FRANCOFIL is a French company located in Normandy and specialized in the production of technical filaments for the 3D printing sector.
On top of the development of PLA (polylactic acid) filaments, FRANCOFIL has recently expanded its portfolio with the recovery of by-products like seashells, coffee grounds, wheat or even cocoa from different sectors (agriculture, catering, etc.), under the form of fillers in PLA.
Using by-products is a way to promote a circular economy by giving a new life to these wastes but also to bring a special aesthetic to the end-products with new effects and textures.
A NORMAN PARTNERSHIP
FRANCOFIL has thus worked in collaboration with NaturePlast, expert in bioplastics, to develop its filaments based on PLA and by-products. Besides the formulation and compounding steps, NaturePlast has proceeded to the by-product’s treatment notably grinding and sieving. This step is essential in order to work with particles of sufficiently fine sizes and to not disturb the compounding and then the filaments users.
The 3D printing field is growing fast today and more and more sectors like the medical or the automotive area use this type of process to produce their products. France 3, a French TV channel, has recently dedicated a reporting to FRANCOFIL:
PLA, A 3D PRINTING STANDARD
Today, PLA is one of the most used materials in this sector. Indeed, it has several advantages like a good capacity to be 3D printed (like ABS) and a good finish quality that makes it a good choice of material for this process. Its thermal properties also make it unnecessary to use high printing temperatures, or a hot plate due to its low shrinkage during printing.
This project is a new opportunity to put forward the possibility of use of different by-products for NaturePlast and its partners. These developments demonstrate the capacity of by-products and waste to be recovered in the industry by making innovative solutions available to the plastics industry.
About us: NaturePlast is a french company based in Normandy (IFS-14), specialized in bioplastics. With more than 10 years of experience in this field, the company has the most extensive portfolio of raw materials and biobased and/or biodegradable compounds in Europe. With its daughter company BiopolyNov, they provide support to industrialists from the origin to the industrialisation of their innovative project. Thanks to their R&D expertise acquired during the years, NaturePlast and BiopolyNov are renowned major player in the development and production of formulations for clients and collaborative projects.