ASOCIACION EMPRESARIAL DE INVESTIGACION CENTRO TECNOLOGICO DEL CALZADOY DEL PLASTICO DE LA REGION DE MURCIA

Their core work

CETEC is a technology centre in Murcia, Spain, originally focused on footwear and plastics, that has pivoted strongly toward circular economy solutions for polymer and rubber waste. They develop recycling and upcycling technologies — from devulcanizing end-of-life tyres to enzymatic degradation of PET plastics into biodegradable bioplastics. Their most recent work extends into agrifood residue valorization and biodegradable agricultural materials, positioning them as a regional hub for turning plastic and organic waste streams into usable products.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

CETEC began with relatively straightforward materials work — biodegradable agricultural mulches (2016) and mechanical/chemical rubber recycling from tyres (2019). From 2020 onward, their focus shifted sharply toward biotechnology-driven approaches: enzymatic plastic degradation, bioconversion, and territorial circular economy systems integrating digitalisation. The trajectory shows a clear move from single-material recycling toward systemic, biology-enabled waste valorization across multiple waste streams.

CETEC is moving from mechanical recycling of individual waste streams toward integrated, bio-enabled circular economy systems that combine digitalisation with biotechnology to valorize complex mixed waste from agriculture and plastics.

How they like to work

CETEC coordinates every project they participate in — all 4 of 4 — which is unusual for an SME-classified research centre. They build sizeable consortia, averaging about 17 unique partners per project across 16 countries, suggesting strong project-writing and consortium-management capability. This makes them a reliable lead partner for proposals, particularly for organisations that want to join a well-managed consortium rather than lead one themselves.

CETEC has built a network of 67 unique consortium partners across 16 countries, indicating broad European reach well beyond their Murcia base. Their partnerships span the full EU geography, not concentrated in any single region.

What sets them apart

CETEC combines deep plastics and polymer expertise with a proven ability to lead EU consortia — a rare combination for a regional SME research centre. Their evolution from traditional plastics processing toward enzymatic degradation and bioconversion gives them a bridge between conventional materials industry and emerging bioeconomy approaches. For consortium builders, they offer both technical credibility in circular plastics and the administrative track record of coordinating four consecutive H2020 projects.

Highlights from their portfolio

• Agro2Circular
  Their largest project (EUR 1.3M) and most ambitious in scope, combining agrifood waste upcycling with digitalisation in a territorial circular economy model.
• upPE-T
  Bridges chemistry and biology by using enzymatic degradation to convert PET waste into biodegradable bioplastics for food packaging — a high-impact application area.
• VALUE-RUBBER
  Addresses the critical raw materials challenge of end-of-life tyres with devulcanization technology that could replace virgin rubber in production lines.