Our strategic vision Hero@Zero

Optimising ESG performance with Hero@Zero!

Our Hero@Zero strategy is more than just a plan - it is the way to completely transform our hose and connection systems business into a circular economy by 2035. This means that in future we will design our products in such a way that they do not end up as waste after use, but can be returned to a closed cycle.

How do we achieve this? Through innovative material concepts and circular product designs, we ensure that our plastic hoses can be taken back after use and that the materials used can be recycled and reused.

The aim is an endless circular economy in which raw materials are used again and again and waste is avoided as far as possible - all while maintaining the consistently high quality and safety of our products.

Hero@Zero is also our answer to expected ESG requirements:

✅ Acting proactively instead of reacting: We are not waiting for regulatory requirements - we are already shaping standards today and investing in circular solutions. This reduces risks and strengthens our ability to act.

✅ Added value for our customers: By offering circular products and access to the product life cycle data stored in the AMPIUS hose management system, we also help our customers to achieve their own ESG goals.

We firmly believe that ESG and an effective circular economy are not only obligations, but also opportunities to leave a positive footprint on our environment with our company and our industry.

Find out more about Hero@Zero here

AMPIUS® is more than just a hose with sensors that monitors itself. Rather, AMPIUS® is a comprehensive digital ecosystem with a hose management system at its core. It fulfils the necessary regulatory requirements (keyword: CE management) and offers lifecycle tracking and predictive maintenance (including material savings).

And that's not all: AMPIUS® is also the tool for achieving our strategic goal of Hero@Zero. By 2035, we want to gradually transition our products to a circular economy. They are to be designed and produced in such a way that they can be taken back, recycled and reused after use.

CEO Dr Andreas Bastin: "The most important basic requirement is that the hoses are clearly identifiable - and we can ensure that."

With AMPIUS®, we are equipped for our mission to bring our products into the circular economy and to be Hero@Zero.

The expected market environment will be a challenge

With the Hero@Zero vision, Masterflex Group is setting out as a "first mover" in the industry. In this way, we will also be one step ahead of the expected legislative changes - whether it's the plastics tax or the pricing of CO₂ emissions.

For us as a group of companies focussing on hose and connection solutions made from high-performance plastics, however, this also means another challenge: in the interests of our customers, this should be as economical as possible!

As our CEO outlines in an interview with "Technischer Handel": "This means developing overall concepts that prevent hoses from becoming exorbitantly expensive. By combining requirements management, the right choice of materials and ideal processing, we want to be able to supply affordable products that are as ecologically clean as possible in a circular economy."

Our strategists have recognised the economic and political development as an opportunity to think further than just recycling. This is no easy task, especially in the field of engineering plastics. However, our CEO knows that such an attitude does not yet apply to the entire industry: "(...) the topic of sustainability is already present for many of our customers today, but we are clearly riding ahead of the big wave. There is currently little pressure to adapt, which is why customer interest is still low."

In addition to material testing and customisation, the reorientation also includes a radical rethink of existing sales models.

Dr Andreas Bastin explains that the development of holistic concepts for integrating hose systems made of high-performance plastics into the circular economy in a way that is not only cost-efficient but also ecologically sustainable is to be achieved through requirements management, precise material selection and optimal processing. This expertise, combined with digital product management, holds out the prospect of a potentially completely new business model.

Digitally tradable and recyclable hose and connection solutions should offer customers something above all: They should be able to transparently determine and gradually reduce their CO₂ impact.

CEO Andreas Bastin: "We will be able to certify to the customer: This is your ESG or CO₂ footprint that you leave behind by using these hoses." Compliance with expected social regulations certainly plays a key role for companies in this respect. The task now is to develop a circular economy system for hoses and connection solutions that can be used to map the "second half of the life cycle", i.e. take-back and recycling. This, as outlined by Dr Bastin, not only enables a sustainable transformation within the hose industry, but also creates potential for scaling.

Utilisation of external expertise

Things are going well for us: since 2023, we have been cooperating with Braungart EPEA - Internationale Umweltforschung GmbH as part of our previously communicated Group strategy Hero@Zero

If the name EPEA doesn't ring a bell, Braungart EPEA is an innovation partner for institutions and companies, offering support in the development of environmentally friendly and recyclable products. The founder, Prof Michael Braungart, is regarded as the originator of the cradle-to-cradle concept and you are sure to have come across him before on the subject of the circular economy.

Braungart EPEA is currently helping the Masterflex Group with its expertise in analysing materials and evaluating our current products. Our project team at the Gelsenkirchen site has already learnt a lot from the collaboration and is already in the process of evaluating the ABC-X analysis. The project team is currently in the process of product redesign. This means that alternative materials are being sought and tested for materials that are not cradle-to-cradle compliant.

"There's a lot to consider if you're serious about the circular economy: the cleaning agents and solvents used, the (...) additives - everything is being scrutinised." Says Dr Andreas Bastin in an interview with TH Technischer Handel.

The Masterflex Group CEO himself has an engineering background and experience with transformation processes.

Exchange and inspiration - workshop for colleagues from the Masterflex Group

We had the privilege of welcoming the chemist Prof Dr Michael Braungart, a pioneer in the field of sustainability and co-founder of the cradle-to-cradle design concept, to the Gelsenkirchen site!

In inspiring workshops and subsequent Q&A sessions, our managers, colleagues from various business units and Masterflex Group CEO Dr Andreas Bastin immersed themselves in the principles of C2C, which is a central driving force behind our realigned corporate strategy.

The Professor of Chemistry and Managing Director of Braungart EPEA-Internationale Umweltforschung GmbH and his team gave the participants an insight into their work and successes. The new business models associated with the radically different thinking behind the C2C principles were also highlighted.

The discussion on the meaningfulness of carbon footprints in the context of the "Hero@Zero" corporate strategy that is now guiding us was also particularly interesting. Prof Dr Braungart's views will undoubtedly continue to drive our future decisions and initiatives in the area of sustainability and further business model development.

We are grateful for this enriching experience and look forward to integrating the insights into our Hero@Zero vision!

Digital product passport - our hose management system as the basis!

At the Digital Summit Euregio, digitalisation met sustainability once again: Henning F. Mettge spoke in a panel discussion about the importance of a digital twin as the basis for the Digital Product Passport.

He spoke about the problems that arise in practice and their digital solutions. Another speaker, Saredin Seine, also sees a challenge ahead: his company (SEINE Batteriesysteme) produces battery systems that should be the first to receive a product passport. There are still many unanswered questions on this topic. Thomas L. Rödding, who monitors and actively supports committee work across Europe, explained how these questions are being answered. Lars Baumgürtel (ZINQ) gave a refreshing boost of hope: his company has shown how it can be done with a product.

Overall, the discussion and concluding Q&A session showed that there is no way forward without structured data. Systematisation is the best basis for being prepared for the future.

Our Masterflex SE CEO Dr Andreas Bastin takes a similar view: "The most important basic requirement is that the hoses are clearly identifiable - and we can ensure that."

At the Masterflex Group, this means that we are ready for our extended mission to bring our products into the circular economy and to be Hero@Zero.

Producing plastic products that never become waste, but can be used again and again.

This is made possible by the cradle-to-cradle approach. We are convinced that this is the solution to the sustainability challenges facing our industry.

The Cradle to Cradle approach ensures that all the materials we use are either biodegradable or can be recycled indefinitely without any loss of quality. This results in a closed material cycle rather than waste. In such a system, more plastics can and should be used.

More high-quality plastics mean more recyclable materials in circulation - a win-win situation for everyone involved!

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We are tackling it! Follow us on our exciting journey - together we can achieve great things!

Did you know that the extraction of materials contributes to around half of the world's greenhouse gas emissions?

At Masterflex, we are tackling this issue with our pioneering Hero@Zero strategy.

The path to our Hero@Zero vision is through the development and manufacture of hose and connector systems that can be recycled and reused. By carefully calculating the Product Carbon Footprint (PCF), we demonstrate the impact of this change. For example, our Master-PUR H Trivolution hose, which is made from TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane), wire and additives, shows that the carbon footprint in a circular economy model is as much as 84% lower due to the reduced need for virgin raw materials:

To compare the carbon footprint of a hose's raw materials, we first calculate the weight of each material in the hose. Then we determine the environmental impact of these materials by calculating their emissions in "carbon dioxide equivalents" (CO2e). By multiplying the weight of each material by its CO2e value, we get the total carbon footprint of the hose's raw materials.

Help us pave the way to a sustainable future.