POLYRAY and SABIC Collaborate to Offer Certified Renewable Polycarbonate for Eyewear Applications

POLYRAY (Xiamen Hongtai Optical Co., Ltd.), a major eyeglass lens manufacturer, and SABIC, a leading name in the chemical industry, announced their partnership for the use of SABIC's LEXAN™ polycarbonate (PC) resin based on certified renewable raw materials in lenses for various eyewear end applications such as sunglasses, safety glasses and sports glasses.   SABIC's certified renewable polycarbonate, an engineering thermoplastic resin, is part of the company's TRUCIRCLE™ portfolio and services. Based on peer-reviewed, cradle-to-gate product life cycle assessment (LCA) evaluations, the use of SABIC's LEXAN polycarbonate resin can result in a potential reduction of up to 61% in carbon footprint and up to 35% in fossil depletion. [caption id="attachment_123928" align="aligncenter"] POLYRAY will use SABIC's LEXAN™ polycarbonate (PC) resin based on certified renewable raw materials in various end applications for the eyewear industry.[/caption]   Jessica Chen, Commercial Director at POLYRAY, said, "POLYRAY is the first company to offer our customers a renewable PC lens to keep pace with the growing trend toward greater sustainability in the development of plastic lens components. By using renewable sources in the production of lenses, we can create significant sustainability impact. Since the requirements for POLYRAY's lens products made from SABIC's materials remain the same, SABIC's polycarbonate based on certified renewable raw materials ensures that the customer does not have to compromise on design or application. We are pleased to partner with SABIC."   Sergi Monros, Vice President of Performance Polymers and Industrial Solutions for Petrochemicals at SABIC, said, "Our polycarbonate provides SABIC and our direct and end customers with more sustainable solutions and associated benefits. We are pleased that POLYRAY, as our first customer in the eyewear industry, will use our new material in their end applications. In addition to providing the sustainable solution they were looking for, we are satisfied that we have introduced POLYRAY to the ISCC certification system."   POLYRAY is the first ISCC PLUS certified eyeglass lens supplier for the eyewear industry and provides its customers with consistent proof of a sustainable supply chain. ISCC is an independent global organization that provides a leading certification system offering sustainability requirements for all raw materials and markets as well as traceability across the supply chain. ISCC PLUS certification can be a powerful tool for companies in the supply chain to address various environmental and social standards.   Chen concluded, "Since the launch of our BioPC® lens, which is part of our BIO-LINE portfolio, in February, a wide range of eyewear brands have shown great interest in our solution. It provides the same product specifications as a fossil-based PC lens, such as exceptional impact resistance and high optical quality, but with an environmental profile. BioPC lenses can be used as sunglasses lenses, demo lenses and many other lens applications such as polarized, photochromic and blue light blocking lenses - ideal for sports, lifestyle, safety glasses and snow goggles as well."   SABIC's TRUCIRCLE portfolio and services for circular solutions encompass recyclability design, mechanically recycled products, certified circular products from feedstock recycling of used plastics and certified renewable products from bio-based raw materials.   POLYRAY's BIO-LINE portfolio and services for eco and circular solutions include BioPC lens from ISCC certified renewable raw materials and BioRay® lens USDA certified products from bio-based raw materials and BioHydro®, an environmentally friendly water-repellent coating free of PFOA and PFOS.