SME prize for Kyburz Switzerland AG – also thanks to Empa know-how
Kyburz wins "Prix SVC Wirtschaftsraum Zürich 2022"
![https://www.empa.ch/documents/56164/22544336/Stopper_Kyburz.png/da8a8f34-6cf0-4d57-9a37-e25f30a8e78b?t=1664892653000&doAsUserId=mLYofz1ofIc4z2qdMCjTcg%3D%3D%3F_NewsPortlet_categoryId%3D56975](https://www.empa.ch/documents/56164/22544336/Stopper_Kyburz.png/da8a8f34-6cf0-4d57-9a37-e25f30a8e78b?t=1664892653000&doAsUserId=mLYofz1ofIc4z2qdMCjTcg%3D%3D%3F_NewsPortlet_categoryId%3D56975)
A one-of-its-kind recycling system
Behind this is the company's MultiLife concept, which aims to improve the eco-balance of its products: Instead of scrapping a vehicle at the end of its life, Kyburz takes it back, refurbishes it and puts it back on the market as a 2ndLife vehicle with a factory warranty. When this vehicle's lifetime is also drawing to a close, the batteries begin their third life as stationary energy storage devices, for example for solar power systems. Only when this use is also exhausted are the batteries discarded and recycled.
For battery recycling, the company, together with a team led by Empa researcher Rolf Widmer, has developed a unique, environmentally friendly recycling system, for which it commissioned an innovative plant in 2020: "This allows us to recover 91 percent of the materials in a battery without using chemicals and return them to the material cycle," says Kyburz project manager Olivier Groux.
At the beginning of this year, the SFOE P&D project was launched, as well as the Innosuisse flagship project CircuBAT with seven Swiss research institutions and 24 companies. Its goal is to significantly improve the sustainability of batteries over their entire life cycle. One of the sub-projects is explicitly dedicated to extending Kyburz's recycling process to other lithium-ion battery types. Kyburz was also one of the three finalists for the Green Business Award 2022, which was presented on 23 September, as part of the Swiss Sustainability Forum in Bern, and which honors leading solutions in the field of corporate sustainability.
"Prix SVC Wirtschaftsraum Zürich 2022"
Olivier Groux
Kyburz Switzerland AG
Phone +41 44 866 22 98
Dr. Corsin Battaglia
Empa, Materials for Energy Conversion
Phone +41 58 765 41 31
Rolf Widmer
Empa, Technology and Society
Phone +41 58 765 78 63
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