Sustainability pioneers on the race to tackle raw materials challenges

Global Digital RACE 2020 brought together sustainability pioneers to tackle raw materials challenges for Future Mobility. One of the innovators participating in the RACE was a diverse and interdisciplinary team with members coming from business and academia called impactPCB. The team had an opportunity to work on the solutions for challenges from industries as well as elaborate the solution and idea out of the lab to the market. This sparked impactPCB to work further on their idea and turn it into a successful start-up. Today, impactPCB is a technology provider of high-quality mechanical separation equipment for the pre-treatment stage of e-waste recycling. 

From master thesis to new business

The solution was derived from the master thesis performed by one of the imactPCB teammates at Chalmers University of Technology. The thesis comprehended theoretical studies and research within the university laboratory on first-stage experiments. Further, as a team, young innovators conducted market research to ensure that the idea is worth pursuing. With the guidance of the EIT RawMaterials Academy, the team refined their idea and collaborated with the company that gave them the challenge to tackle during the Global Digital RACE 2020.

EIT RawMaterials has provided us with mentoring, training, and networking. We have learnt to validate our business model, refine our idea, find our market segment and customer value proposition. EIT RawMaterials Academy support made it possible for our small team to get in contact with experts in the field of WEEE management, while their support extends beyond the Global Digital RACE 2020 event.

impactPCB team

EIT RawMaterials team followed the organisational development of the start-up team, encouraging them to proceed to the next level in the EIT Community by taking on new challenges in the EIT Jumpstarter and the EIT RawMaterials Accelerator. Constant support from EIT RawMaterials was a great leap forward in engaging with impactPCB current stakeholders, whom the team of young entrepreneurs firstly felt insecure to connect.

We are delighted with the support and assistance from EIT RawMaterials. Coming from the technical environments, we forge ahead with EIT RawMaterials to hone our entrepreneurial skills to bring our idea to the market. The networking and events provided by the EIT RawMaterials Alumni community help future innovators tackle the real challenges we face. 

impactPCB team

Opportunities provided by EIT RawMaterials Alumni Community are numerous (events, educational programmes, job opportunities and networking). Some of the impactPCB team members have participated in a few events related to start-up growth and hope to get involved more in the future.

Calling all sustainability pioneers

The next Raw & Circular Economy Expedition (RACE) starts on 20 September 2021! The RACE 2021 is a 3-week virtual challenge-based learning programme across the raw materials value chain that unites sustainability pioneers to learn and innovate for the pressing raw materials challenges for Future Mobility. Help us unlock solutions to making mobility sustainable!

Join the RACE