— By Plasteurope.com staff — 

Insulation board manufacturer Recticel (Brussels; www.recticel.com) has announced the start-up of an industrial-scale plant for recycling polyisocyanurate (PIR) production waste into polyol at its Wevelgem site in Belgium.

The facility is designed to process up to 4,000 t/y of PIR production scrap, including offcuts and trimmings, and convert it into around 6,000 t/y of recycled polyol. According to the company, the output could replace up to one-third of the virgin polyol used in its PIR insulation boards without affecting product performance.

Polyols are typically derived from petrochemical feedstocks and are a key component in polyurethane and PIR foams. Recticel said the recycled polyol has an estimated carbon footprint around 40% lower than that of conventionally produced polyol.

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Recticel’s process focuses on post-industrial waste rather than post-consumer material, which is generally more difficult to collect and treat due to contamination and dismantling challenges in construction applications. The company said the project is part of its broader sustainability strategy and could be expanded to include external waste streams or take-back schemes. However, no timelines or volumes for post-consumer recycling were disclosed.

Recticel reported sales of EUR 655.1 mn in 2025 and employs over 1,300 people. Its insulation segment focuses on PIR-based boards used in energy-efficient building applications.