The projects are all managed by the European Commission’s Executive Agency for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (EASME) and receive funding from one of the programmes that EASME implements on behalf of the European Commission: Horizon 2020 Energy Efficiency, Horizon 2020 Environment, COSME, LIFE, and the European Innovation Council pilot’s SME Instrument.

The projects include energy retrofit packages to make existing buildings more energy efficient, a lighting system combining sustainability and design, a solution to and recover valuable raw materials from complex construction and demolition waste, an alternative to plywood made from mixed plastic waste and innovative noise-reducing asphalt mixes.

The European Commission’s stand is located in the “Hall Sud”. The 40 beneficiaries will showcase their products and solutions developed to help the EU’s transition to a low-carbon, resource-efficient economy.

In addition the LIFE programme will as well host the session Financing green and circular economy businesses: opportunities under the EU LIFE programme. The session will include an overview of the programme, inspirational projects and support for close-to-market solutions.

The session will be chaired by Angelo Salsi, head of the LIFE & CIP Eco-Innovation unit of the Executive Agency for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (EASME), together with representatives of the Italian Ministry of Environment and Italy's National Contact Point for the LIFE programme. Check the agenda.

Ecomondo attracts over 116,000 visitors and 1,200 exhibitors each year. The 2018 edition will focus on the reuse and valorisation of organic and non-organic waste, alternative raw materials and industrial eco-design, the rehabilitation of contaminated areas and the bio-economy. Alongside Ecomondo, a large exhibition, the Key Energy Expo, will feature energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions and applications.



Meet the 40 EU-funded Projects at ECOMONDO 2018

Tuesday, 6 November

Morning (9.00 - 13.00):

URBANREC: new approaches for the valorisation of URBAN bulky waste into high added value recycled products;

DECISIVE: a decentralized management scheme for innovative valorization of urban biowaste;

Waste4Think: moving towards life cycle thinking by integrating advanced waste management systems;

PLA4COFFEE: LIFE-PLA4COFFE project will demonstrate a new improved production process for coffee capsules based on PLA as a substitute for PE, PET and aluminium

SIMPLA: support of small and medium-sized municipalities in harmonising their energy and mobility plans, offering step-by-step guidance and dedicated training and coaching sessions;

P2Endure: promotion of evidence-based innovative solutions for deep renovation based on prefabricated Plug-and-Play systems in combination with on-site robotic 3D-printing and Building Information Modeling (BIM), demonstrated and monitored at 10 real projects in 4 geo-clusters with EU-wide replication potentials;

Innovate: motivate homeowners to carry out deep energy retrofits of private residential buildings. In order to facilitate this process, the project will develop attractive energy retrofit packages;

Enterprise Europe Network (EEN): it helps businesses innovate and grow on an international scale. It is the world’s largest support network for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international ambitions. The Network is active in more than 60 countries worldwide. It rings together 3,000 experts from more than 600 member organisations – all-renowned for their excellence in business support.

ecoBirdy: it upcycles old and unused plastic toys into 100% clean and safe children’s design furniture 100% made in Europe. Behind ecoBirdy there is a small creative company of 2 designers who cooperate with 2 other manufacturing companies.

Buzzi&Buzzi: it is an innovative design company from Italy that produces sustainable lightning solutions in contemporary design.

REMAGHIC: it is a Pilot Plant demonstrator to recycle Magnesium from Automotive scrap and to alloy it with Rare Earth Elements for Aerospace, Automotive and Biotech applications.

SCALE : it develops innovative technologies for the efficient exploitation of bauxite residues and acid wastes, to economically and sustainably extract Scandium for Aerospace and high tech industries applications.

ENSUREAL: it optimises the Pedersen production process, generating useful by-products such as fertilisers and soil improver, cast-iron and critical raw material concentrates.

REMOVAL : it removes the waste streams from primary Aluminium production in EU, implementing a near-zero waste process into 6 pilot plants.

Afternoon (13.30 – 18.00)

PAPERCHAIN: new market niches for the Pulp and Paper Industry waste based on circular economy approaches;

CarE-Service: circular economy business models for innovative hybrid and electric mobility through advanced reuse and remanufacturing technologies and services;

CIRC-PACK: towards circular economy in the plastic packaging value chain;

PolyCE: post-consumer high-tech recycled polymers for a circular economy;

I SharE LIFE: reducing the environmental impact of car sharing by demonstrating innovative e-car sharing models aiming at reducing pollutants and mitigating emissions of GHG in small and mid-sized urban areas.

SIMPLA: support of small and medium-sized municipalities in harmonising their energy and mobility plans, offering step-by-step guidance and dedicated training and coaching sessions;

P2Endure: promotion of evidence-based innovative solutions for deep renovation based on prefabricated Plug-and-Play systems in combination with on-site robotic 3D-printing and Building Information Modeling (BIM), demonstrated and monitored at 10 real projects in 4 geo-clusters with EU-wide replication potentials;

Innovate: motivate homeowners to carry out deep energy retrofits of private residential buildings. In order to facilitate this process, the project will develop attractive energy retrofit packages;

Enterprise Europe Network (EEN): it helps businesses innovate and grow on an international scale. It is the world’s largest support network for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international ambitions. The Network is active in more than 60 countries worldwide. It brings together 3,000 experts from more than 600 member organisations – all-renowned for their excellence in business support;

ecoBirdy: it upcycles old and unused plastic toys into 100% clean and safe children’s design furniture 100% made in Europe. Behind ecoBirdy there is a small creative company of 2 designers who cooperate with 2 other manufacturing companies.

Buzzi&Buzzi: it is an innovative design company from Italy that produces sustainable lightning solutions in contemporary design.

REMAGHIC: it is a Pilot Plant demonstrator to recycle Magnesium from Automotive scrap and to alloy it with Rare Earth Elements for Aerospace, Automotive and Biotech applications.

SCALE : it develops innovative technologies for the efficient exploitation of bauxite residues and acid wastes, to economically and sustainably extract Scandium for Aerospace and high tech industries applications.

ENSUREAL: it optimises the Pedersen production process, generating useful by-products such as fertilisers and soil improver, cast-iron and critical raw material concentrates.

REMOVAL : it removes the waste streams from primary Aluminium production in EU, implementing a near-zero waste process into 6 pilot plants.



Wednesday, 7 November

Morning (9.00 - 13.00):

CloseWEEE : integrated solutions for pre-processing electronic equipment, closing the loop of post-consumer high-grade plastics, and advanced recovery of critical raw materials antimony and graphite;

ECOBULK : circular process for eco-designed bulky products and internal car parts;

ORAMA : optimising quality of information in raw materials data collection across Europe;

HISER : holistic innovative solutions for an efficient recycling and recovery of valuable raw materials from complex construction and demolition waste;

LIFE-HEAT-R : it provides a breakthrough in Energy Harvesting solutions, specifically for waste heat recovery for industries, which have heat intensive processes

P2Endure: promotion of evidence-based innovative solutions for deep renovation based on prefabricated Plug-and-Play systems in combination with on-site robotic 3D-printing and Building Information Modeling (BIM), demonstrated and monitored at 10 real projects in 4 geo-clusters with EU-wide replication potentials;

SIMPLA: support of small and medium-sized municipalities in harmonising their energy and mobility plans, offering step-by-step guidance and dedicated training and coaching sessions;

Fit-to-NZEB: design and deliver innovative training schemes on deep energy renovation of buildings at all levels of the educational and training system in South-eastern Europe

ECOSHEET-PRO: an eco-innovative and cost effective alternative to plywood made from mixed plastic waste, suitable for high strength applications in the construction industry

Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) : it helps businesses innovate and grow on an international scale. It is the world’s largest support network for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international ambitions. The Network is active in more than 60 countries worldwide. It brings together 3,000 experts from more than 600 member organisations – all-renowned for their excellence in business support.

Buzzi&Buzzi: it is an innovative design company from Italy that produces sustainable lightning solutions in contemporary design.

REMAGHIC: it is a Pilot Plant demonstrator to recycle Magnesium from Automotive scrap and to alloy it with Rare Earth Elements for Aerospace, Automotive and Biotech applications.

SCALE : it develops innovative technologies for the efficient exploitation of bauxite residues and acid wastes, to economically and sustainably extract Scandium for Aerospace and high tech industries applications.

ENSUREAL: it optimises the Pedersen production process, generating useful by-products such as fertilisers and soil improver, cast-iron and critical raw material concentrates.

REMOVAL : it removes the waste streams from primary Aluminium production in EU, implementing a near-zero waste process into 6 pilot plants.

Afternoon (13.30 – 18.00):

MADFORWATER: development and application of integrated technological and management solutions for wastewater treatment and efficient reuse in agriculture tailored to the needs of Mediterranean African countries;

SMART-PLANT: scale-up of low-carbon footprint material recovery techniques in existing wastewater treatment plants;

LIFE CHIMERA : Sustainable and innovative treatment for poultry manure on site in the farm, CHIMERA’s ambition consists of transforming waste into a fertilizer, while producing energy.

Fit-to-NZEB: design and deliver innovative training schemes on deep energy renovation of buildings at all levels of the educational and training system in South-eastern Europe

ENERWATER: develop, validate and to disseminate an innovative standard methodology for continuously assessing, labelling and improving the overall energy performance of Wastewater Treatment Plants;

ECOSHEET-PRO: an eco-innovative and cost effective alternative to plywood made from mixed plastic waste, suitable for high strength applications in the construction industry

Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) : it helps businesses innovate and grow on an international scale. It is the world’s largest support network for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international ambitions. The Network is active in more than 60 countries worldwide. It brings together 3,000 experts from more than 600 member organisations – all-renowned for their excellence in business support.

Buzzi&Buzzi: it is an innovative design company from Italy that produces sustainable lightning solutions in contemporary design.

REMAGHIC: it is a Pilot Plant demonstrator to recycle Magnesium from Automotive scrap and to alloy it with Rare Earth Elements for Aerospace, Automotive and Biotech applications.

SCALE : it develops innovative technologies for the efficient exploitation of bauxite residues and acid wastes, to economically and sustainably extract Scandium for Aerospace and high tech industries applications.

ENSUREAL: it optimises the Pedersen production process, generating useful by-products such as fertilisers and soil improver, cast-iron and critical raw material concentrates.

REMOVAL : it removes the waste streams from primary Aluminium production in EU, implementing a near-zero waste process into 6 pilot plants.



Thursday, 8 November

Morning (9.00 - 13.00):

MOSES : management of crop water saving with enterprise services;

Saltgae : SaltaGae is a demonstration project to prove the techno-economic feasibility of using algae to treat saline wastewater from the food industry.

Water2Return : Water2return recovers and recycles nutrients turning wastewater into added-value products for a circular economy in agriculture;

LIFE RE MIDA: LIFE RE Mida aims at demonstrating the technical, economic and environmental sustainability of innovative technologies for landfill gas management with low calorific value, and their contribution in reducing the greenhouse effect.

TASIO : develop and demonstrate and innovative Waste-Heat recovery system for Energy Intensive industries based on an advanced ORC technology;

ALS-2 - Acidless Separation Technology: development of an innovative chemical-less separation technology for the refining of gold and other precious metals;

Buzzi&Buzzi: it is an innovative design company from Italy that produces sustainable lightning solutions in contemporary design.

EE-METAL: it removes the organizational barriers faced by metalworking SMEs by adapting and standardizing methods and technologies and ESCOs' promoting access the sector. Furthermore EE-METAL promotes the development and adoption of relevant innovative financial solutions.

Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) : it helps businesses innovate and grow on an international scale. It is the world’s largest support network for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international ambitions. The Network is active in more than 60 countries worldwide. It brings together 3,000 experts from more than 600 member organisations – all-renowned for their excellence in business support.

Buzzi&Buzzi: it is an innovative design company from Italy that produces sustainable lightning solutions in contemporary design.

Afternoon (13.30 – 18.00):

Urban_Wins: urban metabolism accounts for building waste management innovative networks and strategies

UrBAN-WASTE: urban strategies for waste management in tourist cities

FORCE: cities cooperating for circular economy;

LIFE ECO-PULPLAST: The LIFE ECO-PULPLAST project aims at demonstrating the possibility to recycle pulper waste – the industrial waste of paper mills that use recovered paper – in the manufacturing of eco-sustainable plastic pallets.

TASIO : develop and demonstrate and innovative Waste-Heat recovery system for Energy Intensive industries based on an advanced ORC technology;

ALS-2 - Acidless Separation Technology: development of an innovative chemical-less separation technology for the refining of gold and other precious metals;

Buzzi&Buzzi: it is an innovative design company from Italy that produces sustainable lightning solutions in contemporary design.

Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) : it helps businesses innovate and grow on an international scale. It is the world’s largest support network for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international ambitions. The Network is active in more than 60 countries worldwide. It brings together 3,000 experts from more than 600 member organisations – all-renowned for their excellence in business support.



Friday, 9 November

Morning (9.00 - 13.00):

4RinEU: development of a solution to renovate residential buildings for energy efficiency, consisting of retrofitting prefabricated facade elements as well as technical building systems;

INSUPANEL: light plate of architectural concrete, closing of buildings and get a thermal bridge break of 90%

LIFE PSLOOP: The PolyStyreneLoop project demonstrates how the polystyrene value chain meets the fundamental requirements of a circular economy, by ensuring a technically, economically and environmentally sustainable closed-loop recycling system for PS foams.

Pro-GET-One: demonstration of innovations to combine the deep renovation of buildings for energy efficiency with structural repairs in areas of seismic risk;

NATEDE project: The NATEDE project is a breakthrough indoor air-cleaning technology targeting not just the elimination of indoor air pollution but also the creation of healthy new air thanks to a powerful combination of real plants with technology and design

Enterprise Europe Network (EEN): it helps businesses innovate and grow on an international scale. It is the world’s largest support network for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with international ambitions. The Network is active in more than 60 countries worldwide. It brings together 3,000 experts from more than 600 member organisations – all-renowned for their excellence in business support.

Afternoon (13.30 – 18.00):

4RinEU: development of a solution to renovate residential buildings for energy efficiency, consisting of retrofitting prefabricated facade elements as well as technical building systems;