating is done using thermal curing, the hardening of powder coatings with ultraviolet light will be a real breakthrough as it provides tremendous energy savings.
Do you perform life cycle assessments of your products?
We are committed to continuously improving EHS performance through goal setting and measurement. Ecological efficiency will be established as the basis for the continuous reduction of the environmental impact of our products and manufacturing processes. We strive to improve eco-efficiency through the life cycle of key products in close cooperation with suppliers and customers.
At the moment, there is no universally accepted analysis method for life cycle assessment (LCA). Different methodologies are more suitable for different types of analysis than others. We were a pioneer in working with S. Schaltegger and A. Sturm during their PhD studies on developing LCA modeling.
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Have you developed recycling or disposal concepts for your products?
We have made great strides with our primary customers in the industrial sector in the use of reusable packaging materials for our products. However, since our primary customers are not in the direct retail market, recycling and disposal concepts at that level have been negligible.
Do your products satisfy environmental labeling standards?
We do not sell to consumer markets, so we do not label our products with traditional consumer warnings, but follow the legally required labeling standards for our industrial products. Many customers use our products to successfully apply for eco-labels of their own: German Blue Angel or Nordic Green Swan (for paper products). In addition, Colgate required U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval to make its claim that our product “fights gingivitis” in its Total toothpaste (one of the leading toothpaste brands in the U.S.).
We have several guidance notes which deal directly and indirectly with the safe labeling of our products, including: Hazardous Waste Management, Safe Transport of Chemicals, Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods, Hazard Labels, Check-list for the Transport of Chemicals including Dangerous Goods by Road, and Ensuring Safety and Environmental Compatibility of our Products.
What are the main environmental criteria considered in the development of a new product?
Durability, material and energy intensity, toxicity, and customer and consumer safety.
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