From Disposable to Circular: Rethinking Composite Manufacturing Consumables

Airtech, together with NCC and Plan B Circular, has been named a finalist for the 2026 Composites UK Sustainability: Circularity Award.

At Advanced Engineering 2026, Airtech Advanced Materials Group will showcase an award shortlisted project that demonstrates how polyester breather fabric can be recovered, recycled and transformed into a valuable secondary resource.

Developed in collaboration with NCC and Plan B Circular, the project has been named a finalist in the Circularity Award category at the Composites UK 2026 Industry Awards. Visitors to the Airtech stand will be able to explore the project first-hand through a display that follows the journey of polyester breather fabric from used manufacturing consumable to recycled material.

Polyester breather plays a vital role in the vacuum bagging process but is typically used for a single production cycle. Through this collaborative initiative, Airtech, NCC and Plan B Circular have demonstrated a practical route for recovering and recycling waste breather material. By collecting and processing one tonne of used polyester breather through an advanced thermomechanical recycling process, the team successfully produced high-quality recycled PET (rPET) suitable for a range of second-life applications, including closed-loop breather-to-breather recycling, textile applications such as peel ply materials, and 3D printed tooling.

At Advanced Engineering, visitors will be able to see materials that illustrate the transformation from used breather fabric to recycled product, providing a tangible example of how circularity can be integrated into existing manufacturing processes without compromising the performance and reliability that composites manufacturers depend on.

By demonstrating that materials traditionally regarded as end-of-life can become feedstock for new applications, Airtech and its project partners are helping to develop a more circular future for composites manufacturing, creating new opportunities to retain material value while supporting the industry's sustainability requirements.