Full Circle Filament is a social enterprise that's working to bring the world's first ethical 3D filament to market as we collaborate with members of the informal recycling community.

1. FULL
CIRCLE
FILAMENT
RECYCLING PLASTIC
BOTTLES INTO
3D PRINTING FILAMENT

2. CONTENTS
• The Problem
• The Opportunity
• The Project Partners
• The Plan
• The Ask
• The Next Steps

3. THE
PROBLEM

4. THE WAY WE
RECYCLE
ISN’T WORKING
Plastic waste is relatively new
to Thailand and there is no
culture of separation at
source. Dirty plastic waste
from dumps, streets, rivers
and mixed garbage cans
provide waste pickers with
just 3 USD a day on average
under poor working

5. EVERY YEAR,
MORE THAN 8
MILLION METRIC
TONNES OF
PLASTIC GOES
INTO THE OCEAN
The Ocean Conservancy, 2015
Creative Commons: Cesar Harada, 2009

6. THAILAND IS IN
THE TOP FIVE OF
MARINE LITTER
POLLUTERS
Over 50% of land-based
plastic waste leakage comes
from just 5 countries: China,
Indonesia, The Philippines
Thailand and Vietnam
McKinsey & The Ocean Conservancy,
2015Source: https://puncbottles.com/finished-plastic-bottles-yet/

7. AND THE
PROBLEM IS
ESCALATING
China was the world’s
largest plastic recycler and a
major importer of recycled
PET from Thailand. Starting
January 1st, 2018, China
stopped importing plastic
waste in an effort to recycle
more of their own.

8. THE WAY
WE RECYCLE
IS A DEAD END
➔ Poor working conditions and earnings for waste pickers
➔ Dysfunctional recycling system spilling plastic into the
ocean
➔ Lack of solutions for plastic recycling within Thailand

9. THE
OPPORTUNITY

10. WE NEED TO CHANGE
from a linear economy
to a
circular
economy

11. THE 3D
PRINTING
MARKET IS
TAKING OFF
Projected value of the global 3D printing market
2017 to 2021 (in billions of USD)
* Another projection puts it at $32.8 B in 2023.)

12. INCREASING
DEMAND FOR
PLASTIC
Most 3D printing filament is
made from virgin plastic
resins, thus using
unrenewable resources..
There is a growing demand
for recycled filament and
3D printed products from
conscious consumers.

13. THAT’S
WHERE WE
COME IN
FULL
CIRCLE
FILAMENT

14. 1. Waste collectors
source PET and end of
life 3D prints and sell to
the Full Circle Filament
(FCF) hub.
2. FCF hub shreds
PET, other plastics,
and end of life 3D
prints into flakes.
3. FCF hub blends
PET and other plastic
flakes.
4. FCF hub extrudes
FCF filament.
5. FCF hub prints inclusive
products and provides 3D
printing as a service to
local entrepreneurs.
THE VISION
A decentralised
circular economy where hubs
locally recycle plastic waste
into 3D filament and print,
collect and recycle end
products for the local
economy.

15. THE INCLUSIVE
BUSINESS MODEL
creating ethical filament
through inclusive sourcing
1. Waste collectors
source post-consumer
waste PET and sell to
the FCF hub.
2. FCF hub shreds
PET into flakes.
4. Covestro lab
blends PET and other
plastic flakes into
pellets.
5. FCF hub extrudes
pellets into FCF
filament and sells
filament
6. FCF hub researches 3D
product applications for
BOP markets. Prints are
recycled back into
filament.
3. FCF hub sources
post-industrial
waste plastic

16. ETHICAL
FILAMENT
&
INCLUSIVE
SOURCING
• We recycle existing plastic to produce a
commercial grade 3D printing filament
• We focus on inclusive sourcing and production in
partnership with waste picking communities with
the aim to raise their income and improve working
conditions.
• The team has approached multiple recycling
aggregators with inclusive business approaches
about material sourcing.

17. WHAT WE’VE
DONE SO FAR
• We have created our first two batches of PET and
other plastic blend
• We have created our first batch of 3D filament
using our first blend (and external partners to
create filament)
• We have approached multiple recycling
aggregators with inclusive business approaches
about material sourcing
• We have created our current partnership, see
partners section for more...

18. Creative Commons: Cesar Harada, 2009
“By improving waste management in
Southeast Asian countries, we can cut
the flow of plastic going in the ocean by
half by 2025.”
- Susan Ruffo, managing director of international
initiatives at Ocean Conservancy.

19. THE
PARTNERS

20. WHO DOES
WHAT IN A
NUTSHELL
Covestro blends the
PET and other
plastics to create the
pellets that will
become filament.
Filabot provides tech
support on filament
extrusion done with
their machines.
Endeva supports with
project management,
research and
relationship building.
The Thammases School Global
Studies team runs the FCF hub
which includes inclusive
sourcing and processing of waste
as well as the production and
sales of filament.

21. THAMMASAT
UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL
OF
GLOBAL STUDIES
• Project Lead
• The School of Global Studies (SGS) team joined the
project as the local partner to do research and help
identify opportunities, as well as to help develop the
value chain.
• SGS will now launch a social enterprise that will lead
the project from proof of concept to market launch.
The social enterprise will provide good jobs for BOP
workers, increased income for informal recyclers, and
a work-study vehicle for students interested in
gaining experience while in school.

22. • Technical Partner (Materials side)
• Initiated the project through the organization’s
Inclusive Business unit and drove it through proof of
concept.
• Covestro will continue to serve as the lead technical
consultant on the material side of the project, as well
as the processor for plastic blending throughout the
project and beyond.
COVESTRO

23. • Project Management & Research
• Endeva helps people and organisations create and
grow inclusive businesses. They are a research and
consulting institute that helped deliver the project
to proof of concept
• Endeva is a critical partner for their project
leadership, research capability, and relationships
they have fostered.
ENDEVA

24. • Technical Partner (Equipment side)
• Accomplishments:
• Filabot has helped by testing filament extrusion in their
machines and they validated the ability to use the project’s
filament in 3D printers.
• Future Role:
• continue to participate in extrusion and 3D printing tests.
• look into modifying its industrial grinder to suit PET bottles.
• participate in “remote blending” tests which would allow
remote labs to process PET locally into filament.
FILABOT

25. THE
PLAN

26. PHASE ZERO
achievements so far
1. Established contact
with university plastic
bank to work with
waste collectors.
2. Initially sourced R-
PET from China to
test PET and other
blend. Researched
shredding options.
4. Covestro lab
blended two batches
of R-PET and other
plastics.
5. First batch of
filament was made
from our blend by
three external
parties, one was
Filabot using their
extruder.
6. Initial research on BOP
market applications and
development of inclusive
business model concept..
3. Established
contact with
potential post-
industrial plastic
supplier

27. PHASE ONE
Bring ethical filament
to market
This phase will focus on getting the ethical filament to market
to help make the project self-sustaining as early as possible.
Estimated timeline: 0-12 months

28. PHASE ONE
This phase will focus on getting the ethical filament to market
to help make the project self-sustaining as early as possible.
Estimated timeline: 0-12 months
Activities:
● Finalize the initial testing necessary to develop the product.
● Conduct end-user testing.
● Test and refine production with ethically-sourced materials.
● Test filament with an array of end users.
● Develop the supply chain/logistics.
● Begin selling filament at retail.
● Seek feedback from customers.
● Refine operations and marketing efforts.
Bring ethical filament to
market

29. Month
3
Prep
● Finalize research into
equipment options.
● Order and setup the
test lab.
● Begin product
development testing.
Test
● Complete initial lab and
end-customer testing.
● Test and refine
production with ethically-
sourced materials.
● Test filament with an
array of end users.
● Initiate marketing efforts.
Month
6
Sell
● Develop the supply
chain/logistics.
● Begin selling filament
at retail.
Month
9
Refine
● Seek feedback from
customers.
● Refine operations
and marketing
efforts.
Month
12
Phase 1 - Milestones

30. PHASE TWO
Develop inclusive
business model
The next phase will further develop the inclusive business
model by researching and testing opportunities to involve
low income communities in the production of filament as
well as potential 3D printing product applications that
benefit the BoP.
Estimated timeline: 12-36 months
Milestones:
● Identify BoP opportunities for 3D printing.
● Test additional materials and material sources for
filament production.

31. PHASE TWO The next phase will further develop the inclusive business
model by researching and testing opportunities to involve
low income communities in the production of filament as
well as potential 3D printing product applications that
benefit the BoP.
Estimated timeline: 12-36 months
Milestones:
● Identify BoP opportunities for 3D printing.
● Test additional materials and material sources for
filament production.
Develop inclusive business
model

32. PHASE THREE
Create decentralised hubs
The third phase will work on creating decentralised hubs that
will negate the need to ship any PET for filament production.
The goal of this is to create a model that will source bottles
locally to reduce pollution/waste issues while greatly reducing
the cost of production.
Estimated timeline: 24-60 months
Milestones:
● Reduce the cost of filament production.
● Test and validate the remote processing/extrusion model
with the grinders, extruders, printers being on site and using
locally sourced PET bottles.

33. PHASE
THREE
The third phase will work on creating decentralised hubs that
will negate the need to ship any PET for filament production.
The goal of this is to create a model that will source bottles
locally to reduce pollution/waste issues while greatly reducing
the cost of production.
Estimated timeline: 24-60 months
Milestones:
● Reduce the cost of filament production.
● Test and validate the remote processing/extrusion model
with the grinders, extruders, printers being on site and using
locally sourced PET bottles.
Create decentralised hubs

34. The Ask

35. PROJECT
NEEDS
The project is in need of seed funding for the following components
to take it from Proof of Concept to Market Reality:
Equipment • Prep:
• A bottle washing station & a plastic grinder.
• Production:
• Filament extruders w/air paths and spoolers,
measurement gauges and spare parts.
Labour • Thammasat team leading local efforts including
the processing lab development, marketing,
production & product testing, and community
building.
• Endeva leading research and project management.
Additional costs • Packaging, shipping, advertising, insurance, and
administration.

36. NEXT
STEPS

37. INCLUSIVE
SOURCING
• Thammasat University’s Recycle Bank passes 90% of its
recycling income on to informal recyclers that sell
materials to the bank.
• Ex: If the Recycle Bank receives 10 Baht/kg for PET, it pays 9
Baht/kg to the informal recyclers.
• Our project would create a new grade of plastic at the TU
Recycle Bank (clear/clean PET) and pay a higher rate for
this material.
• This would raise incomes for informal recycling workers.
• The clean, clear PET would simplify processing and enabling
us to offer a high-quality filament with consistent coloring.
Phase 1 Plan

38. FILAMENT
PROCESSING
• The Thammasat U. team will create a social enterprise
that will develop the 3D printing filament value chain.
• Plastic received from the informal recycling collectors will
be washed and processed into flakes in a lab on campus.
• Flakes will be delivered to Covestro for blending and
pelletization.
• Covestro will deliver pellets to the lab for filament
extrusion.
Phase 1 Plan

39. VALUE CHAIN
DEVELOPMENT
• The team will hire Thammasat U. students to perform
market research, as well as to work with 3D printing labs
to test our filament.
• We’ve identified the opportunity to market the world’s
first ethical 3D filament and will integrate that and the
environmental benefits in marketing materials.
• We’ll work to validate cost projections and adjust the plan
as necessary to ensure a sustainable business model.
Phase 1 Plan

40. CORE TEAM
Chris Oestereich
Founder - FCF
Tendai Pasipanodya
Director – Endeva
Mariska van Gaalen
Associated Expert –
Endeva
Juliet Ler Hui-Ling
Manager, Inclusive
Business Development -
Covestro
Yuttana Liansiri
Laboratory - Covestro