Agreement has Taiwan-based conglomerate purchasing Ohio facility and cooperating on EV development.

Lordstown, Ohio-based Lordstown Motors Corp. has announced reaching an agreement in principle with Taiwan-based Hon Hai Technology Group (also known as Foxconn) to work jointly on Lordstown Motors’ electric vehicle (EV) programs at Lordstown Motors’ 6.2 million square foot production and assembly plant in that northeast Ohio city.

As part of the agreement, the two companies say they “will use commercially reasonable best efforts to negotiate a definitive agreement [in] which Foxconn would purchase the Lordstown facility, excluding Lordstown Motors’ hub motor assembly line, battery module and packing line assets, certain intellectual property rights and other excluded assets, for $230 million.”

If completed, the agreement would provide Foxconn with a North American presence in the EV light-duty commercial fleet truck market. Hon Hai, under the Foxconn brand, has become one of the 25 largest companies in the world (coming in at number 22 on this year’s Fortune Global 500 list) primarily because of its contract manufacturing services in the computer, telecom and electronics sectors.

Lordstown Motors, meanwhile, encountered trouble earlier this year when its former executive team seemingly embellished the volume of pre-orders for the company’s Endurance EV pickup truck.

“We have high expectations through this partnership that we will be able to successfully integrate our resources with Lordstown Motor,” states Young Liu, chair of Hon Hai Technology Group. “In addition to achieving the goal of moving ahead our timeline to establish EV production capacity in North America, it also reflects Foxconn’s flexibility in providing design and production services for different EV customers. This mutually beneficial relationship is an important milestone for Foxconn’s EV business and our transformation strategy. I believe that the innovative design of the [Lordstown] Endurance pickup truck, with its unique hub motors, delivers an advantageous user experience and has manufacturing efficiencies. It will undoubtedly thrive under our partnership and business model.”

The parties describe the agreement as non-binding and subject to the negotiation and execution of definitive agreements. A related agreement has Foxconn purchasing approximately $50 million of Lordstown Motors’ common stock directly from Lordstown Motors.

The companies say they intend to negotiate a contract manufacturing agreement whereby Foxconn would manufacture Lordstown Motors’ Endurance full-size pickup truck at its Lordstown facility. Lordstown Motors would also agree to provide Foxconn “with certain rights with respect to future vehicle programs.”

The companies say they also have agreed to “explore licensing arrangements for additional pickup truck programs.”

Should the definitive agreements be finalized, Lordstown Motors would enter into a long-term lease for a portion of the existing facility and Foxconn would offer employment to “agreed-upon Lordstown operational and manufacturing employees.”

Adds the companies, “In addition, [the Lordstown] facility would serve as a ‘speed to market’ asset that would also support Foxconn's partner and customer, [California-based] Fisker Inc.”

Comments Daniel Ninivaggi, CEO of Lordstown Motors, “We are excited about the prospect of joining forces with a world-class smart manufacturer like Foxconn and believe the relationship would provide operational, technology and supply chain benefits to our company and accelerate overall scaled vehicle production and increase employment in the Lordstown facility. The partnership would allow Lordstown Motors to take advantage of Foxconn’s extensive manufacturing expertise and cost-efficient supply chain, while freeing up Lordstown Motors to focus on bringing the Endurance to market, developing service offerings for our fleet customers and designing and developing innovative new vehicle models.”

Investments in EV production are being closely watched by auto dismantlers and by auto shredder operators, with both sectors likely to make changes to their business models when EVs become more common in the end-of-life vehicle (ELV) stream.

Evolution Deinking Primer and Evolution Caustic Resistant Over Print Varnish aim to increase the yield of material in the recycling process.

Flint Group Narrow Web, Rogers, Minnesota, has released two UV-flexo coating products to improve the recyclability for shrink sleeves and pressure-sensitive labels. Flint Group’s new coating products are available in North America and will soon be available in Europe and other regions.

Flint Group’s Evolution Deinking Primer for shrink sleeves and the Evolution Caustic Resistant Over Print Varnish (OPV) for self-adhesive labels are designed to increase the yield of material in the recycling process. The company says both of these new coatings have been recognized by the Washington-based Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR) to comply with the critical guidance for polyethylene terephthalate (PET) packaging.

According to Flint Group, the new Evolution Deinking Primer coating for shrink sleeve materials makes the ink release in the caustic bath of the recycling process. When used with crystallizable polyester shrink sleeve material (CPET), the primer keeps the ink anchored to the substrate through the usable life of the sleeve but releases it in the caustic bath. The ink is removed from the sleeve material without contaminating the bottle flake. The materials are rinsed and pelletized into recycled polyester for reuse.

The company says the Evolution Deinking Primer is applied by the conventional UV-flexo process and works with Flint Group’s EkoCure XS flexo inks that are designed for shrink sleeves.

The new Evolution Caustic Resistant OPV is a UV-flexo overprint varnish to improve the process of recycling PET bottles that have pressure-sensitive labels. Flint Group says the varnish minimizes contamination of the wash water and bottle flake in the caustic bath by keeping the ink secured to the label substrate. When immersed in the float-sink bath, the label is released from the bottle and floats to the surface where it is separated from the bottle recycling stream.

According to a news release from Flint Group, neither the Evolution Deinking Primer nor the Evolution Caustic Resistant OPV impacts ink color, image quality or code readability. As a result, the company says, converters can have a smooth transition to the new coatings.

“The Deinking Primer and Caustic Resistant OPV are simple to use and offer optimal performance at all stages of the label or sleeve life cycle while meeting the stringent requirements of the APR critical guidance. Switching to these new products is disruption-free, has no adverse effect on functionality, and works with our standard inks,” says John Pogatschnik, North American marketing manager for Flint Group Narrow Web. “Both products are plug-and-play solutions that enable better recycling without impacting the quality or application performance. A converter doesn’t need to qualify a new ink series and rematch several colors: simply splice into a recognized substrate, turn on the primer or OPV, and more sustainable labels or sleeves are rolling up on the winder.”

The company says it has conducted a proof of concept that shows polyvinylidene chloride has the potential to be recycled via a solvent-based process.

Brussels-based Solvay says it has conducted a proof of concept showing that polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC) potentially can be recycled. The material is used in food, beverage and health care multilayer barrier packaging.

The company says its work involves a process to recycle postindustrial Ixan PVDC bioriented film that does not compromise the performance of the high barrier polymer that holds the potential to be expanded to postconsumer packaging containing PVDC.

Rather than using a mechanical recycling process, according to the company, it is using a form of advanced recycling that involves “an innovative solvent-based recycling process.”

The company says it “has developed the internal knowledge and capabilities to scale up this process with the required investments and value chain collaboration to collect and sort PVDC packaging waste. Most importantly, recycled Ixan PVDC is capable of maintaining the same properties as virgin PVDC resin; indeed, in terms of processing, barrier properties and purity, no gaps have been identified. Therefore, recycled Ixan PVDC is expected to be used in typical PVDC resin applications, where high-performance barrier properties are required,” such as food and medical packaging, gas transportation and protective clothing.

“The proof of concept developed by our research team is a solution for PVDC packaging circularity,” says Claire Guerrero, Solvay global marketing manager for Packaging Segment and Sustainability. “It shows there is a possibility to reintegrate the recycled polymer into future applications, meaning it can be reused and reblended with virgin materials—without losing or degrading its high barrier properties."

“The recycling technology developed by our team enables us to achieve the right quality so that the recycled PVDC meets the strict requirements for indirect food contact, creating the closed loop,” adds Yves Vanderveken, senior project portfolio leader R&I.

Solvay says maintaining the high quality of the polymer was essential as it provides a strong barrier against water, oxygen and aromas.

The company says it now is urging other companies to work together to make recycling PVDC into reality, particularly when it comes to developing the infrastructure required to collect and segregate PVDC packaging.

Guerrero says, “It goes without saying that setting a global PVDC recycling stream is a huge task, so we are therefore inviting our fellow companies to work alongside us to introduce a way to recycle PVDC across the globe. We all have a role to play in the plastic packaging recycling challenge, and Solvay is committed to playing its part.”

The new jugs will feature 30 percent PCR content.

Clover Sonoma, a third-generation family-owned and -operated dairy business based in Petaluma, California, is launching a gallon milk jug that contains postconsumer-recycled (PCR) content. The new jug will feature 30 percent PCR content on its organic gallon milk line.

According to a news release from Clover Sonoma, the company wants to increase the PCR content in this line as well as extend PCR content use across all Clover Sonoma gallon milk jugs by 2025. The company says using PCR content in plastic packaging creates a closed-loop system for recycling plastic gallon milk jugs.

The company says its PCR milk jugs will be featured at retail locations in the first quarter of 2022. The jugs will come with a designated logo to educate consumers about the PCR content.

Clover Sonoma’s gallon milk jugs are made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE). As the company produces these jugs using more PCR content, the company says it will be focused on securing a greater volume of recycled HDPE.

“To reach our sustainability goals, packaging innovation is a priority for us as a company,” says Clover Sonoma Chief Revenue Officer Kristel Corson. “Finding sustainable solutions means taking risks and investing in what’s best for the planet. We are focused on improving our packaging across product lines using reusable, recyclable, renewable and environmentally conscious resources. We encourage the food industry to join us in this effort.”

See how AMCS’ services can help grow your business.

The upheaval in global market conditions for commodities present unprecedented challenges. Metal recyclers are having to deal with erratic fluctuations in supply, demand and currency prices. These were never predictable in the best of times, but metal recyclers are finding it difficult to do business with a high degree of uncertainty as consumers of recycled materials face economic headwinds.

The global metal recycling industry is important for AMCS. Due to the scarcity of primary metals, demand for secondary raw materials will increase significantly. Together with our customers, we can further develop the companies, drive innovations in all areas and contribute to a clean environment.

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