Sep 30 2013
On September 25, Laurel BioComposite LLC held an open house and ribbon cutting ceremony to recognize its recent move to its newly constructed 20,000-square-foot manufacturing facility. The developer of Bio-Res™ PE also announced completion of its first production line which is operational at a capacity of 7 million pounds a year.
(From l to r) Keith Knudsen, Security Bank, Mayor Mark Patefield, Maxine Moul, Nebraska State Director USDA, Gov. Dave Heineman, Tim Bearnes, CEO of Laurel BioComposites, Terry Wilkerson, Board Secretary, Boyd Ebberson, Board Chairman, Ray Schenk, Technical Director, Seth Harder, Board Member, Jeff Tourlemke, Board Member, Annette Junck, Business Manager, Dan Grams, Board Member, Mike Dunklau, Board Member
Tim Bearnes, CEO of Laurel BioComposite, was on hand to welcome special guests Gov. Dave Heineman, Nebraska State Director Maxine Moul, USDA Rural Development and Mayor Mark Patefield. “We held the event to celebrate some important milestones,” says Bearnes. “It also gave us the chance to thank a lot of people that supported our project from its inception and believe in our future.”
Laurel BioComposite’s mission Bearnes explains is to produce Bio-Res PE products from a renewable resource. “Our product replaces a portion of traditional plastic resins and creates a positive environmental impact by reducing the industry’s reliance on crude oil,” he says. “It remains our goal to manufacture a quality bio-based product at a cost effective price. We don’t make the plastic. We make the plastic greener.”
The new production line converts feedstock into a powder for thermoset applications or master batch pellets for use in thermoplastics applications such as injection molding. Phase II which includes a second production line and bulk material handling is underway. Completion of Phase II will raise Laurel BioComposite’s annual capacity to 48 million pounds.
Bio-Res products are able to economically raise the renewable or “green” content of plastic products by as much as 40 percent. The bio-material is available in pellet formulations which blend easily with polyethylene, polypropylene, polylactic acid and polyhydroxyalkanoates matrices. The product has been tested to replace 20 to 40 percent of the neat resin in a variety of manufacturing processes. Master batch pellets provide easy drop in to thermoplastics formulations. Bio-Res PE is especially suited for single-use products as well as applications for a variety of industries including shipping, lawn and garden, agriculture and automotive.
For more information about Bio-Res PE and Laurel BioComposite visit: www.laurelbiocomposite.com