I really enjoy the many discussions I am having with the tyre pyrolysis industry. In 2015 and 2016, there will be quite a few commercial plants starting their operation. Now is the time to prepare for marketing and sales! These topics come up again and again:
"Can we sell based on this specification?"
A good specification contains basic chemical and physical data as well as relevant application data. It also quotes the test method, preferably international standards like ASTM. If you use your own methods, the data cannot be compared to other samples. There are many independent labs (e.g. ARTIS, Errlab or RAPRA for rubber) who can do the test work for you. A specification is a means for a first screening ("your entry ticket") and will need to be followed up by lab testing at your prospect.
"Help me sell 5,000 tes"
The first question I would ask in this situation is"Are these 5,000 tes one consistent quality?". If not, it will be difficult to use the material in any industrial rubber or even colouring applications. The second question is "Which level of consistent quality has been achieved?", including upgrading. Aspects like extraction of impurities and pyrolysis oil, milling and pelletising are important. Rubber customers can have demanding specifications for pellet hardness / softness. And that is just for virgin carbon black. The rubber market reality is such that even virgin carbon black is not easy to substitute, both for technical and for industry culture reasons. Only if we meet the minimum table-stake requirements of the target industries we can play our unique value proposition - sustainability in a circular economy.
"We cannot develop tailored products"
We might just be lucky and get our recovered carbon black accepted by the customer, maybe even into applications which otherwise would appear out of reach (e.g. substitution of ASTM N550). Oftentimes though, there will be some requirements for tailoring to customer's specifications. That may be just packaging or pellet specifications, but it also may be product specifications which require either specific raw material input (e.g. tread rubber only) or some process tweaking (e.g. high temperature pyrolysis, extraction, reactivation, milling etc.). Admittedly, all these steps add significant cost (which we might not have accounted for in our business blueprint), but they enable us to sell our product through added value instead of low cost/high risk. Ideally, we will keep our product range tight, with some 3-4 product species, including a 50% volume "bread&butter" product and a couple of tweaked products.
Do you want to sell tyre pyrolysis carbon black? Are you interested in marketing support and sales scouting?
If so, contact me on my Skype ID martin.von.wolfersdorff, call me on my mobile +49 176 44 76 75 68 or email me at vonwolfersdorff@googlemail.com and I will show you how I can help you grow your business in recycled carbon black.
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Martin von Wolfersdorff is principal consultant at WOLFERSDORFF CONSULTING. He helps chemical companies optimise sales & strategy and connects OEM companies with innovation providers. Martin also has expert knowledge in titanium dioxide, custom colour masterbatch, carbon black and tyre recycling materials like recycled carbon black and devulcanised polymers. He has held various roles from R&D engineer to commercial director EMEA at ICI, Huntsman Pigments, Americhem Europe Ltd and Cabot Switzerland GmbH.
For more frequent updates, follow him on Twitter @m_v_w and on LinkedIn.
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