The Andrews Labor Government is reducing waste by supporting the design and development of new ways to use recycled materials in everyday products.
Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D’Ambrosio today announced the latest round recipients of the $2.9 million Recycling Victoria Innovation Fund.
The five successful projects will share in $630,000 to help develop new uses for recycled materials, avoiding over 660 tonnes of waste a year and creating over 40 jobs.
Construction business Cross Laminated Offsite Solutions (CLOS) has received $150,000 to share how their innovative prefabrication of housing components – including floor, wall, and roof panels – is faster, cheaper and cuts waste.
CLOS will show other construction companies how its offsite construction method reduces structural build time by 50 per cent, overall build time by 25 per cent and waste materials by an estimated 50 per cent, compared to traditional onsite methods.
Panels prefabricated in CLOS’s Avalon factory will be used to construct 26 townhouses on Geelong’s waterfront. Prefabrication will mean the net-zero dwellings can be simply bolted together on site with the finished homes being made available to families in need, using a shared-equity finance model.
The grants are part of the Labor Government’s Circular Economy Business Innovation Centre (CEBIC) and are funding four other projects that are developing circular solutions for the textiles industry.
A University of Melbourne-led project has received $100,000 to explore ways to safely reuse disposable hospital gowns. Funding of $150,000 will help outdoor clothing manufacturer Kathmandu to explore renewal and resale of damaged or unwanted clothing.
A project led by Deakin University has been awarded almost $150,000 to support research into the development of bio-based yarns and fabrics based on nest fibres of Australian native bees.
In addition, $85,000 will help local fashion label A.BCH develop a system to avoid textiles waste by redistributing surplus fabrics to businesses and consumers via an online platform.
The Government established CEBIC in 2020 with $7 million funding over four years, part of the $515 million investment to reform the waste and recycling industry in Victoria.
More information about the funded projects is available at .
As stated by Minister for Energy, Environment and Climate Change Lily D’Ambrosio
“By accelerating businesses take-up of circular economy opportunities, we’re creating jobs and cutting costs to Victorians – and keeping our communities and the environment flourishing by reducing waste.”
“These projects will save 660 tonnes of waste a year, create over 40 jobs, and have an exponential impact on Victorian construction and manufacturing, which will cut costs for Victorians.”
