On the pulse of time with better.collect

Have you ever wondered where our products end up after use? For strapping: it’s collected, recycled, and turned back into new strapping. With better.collect, what seems like waste becomes a valuable raw material—and a real contribution to the circular economy.

From strap to strap – circular economy at Teufelberger
better.collect is the newest business unit of STS, organizing the return and recycling of used plastic strapping. The straps—made from 100% recyclable mono-material*—are collected by type, processed, and reused in production. This creates a closed material loop.

Why go to all this effort? Because Teufelberger takes responsibility for our products and secures raw materials for the future. Through better.collect, 1,759 tons of CO₂ are saved per ton of collected PET strapping. That’s roughly the annual CO₂ emissions of more than 380 cars. Instead of incinerating material or exporting it abroad, we focus on true circular economy and creating value locally.

Partner Quote – FCC Group Austria:
“Teufelberger’s circular system fits perfectly with our philosophy: it saves resources, avoids waste, and proves that sustainability can also be economically attractive.”

What’s new?

• better.collect is now an independent business unit
• A new partnership with Zentek improves collection quality
• Volumes are increasing: 631 t of strapping waste collected, 824 t of recycled material processed (Jan–July 2025)
• Goal: 10% of PET material to come from recycled strapping regrind in the future

*Recycled monomaterial: Our strapping bands consist of 98% PET and only 2% additives. The PET comes entirely from recycled bottles – and, more recently, from used strapping bands.

Katharina Kaltenbrunner