Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub

What Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub does

The Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub (SMI Hub) is a research institute established in 2020 and embedded within the Henry Royce Institute at The University of Manchester. It operates from Floor 6 of the Royce Hub Building on Oxford Road, Manchester, with a team of 11–50 interdisciplinary staff spanning polymer chemists, engineers, economists, social scientists, machine learners, and life-cycle assessment experts, led by Director Professor Michael Shaver. SMI Hub applies a systems-level approach to plastic and multi-material sustainability, running a three-tier service model — Advice (free initial consultation), Assess (technical laboratory-based materials evaluation), and Innovate (multi-month collaborative R&D projects) — alongside major research initiatives including the Future Homes project, CHaMP healthcare circularity partnership with Bupa, REMOVE-UM, the One Bin to Rule Them All single-stream collection project, and co-leadership of the £13.6m EPSRC Sustainable Engineering Plastics (SEP) Hub and £14m Carbon-Loop Sustainable Biomanufacturing (C-Loop) Hub.

The Hub's underlying technology stack spans polymer science, mechanical and chemical recycling, selective depolymerisation, life-cycle assessment, materials characterisation, weathering testing, and industrial composting assessment. Notable proprietary assets include the Recon2 fluorescent marking system for recycled-content quantification (UK patent filed) and a multi-modal characterisation suite linking polymer extrusion, thermal analysis, spectroscopy, and rheology. SMI Hub operates without a commercial monetisation model: services to SMEs are provided free of charge under grant funding (ERDF, EPSRC, Defra, UKRI), while deeper enterprise collaborations with companies such as Polestar, Unilever, Mastercard, Bupa, and Barratt Developments are funded through research chairs and strategic partnerships. The Hub serves Greater Manchester SMEs (fewer than 250 employees, less than €50m turnover) as its primary segment, with stated national-scale ambition.

Business model: SMI Hub functions as a grant-funded university research centre rather than a commercially monetised entity. Revenue streams derive from public sector research grants (ERDF, EPSRC, Defra, UKRI) and enterprise-funded research collaborations, with no disclosed commercial pricing for services. Go-to-market is event- and community-led: structured workshop cohorts for breweries, cafes, printers, and art organisations, combined with direct enterprise outreach, seminars at Greater Manchester Green Summit, joint webinars with regional business support organisations, and digital channels (LinkedIn, Twitter, newsletter). Customer base is horizontally segmented across multiple verticals — automotive, FMCG, payment solutions, construction, healthcare, packaging, fashion, and beverages — with named partners spanning both SMEs and global enterprises.

Name

Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub

Legal name

Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub

Website

https://smihub.ac.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub is a Manchester-based research institute at the University of Manchester that delivers free sustainability Advice, Assess, and Innovate services to Greater Manchester SMEs and runs collaborative R&D with enterprises on plastics circularity, chemical recycling, and life-cycle assessment.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainable Materials Research Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Environmental Consulting Services (541620)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Circularity Consulting & Program Management (EPR, Design-for-Circularity, LCA) (EUAIANAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Pollution Prevention, Chemicals & Waste (incl. Plastics) (BPADALAJ), Circular Economy & Resource Efficiency (BPADALAM)

Keywords

• Sustainable materials research
• Polymer recycling
• Life cycle assessment
• Plastics circular economy
• Chemical deconstruction

Headquarters

HQ city

Manchester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding (ERDF): The SMI Hub was created by the Henry Royce Institute in 2020 with funding from the European Regional Development Fund. Services are provided free of charge to eligible SMEs in Greater Manchester.
2. Grant Funding (EPSRC / UKRI): Multiple projects funded by EPSRC, Defra, and UKRI including REMOVE-UM (£1.3m), CHaMP (EPSRC Prosperity Partnership), SEP Hub (£13.6m), C-Loop Hub (£14m), and Future Homes (£3.54m allocation). These fund research collaborations with industry partners.
3. Industry Research Collaborations: Bespoke multi-month innovation collaborations with companies such as Polestar, Unilever, Mastercard, and others, funded through research chairs and strategic partnerships.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The SMI Hub delivers sustainability research and advisory services for plastics and multi-material circularity through a three-tier service model: Advice (free initial guidance), Assess (technical materials evaluation using state-of-the-art laboratory instrumentation), and Innovate (multi-month collaborative R&D projects). It also runs major grant-funded research programs addressing polymer recycling, chemical deconstruction, life-cycle assessment, and circular economy across sectors such as automotive, construction, healthcare, packaging, and FMCG.

Product overview

The SMI Hub offers a three-tier service model: Advice (free initial consultation), Assess (technical laboratory-based materials evaluation), and Innovate (multi-month collaborative R&D projects). Core capabilities span polymer characterization, life cycle assessment, chemical recycling, deconstruction, and materials science research. Research initiatives include Future Homes, CHaMP (Circularity in Healthcare Materials Provision), One Bin to Rule Them All, REMOVE-UM, and participation in national hubs including the Sustainable Engineering Plastics (SEP) Hub and Carbon-Loop Sustainable Biomanufacturing Hub. The organization also develops proprietary technologies such as the Recon2 fluorescent recycled content identification system.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Advice Service Free initial advisory service offering impartial guidance on plastics use and circularity, helping businesses understand where they can make sustainability improvements. Targeted at SMEs in Greater Manchester.
• Assess Service Technical materials assessment service evaluating product properties, performance, durability, and end-of-life fate using state-of-the-art laboratory equipment including weathering chambers, barrier property instruments, polymer processing equipment, thermal analysis, spectroscopy, and rheology tools. Used to verify recycled content claims, test compostability, and characterise polymer degradation.
• Innovate Service Bespoke multi-month collaborative innovation projects co-developing new technologies and solutions addressing sustainability challenges, including biodegradable polymers, recycling systems, and sustainable material validation. Designed for industry partners seeking deep R&D engagement with SMI Hub researchers.
• One Bin to Rule Them All Three-year interdisciplinary research project developing a unified single-stream household plastic collection system to simplify consumer participation and maximise recycling recovery rates. Funded by UKRI Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund.
• REMOVE-UM (REcovering MOlecular ValuE from Unrecycled Multi-materials) Three-year £1.3m project developing technologies to recover valuable materials from hard-to-recycle waste including disposable vapes and cars through molecular-level breakdown and recovery methods. A standalone research service offered with EPSRC and Defra backing.
• Sustainable Engineering Plastics (SEP) Hub £13.6m EPSRC Manufacturing Research Hub assessing and improving sustainability of greener materials and remanufacturing processes for high-performance plastics used in vehicles, electronics, and construction, with over 60 industry partners.
• Carbon-Loop Sustainable Biomanufacturing Hub (C-Loop) £14m initiative exploring how engineered microbial systems can convert carbon-rich industrial waste into high-value products including cosmetics, material precursors, and solvents, with the UK's first BioFactory to be established.
• CHaMP (Circularity in Healthcare Materials Provision) EPSRC Prosperity Partnership project with Bupa addressing plastic waste and single-use items in healthcare settings by exploring safer ways to reuse and recycle consumables while maintaining clinical standards.
• Future Homes £3.54m Innovation Accelerators project assessing material sustainability across full life cycles for new build housing and retrofit of existing homes in Greater Manchester, examining energy efficiency, air quality, and sustainable materials.
• Sustainable Automotive Polymers (Polestar Research Chair) Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chair collaboration with Polestar developing sustainable solutions for automotive interior and exterior plastics, including increasing recycled content, carbon-negative polymers, and end-of-life recyclability.
• Recon2 Fluorescent Recycled Content Identification Technology Proprietary fluorescent tagging system using 4,4-bis(2-benzoxazolyl)stilbene (BBS) to quantify recycled content in plastic products including HDPE, PET, and PP, enabling accurate, fraud-resistant verification of post-consumer recycled material quantities for UK Plastic Packaging Tax compliance. UK patent filed.

Quantifiable outcome

• Thermocill: 14% reduction in energy needed to heat a room and 150kg CO2 reduction per household per year
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers19 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and significant.

• EPSRC and Defra (REMOVE-UM project)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026A three-year £1.3m project funded by EPSRC and Defra to develop technologies that recover valuable materials from hard-to-recycle waste including disposable vapes and cars. The project combines expertise from chemical recycling, catalysis, sustainability assessment, and materials science across The University of Manchester.
• EPSRC SEP Hub (Sustainable Engineering Plastics)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025The £13.6 million EPSRC Manufacturing Research Hub in Sustainable Engineering Plastics brings together the University of Manchester (led by SMI Hub), University of Warwick, and University College London. The Hub engages over 60 industry partners across supply chains including Siemens, Polestar, Biffa and Vita to accelerate adoption of sustainable plastic solutions.
• EPSRC C-Loop Hub (Carbon-Loop Sustainable Biomanufacturing)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025A £14 million initiative led by the University of Edinburgh with spokes at Nottingham, University College London, Imperial College London, and The University of Manchester (via MIB). The C-Loop Hub explores how engineered microbial systems can convert carbon-rich industrial waste into high-value products, with the UK's first BioFactory to be established.
• BupacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Bupa is the business partner in the CHaMP (Circularity in Healthcare Materials Provision) project, an EPSRC Prosperity Partnership led by Professor Michael Shaver. The project addresses plastic waste and single-use items in health clinics, dental practices and hospitals, exploring safer ways to reuse and recycle consumables while maintaining clinical standards.
• PolestarcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Polestar (electric vehicle manufacturer) co-sponsors the Royal Academy of Engineering Research Chair held by Professor Michael Shaver. The collaboration aims to improve sustainability of automotive plastics through increasing recycled content, developing carbon-negative polymers, and increasing mechanical and chemical recyclability. The project critically evaluates sustainability, safety, and scalability for Polestar pilots and prototypes.
• Future Homes ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023A £3.54m multi-million-pound research project as part of the national Innovation Accelerators programme. Project partners include Barratt Developments, Bellway, Energy Innovation Agency, Q-bot, RED Cooperative, RSK Environment, Saint-Gobain, The University of Manchester's SMI Hub, and the University of Salford. The SMI Hub assesses material sustainability across full life cycles.
• SourcefulminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Partnership to quantify and characterise Sourceful's HydroTec Paper Pouch, verifying that the product reduces plastic use by 99% and carbon emissions by up to 40% compared to traditional plastic pouches.
• Morgan Sindall ConstructionminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Research collaboration with Morgan Sindall and Emerge Recycling to identify construction plastics that could be collected and recycled from construction sites, as part of efforts to increase plastic recycling in the construction sector.
• Emerge RecyclingminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Award-winning social enterprise providing commercial recycling and waste services. Partnered with SMI Hub and Morgan Sindall on a pilot scheme for sorting and collecting plastic waste from the National Squash Centre construction site.
• MastercardsignificantStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Collaboration to explore circular economy approaches for payment cards. The SMI Hub investigated transitioning from PVC to PET-G and developed chemical recycling methods to recover both embedded metal components and polymer from multi-layer payment cards.
• UnileversignificantStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Partnership to synthesise new degradable formulation polymers from biobased materials as alternatives to petrochemical-based polymers used in shampoos and detergents. The research includes thorough property assessment and life-cycle evaluation.
• UK Plastics Pact (WRAP / Ellen MacArthur Foundation)significantStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021The SMI Hub joined the UK Plastics Pact as an academic supporter. The Pact is a multi-stakeholder initiative bringing together organisations across the plastics value chain to create a circular economy for plastics, aligned with the Ellen MacArthur Foundation's New Plastics Economy initiative.
• UK Circular Plastics Network (UKCPN)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021The SMI Hub co-hosted a free workshop with UKCPN to address challenges reprocessors and recyclers face in dealing with plastic waste.
• CallalysignificantStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Collaborative EPSRC-funded project to develop bioplastics from surplus shellfish industry materials to replace stretchable films in Callaly's Tampliner menstrual hygiene products.
• DsposalminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Collaboration with Dsposal, which produces technology to help waste managers and waste producers handle waste legally, efficiently, safely and protect the environment.
• Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021The SMI Hub participates in the GMCA's Green Summit and Sustainable Consumption and Production Challenge Group. GMCA CEO Eamonn Boylan has highlighted the SMI Hub as a key initiative within the Greater Manchester sustainability ecosystem supporting the region's goal to become the UK's first zero-carbon city region by 2040.
• Henry Royce InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020The SMI Hub was created by the Henry Royce Institute for advanced materials in 2020 with funding from the European Regional Development Fund. The Hub is headquartered on Floor 6 of the Royce Hub Building at The University of Manchester. The Henry Royce Institute is the UK national institute for advanced materials research, with its Hub at The University of Manchester.
• The University of ManchestercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020The SMI Hub is administered by staff at the Henry Royce Institute at The University of Manchester. It operates within the University's Sustainable Futures platform and is closely linked to the Sustainable Consumption Institute, Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, and Manchester Institute of Biotechnology.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Closed Loop Partners: US-based circular-economy investment platform funding and operating recycling and reuse infrastructure. Closed Loop Partners operates complementary functions to SMI Hub in advancing circular plastics, but at much larger commercial scale and with a focus on US infrastructure.
• Veolia UK: Major UK environmental services provider operating waste management, recycling and materials recovery infrastructure. Veolia is a broad incumbent in the materials recovery space where SMI Hub provides scientific expertise, often overlapping on circular plastics initiatives.
• Fraunhofer Institute: Europe's largest applied research organisation, with institutes covering polymers, surface engineering, environmental and recycling topics. Fraunhofer is a structural analogue to SMI Hub's applied, industry-funded model but at vastly greater scale and breadth.

Direct peers

• High Value Manufacturing Catapult: UK Catapult network of advanced manufacturing R&D centres. As a Manchester-anchored materials research hub (via Henry Royce), SMI Hub sits within a similar publicly-funded, industry-translating research ecosystem.
• WRAP: UK charity coordinating the UK Plastics Pact and driving circular-economy action across the plastics value chain. WRAP is the closest UK mission peer to SMI Hub and a direct collaborator via the UK Plastics Pact, with overlapping remit on EPR, plastic packaging and SME engagement.
• Plastic Energy: UK-headquartered chemical recycling company converting end-of-life plastics into feedstock for new plastics. Plastic Energy is a direct peer in chemical recycling for plastics, complementing SMI Hub's research on deconstruction and advanced recycling technologies.
• Centre for Process Innovation (CPI): UK-based innovation centre developing and scaling sustainable process technologies including bioprocesses and advanced materials. CPI is structurally analogous to SMI Hub as a publicly-funded innovation centre with sustainability-focused programmes and industry translation.
• RECOUP: UK charity dedicated to sustainable plastics recycling through research, lobbying and best-practice guidance. RECOUP shares SMI Hub's mission of educating SMEs and corporates on recycled content, recyclability and circular design.
• National Physical Laboratory (NPL): UK's national measurement institute providing materials characterisation, metrology and standards. NPL shares SMI Hub's positioning as a trusted, publicly-funded measurement and characterisation provider for advanced materials, although at a broader scale.

Others

• Ellen MacArthur Foundation: Global thought leader promoting the circular economy, including the New Plastics Economy initiative. The Foundation's research and policy work parallels SMI Hub's mission but it is not a technical R&D provider and instead convenes industry commitments.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sustainable-materials-innovation-hub
• Xx.com/SMI_Hub
• Facebookfacebook.com/smihub

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Sustainable Materials Innovation Hub