#Recycling / Circular Economy

2025-05-01

KBR selected as key commercialization partner for Samsara Eco’s first-of-a-kind enzymatic recycling plant

KBR (NYSE: KBR) announced today it will support biotech innovator, Samsara Eco, to design its first-of-a-kind plastics and textile enzymatic recycling plant, due for completion in early 2028.

Samsara Eco’s enzymatic recycling technology aims to create a continuous recycling loop for some of the most common types of plastic and synthetic fiber – materials that have traditionally been difficult or impossible to recycle. Powered by Samsara Eco’s proprietary AI platform, the company’s patented enzymes break down plastic to its original building blocks (monomers) which aim to allow plastics to be continuously remanufactured into new products without degradation in quality and with a low carbon footprint. Unlike other recycling methods, Samsara Eco’s technology has demonstrated the recycling of notoriously difficult plastics, including nylon 6,6 and mixed fibers, as well as colored and dyed fabric blends. This breakthrough technology is expected to be critical towards achieving the goal of creating a circular loop for all plastics recycling, helping companies utilize resources and divert waste otherwise destined for landfills.

Under the terms of the agreement, KBR will perform a pre-FEED (front-end engineering design) of the project by the end of Q2 2025. KBR’s technical and commercial experts will then deliver a FEED engineering package for the process design to build a 20,000 metric tons per year commercial facility for nylon 6,6.

“KBR is uniquely equipped to deliver world-class solutions that help our customers bring sustainable technology to market, and we are thrilled to support Samsara Eco on this unique opportunity,” said Jay Ibrahim, President, KBR Sustainable Technology Solutions. “With this award, KBR continues to solidify our commitment to sustainability and technological innovation.”

Paul Riley, Founder and CEO of Samsara Eco commented, “We are charging full speed ahead to deliver our first-of-a-kind plant to fuel a circular economy and support our brand partners’ ambition to create more circular products from low-carbon recycled materials. KBR brings unmatched engineering expertise. This will ensure we can design and build our facility with speed and precision. We’re proud to have KBR in our corner, helping bring our technology to industrial scale.”

Samsara Eco is already working with leading brands including lululemon to swap virgin materials for recycled materials. Last year, it debuted the world’s first enzymatically recycled nylon 6,6 product. It also launched the first product made from enzymatically recycled polyester, creating lululemon’s limited edition Packable Anorak jacket.

Samsara Eco and European Outdoor Group launch the Nylon Materials Collective

Australian biotech, Samsara Eco and the European Outdoor Group (EOG) today launched the Nylon Materials Collective, a collaboration designed to make high-performance, virgin-identical recycled nylon accessible to more outdoor brands and accelerate the industry’s shift toward a truly circular textiles future.

Samsara Eco opens first plant to scale circular plastics

Australian biotech innovator, Samsara Eco, has today opened its first plant, representing a significant milestone in the fight against plastic waste. The new plant will exponentially increase the company’s ability to produce virgin-identical, low-carbon circular materials like recycled nylon 6,6 and polyester with broad applications across apparel, packaging and automotives, at scale.

Industry heavyweights join Samsara Eco to accelerate its enzymatic recycling technology

Australian biotech innovator, Samsara Eco, has expanded its global leadership team with the appointment of material science and engineering veterans, Brock Thomas as Chief Innovation Officer and Isaac Iverson as Executive Director of Product. Thomas and Iverson bring decades of experience working within the polymer space in the US and will lead the scaling of the company’s enzymatic recycling technology and first-of-a-kind facilities.

20 Start-Ups selected for CEMATEX Start-Up Grant at ITMA 2027

CEMATEX has selected 20 emerging start-ups from nine countries to receive the CEMATEX Start-Up Grant and showcase their innovations at Start-Up Valley during ITMA 2027 in Hanover. Their participation will be fully funded by CEMATEX, giving promising early-stage companies access to the world’s leading textile and garment technology platform.

Moving Advanced Recycling from Innovation to Implementation

The Advanced Recycling Conference 2026 explores technologies, markets, financing and scale-up of innovative recycling solutions for waste streams including mixed plastic waste, textiles and PVC. Europe’s chemical and materials sector faces growing pressure to close carbon loops, strengthen raw-material safety and resilience and meet increasingly ambitious EU recycling targets. Against this backdrop, the Advanced Recycling Conference (ARC) will bring together industry leaders, technology providers, researchers, innovators and policy-makers on 17–18 November 2026 in Cologne, Germany.

KARL MAYER invites the Global Textile Industry to celebrate its 90th anniversary at its German Headquarters in 2027

KARL MAYER is turning its anniversary year 2027 into a milestone for the textile sector. To mark its 90th anniversary, the industry leader is inviting customers, partners, and experts from around the world to a unique event series in September aimed at pushing boundaries, unlocking new opportunities, and jointly setting the course for a new era in textiles – just as KARL MAYER has done throughout its history. The company’s headquarters in Obertshausen, near Frankfurt, is the place to be.

ITMF names three winners of the Sustainability & Innovation Award 2026

Three projects from the UK, Korea and China have been selected as winners of the ITMF Sustainability & Innovation Award 2026. The projects address textile-to-textile recycling, chemical recycling for automotive textiles and a regenerative approach combining silk production with ecological restoration.

Durak Maxibalance thread supports users’ movement and balance comfort

Durak Tekstil, a leading brand in its industry, has developed Durak Maxibalance, a new product engineered with bio-ceramic and FAR IR technology. Ushering in a new era for sportswear, activewear, and medical textiles, this technology offers features designed to support balance and movement comfort by reflecting the energy absorbed from the body back into it.

Yarn Expo Autumn 2026 draws to a close, weaving sustainable innovation into global sourcing

Yarn Expo Autumn 2026 concluded with approximately 600 exhibitors from 14 countries and regions, connecting with nearly 22,000 visitors from 110 represented markets, bringing the textile industry’s evolving material agenda into sharper focus. Held alongside Intertextile Shanghai Apparel Fabrics – Autumn Edition, CHIC and PH Value, the fair connected upstream fibre and yarn innovation with fabric development, garment production and fashion-market demand.