Our second ship was supposed to be built from recycled PET. Or that was the plan. But the experiments to strengthen this type of waste plastic failed. How do you turn such a disappointment around?
Our second ship had to be built from PET. Or that was the plan. But the experiments to strengthen this type of plastic failed. How do you turn this around?
We’ve started the construction of the speeljacht, the Dutch pleasure yacht that is part of our ship strategy. The goal was to build this ship from a different type of waste plastic: PET. (The meat trays and soda bottles in your garbage bin). For months we worked together with the brightest minds in the polymer industry to reinforce this material. The idea was to make a keel of 6 by 6 inches thick – a monster beam in terms of recycled plastic.
Despite all efforts, the experiments did not yield what we had hoped for: a keel so sturdy that it can withstand huge waves. In a test round, our beam shattered into a thousand pieces on the floor… Months later we still find bits of brown plastic everywhere. And when experimentation is your core business, you’ll celebrate this. Because if everything goes right the first time, you haven’t learned anything yet.
Keep it going!
But that speeljacht has to be built. If we want to sail our trade mission Clean2Batavia with the Dutch fluitschip in 2030, there will be considerable pressure on our schedule. This recently resulted in some tension on the yard: are we going to wait until that keel can be made from PET? Or do we start with material that isn’t really strong enough?
To keep up the speed, we changed course. We are now building this yacht from PE, the same recycled plastic that the little ships (the Dutch ‘werkboten’) are made of. This of course has consequences for the construction of that yacht, because PE is much weaker than PET.
Super uncomfortable game rules
Our goal is to strengthen waste plastic in such a way that we can build a huge cargo ship with it. So when you decide on such a self-imposed rule, you are forced to find the answers in the material. And that’s really uncomfortable.
The choice for PE means that this experiment will be much larger. Building the first werkboot, we also thought that PE would be too weak. But that turned out really well! The question is: will this also be the case when we use PE to build a scale three larger? We’re taking a big risk, and this only worsens our discomfort.
Circular plastic is an exception
If we have learned anything from ‘the keel experiment’, it is that results are not forthcoming. The polymer industry is mainly concerned with recycling and little with circularity. That is, most plastic now loses some of its quality in the recycling process. In our view, development of the material in such a way that it is fully circular (or even upgraded in the process) should be done more.
We see an enormous drive among partners, but you need a whole chain to bring about change. Despite all goodwill, innovation is not a priority.
We do not accept delays
But this habitual behavior is not unknown to us. We too can think of a thousand reasons why tomorrow is a better time than today. Due to the dilemma mentioned earlier, we noticed a gruff look and an oppressive silence with founder Edwin: now what?!
‘The pleasure of discomfort, right?’ We reminded him. And, ‘if it all doesn’t work out, at least you have a cool story’. Just to keep the spirit up. Because no matter how grand your plans are to reverse habitual behavior around the global plastic problem, as the founder of an experimental living lab you are only human. Sooner or later you’ll become subject of your own mission.
But we do not accept procrastination. The transition to a circular and inclusive world cannot be postponed either. So if our own chain shows withdrawal because the results are disappointing, we step it up a notch.
Is this experiment a failure then?
Definitely not! PET is not yet strong enough to build an entire ship, but it is an excellent building material for the rudder and lee board.
Moreover, based on all the insights about the keel, we came up with a new experiment. An old friend from the Clean2Antarctica adventure is taking on a particularly big challenge: creating the masts from PET. With high technology and fibre-reinforced plastic. Take it from us: if this succeeds, it will be a huge step forward to the fluitschip.
All these experiments do justice to the speeljacht: one of the first pleasure yachts in maritime history and the most innovative ship of the 17th century. And we have only just begun.
