Economy
What is the benefit to the community? How do we know that we’re getting a good return on the county money invested in this project?
Clallam County money invested through the County Opportunity Fund has been spent on capital improvements to the building and the facility that houses the CRTC and Peninsula College’s Composites Manufacturing Program, who are both Port of Port Angeles commercial tenants. This investment stays as a capital improvement to the Port’s property. The initial spending supported local construction jobs, like those resulting from any other county investment in infrastructure. By enabling creation of the CRTC, the Port has attracted $3 million of outside money into the community to match the county funds by 3:1. View our Economic Impact Reports for 2015 and 2016
Is anyone else doing carbon fiber composites recycling?
Only a handful of companies worldwide are in the composites recycling business. Most of this activity is concentrated on reclaiming the raw carbon fiber from cured waste, either through pyrolysis (burning off resins) or solvolysis (dissolving off resins with solvent).
The CRTC takes a different approach, focusing on product applications that repurpose the uncured pre-preg scrap first, and later addressing overall recycling in partnership with ELG. We see this as a prudent and low-risk approach to develop a niche in this emerging marketplace.
If this was feasible and profitable, wouldn’t someone else be doing it already?
Carbon fiber composites are still specialty materials used primarily for high-tech, high-dollar applications like commercial aerospace, high performance vehicles, and high-end sporting goods. On a national level, the overall volume of carbon fiber scrap material is still miniscule compared to recycled aluminum, steel or plastics. As a result, carbon fiber composite recycling is emerging as a key need in this rapidly expanding industry, and the CRTC is at the forefront.
With recent developments in the production of aircraft, electric vehicles and other high-performance products that use CF components, production scrap is growing – so much so that it has caught the attention of government and academia. With our different, more environmentally sound, and cost-effective recycling approach, the CRTC will be one of the successful players in this arena, which puts Clallam County in a great position to attract funding and recruit companies interested in this emerging market.
Why would the major composites companies donate their scrap materials to the CRTC and not to another entity?
Large companies prefer to donate scrap materials to a nonprofit with an economic development mission, rather than give it to private companies. It also makes more sense for these companies, rather than trying to develop new product manufacturing internally that reuses the scrap, as this is not their core business.
Clallam County money invested through the County Opportunity Fund has been spent on capital improvements to the building and the facility that houses the CRTC and Peninsula College’s Composites Manufacturing Program, who are both Port of Port Angeles commercial tenants. This investment stays as a capital improvement to the Port’s property. The initial spending supported local construction jobs, like those resulting from any other county investment in infrastructure. By enabling creation of the CRTC, the Port has attracted $3 million of outside money into the community to match the county funds by 3:1. View our Economic Impact Reports for 2015 and 2016
Is anyone else doing carbon fiber composites recycling?
Only a handful of companies worldwide are in the composites recycling business. Most of this activity is concentrated on reclaiming the raw carbon fiber from cured waste, either through pyrolysis (burning off resins) or solvolysis (dissolving off resins with solvent).
The CRTC takes a different approach, focusing on product applications that repurpose the uncured pre-preg scrap first, and later addressing overall recycling in partnership with ELG. We see this as a prudent and low-risk approach to develop a niche in this emerging marketplace.
If this was feasible and profitable, wouldn’t someone else be doing it already?
Carbon fiber composites are still specialty materials used primarily for high-tech, high-dollar applications like commercial aerospace, high performance vehicles, and high-end sporting goods. On a national level, the overall volume of carbon fiber scrap material is still miniscule compared to recycled aluminum, steel or plastics. As a result, carbon fiber composite recycling is emerging as a key need in this rapidly expanding industry, and the CRTC is at the forefront.
With recent developments in the production of aircraft, electric vehicles and other high-performance products that use CF components, production scrap is growing – so much so that it has caught the attention of government and academia. With our different, more environmentally sound, and cost-effective recycling approach, the CRTC will be one of the successful players in this arena, which puts Clallam County in a great position to attract funding and recruit companies interested in this emerging market.
Why would the major composites companies donate their scrap materials to the CRTC and not to another entity?
Large companies prefer to donate scrap materials to a nonprofit with an economic development mission, rather than give it to private companies. It also makes more sense for these companies, rather than trying to develop new product manufacturing internally that reuses the scrap, as this is not their core business.