Transforming Inorganic Industrial Waste into Sustainable Construction Materials

Uruguay's pulp industry, led by key players Montes del Plata (MdP) and UPM, is a vital component of the country's economy and a major driver of industrial development. These companies operate some of the world’s most advanced pulp mills, significantly contributing to exports and employment. As part of their 2030 sustainability commitments, UPM and MdP are collaborating with Newlab to transform their inorganic waste streams into valuable resources, aiming for zero solid waste. This initiative aligns with Uruguay’s broader circular economy and decarbonization goal.     

The pulp production process generates various inorganic waste streams, including dregs/grits, fly ash, bottom ash, lime kiln dust. This collaboration seeks to identify and pilot deep-technology solutions capable of converting these byproducts into green construction materials.

The studio will focus on green / eco-friendly solutions, piloting projects that demonstrate the potential of using industrial byproducts to reduce emissions and enhance sustainability in the construction industry. This initiative aims to drive innovation within Uruguay’s construction sector, developing scalable and impactful solutions that support the industry’s decarbonization.

At Newlab, we focus on leveraging technology and cross-industry collaboration to tackle environmental challenges, such as the construction sector—a major contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions. We aim to transform this industry through innovation by rethinking how we use industrial byproducts and inorganic waste, particularly from the pulp industry, to create sustainable building materials that drive the transition to a circular economy.

Our open call invites startups and innovators committed to developing solutions that convert waste into valuable products for green construction. We support technologies that can scale and integrate across different markets, providing startups with the resources to test and pilot, that set new sustainability standards in construction.

This initiative not only addresses sustainability goals locally but also presents startups with a potential opportunity to partner with global leaders like UPM and MdP, and access a global market and scale their solutions within the pulp industry. Uruguay, with its strong pulp sector, serves as a strategic entry point for startups to develop and expand impactful technologies worldwide.

Waste into Cementitious or Supplementary Cementitious Materials (SCMs)

We are looking for startups that use waste streams as Supplementary Cementitious Materials (SCMs) to partially replace clinker or limestone in cement production. Solutions that incorporate these materials to enhance sustainability in cement formulations are highly encouraged.

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Waste into Geopolymers and/or Cement-Free Construction Materials

We aim to revolutionize concrete production through the use of industrial waste to develop geopolymers and other alternatives that can partially or fully replace traditional cement. This approach targets emissions reduction and the development of sustainable construction materials, aligning with our green construction objectives.

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Waste into Legacy Aggregate Replacement

This area focuses on solutions that replace conventional aggregates like sand and gravel in concrete with waste streams. We are interested in technologies that minimize environmental impact by reducing natural resource extraction and repurposing waste for construction applications.

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Waste to Other Sustainable Construction Materials

We seek solutions that repurpose inorganic industrial waste streams, such as dregs/grits, fly ash, bottom ash, and lime kiln dust, into value-added materials for infrastructure and construction applications, including asphalt pavement, roads, and conventional building components, among other applications. Innovations may involve substituting raw materials, optimizing manufacturing processes, or developing new technologies, all aimed at leveraging waste streams to reduce the industry's carbon footprint.

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Inorganic Waste Dewatering and Drying Technologies

We value innovative pre-treatment technologies that efficiently reduce moisture content in industrial waste streams, such as dregs/grits. Our focus is on energy-efficient solutions that prepare these materials for further processing, enabling their integration into new, value-added applications, such as green construction initiatives, and allowing them to be included as complementary pilots within other focus areas.

UPM
UPM delivers renewable and responsible, innovative, solutions for a future beyond fossils across six business areas: UPM Fibers, UPM Energy, UPM Raflatac, UPM Specialty Papers, UPM Communication Papers and UPM Plywood. 

Operations in Uruguay includes two state of the art pulp mills: UPM Fray Bentos, one of the most modern pulp mills in the world which produces 1.3 million tonnes of pulp since 2007, and UPM Paso de los Toros, the world's biggest single line pulp mill capable of producing 2.1 tonnes of pulp annually since 2023. As the industry leader in responsibility, we are committed to the UN Business Ambition for 1.5°C and the science-based targets to mitigate climate change.

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Montes del Plata (MdP)
Montes del Plata is a joint venture between Arauco and Stora Enso, two leading global forestry companies. MdP operates one of the largest and most modern pulp mills in Uruguay, Montes del Plata is dedicated to producing sustainable pulp while maintaining high environmental standards. The company emphasizes innovation and sustainability, seeking ways to turn its industrial byproducts into value-added products that contribute to Uruguay’s circular economy. In collaboration with Newlab, MdP aims to leverage its resources and expertise to pilot cutting-edge solutions for transforming industrial waste into materials that support green construction practices.

_{UPM and MdP hereinafter as “Collaborators”. The Collaborators are competitors in the pulp industry and as such, they are governed by strict anti- trust rules. Considering this condition, for compliance purposes, both the Collaborators and the startup commit that all discussions in relation to this Project shall be limited to the purposes expressed in this Open Call, committing not to disclose sensitive information of any of the Collaborators, and an executive minute for such discussions must be exchanged and stored by Newlab (as guarantor of this process).} 

_{The startups must commit to cooperate with the Collaborators and Newlab in relation to the application of Free Competition Compliance regulations.}