From waste to re-injected material, with RE-YU waste polyurethane from footwear production becomes a new resource.
Reducing environmental impact and promoting sustainability: these are the concepts behind RE-YU, the recycling technology developed by STEMMA, which enables the reuse of polyurethane waste from injection processes.
This material, otherwise destined for landfill, is, in fact, reduced to powder or granules and then re-injected into the mould, thanks to an innovative mixing and dosing system. The result is soles in line with current trends, where the use of recycled material offers unprecedented aesthetic solutions. A circular economy process that actively contributes to the protection of the environment and allows significant savings by reducing the use and costs of raw materials and waste disposal.
RE-YU is designed to integrate efficiently into STEMMA’s direct injection moulding plants, without requiring modifications or replacement of injectors or moulds. This means that no time is wasted and items can be produced from ‘virgin’ or ‘additive’ material in the same machine cycle.
Laboratory tests have shown that soles produced with RE-YU, containing up to 15% recycled polyurethane mixed in the total weight, maintain their technical and quality characteristics almost unchanged.
RE-YU technology also allows experimentation with the use of different types of powders or granules derived, for example, from upper cuttings, fibrous elements, rubber parts and other waste. This opens up additional material sources, further expanding the recycling possibilities in the footwear industry.
RE-YU: sustainable innovation in polyurethane injection processes that leads to economic, environmental and design advantages. 