AGPU has been committed to the future-oriented material PVC in Germany for almost 30 years. The shift towards the development and manufacture of sustainable products offers the entire industry a wide range of opportunities. Both the PVC industry and AGPU are well positioned in this respect. Modern PVC products are not only reliable in their application, but also innovative in their properties and sustainable over their entire service life right through to recycling.
At the AGPU General Assembly at the Collegium Leoninum in Bonn, around 60 member companies set the course for the next steps. "The AGPU will become a national partner of VinylPlus, the sustainability programme of the European PVC industry," said Dr Axel Bruder, AGPU Chairman and member of the Executive Board of RENOLIT SE in Worms. The successful path that was embarked upon many years ago will now be continued. This also includes closer co-operation with VinylPlus and other associations in the European PVC network. In addition to further work, this will strengthen the expertise of the AGPU in Germany as well as the goals of VinylPlus at European level. In addition, the co-operation on both sides will create important synergy effects in the industry.
Also on the agenda of the AGPU members' meeting was the election of Stefan Valerius, Managing Director of Dekura GmbH, to the AGPU Board. The Höxter-based company is one of Europe's market leaders in the field of PVC recycling and old window utilisation. "With the election of Mr Valerius, the entire PVC value chain is once again represented on the AGPU Board," says AGPU Managing Director Thomas Hülsmann.
The members' meeting was followed by a round table of decision-makers from the PVC industry. In addition to Dr Rüdiger Baunemann, Managing Director of PlasticsEurope Deutschland e.V. and member of the AGPU Board, Dirk Jepsen, Managing Director of Ökopol - Institut für Ökologie und Politik GmbH, was also invited to speak. In his presentation, Mr Jepsen spoke about a current project that highlights the challenges of PVC recycling under REACH and waste legislation and proposes appropriate solutions. Dr Baunemann presented the European Commission's roadmap and the plastics industry's contribution to the European "Circular Economy Package" to the round table participants.
