What exactly is the difference between recycle, ucpcycle and repurpose. A bit lost? Let us make things clearer!

Recycling

Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and things. The initial materials recovered can be remade into something new. For example, plastic bottles that are collected and processed to be transformed into synthetic fibre. Recycling often requires industrial process and a lot of research and development to transform the wastes into another state.

=> At Smateria, our IKI collection is made from plastic that we recycle in-house through an innovative process.

Upcycling

Upcycling is the process of converting discarded materials into something of equal or greater value. For example, leftover scraps of material – also called excess – could be transformed through a low energy process into a new product of better value than the original material. An example of upcycling would be turning an unused t-shirt into a bag by re-cutting it. This is a low energy process, but still creates something new.

Upcycling prolongs the life of materials and significantly reduces the need for additional resources such as water and energy. Upcycling is considered a recycling technique, yet generally ‘recycling’ requires a technical process that transforms back to the state of the original material.

Re-purposing

Repurposing is to find a new use for an idea, product or material than the one for which it was originally intended. For example using copper tubes, generally used for plumbing, to design an industrial style shelf.

=>  At Smateria net is a repurposed material. It is traditionally used to create fishing nets or in the construction field.

IKI

Plastic recycling at Smateria

The IKI collection marks a turning point in the history of Smateria as
we launch our first line of bags and pouches that have been made from
recycled plastic using our innovative techniques to produce our very own
fabric.

More information on our in-house recycled fabric