Newlight Technologies: Plastics for a carbon negative future
The Newlight Technologies case is set at the end of 2013. Newlight has been awarded the Innovation Prize for Biomaterial of the Year by nova-Institut GmbH at the Cologne International Conference on Industrial Biotechnology and Bio-based Plastics & Composites. The company has a small-scale pilot plant using enzyme catalysts to produce a bioplastic resin, PHA, which has a wide range of applications for products in the plastics industry. The pilot plant can produce enough resin to perform product trials for a number of end-users at the same time. The innovative process is the fruit of ten years’ research and the result promises to be one of the first biopolymers to be economically competitive with petro-chemical based products on price and performance. The case provides details of the global industry, giving scope and scale information for businesses along the value chain, including market segmentation and resin pricing.
- Industry analysis
- Supply chain analysis and strategic focus (position in the supply chain, low cost/differentiation choices, market segmentation)
- Market entry modes and timing. In a business for sustainability/environment or CSR program, additional emphasis can be placed on environmental sustainability as an element of strategy. Initiating this discussion before analysis of the supply chain will help to give focus to the subsequent discussion.
Newlight Technologies, Manufacturing, Biotechnology
2013
Cranfield University
Wharley End Beds MK43 0JR, UK
Tel +44 (0)1234 750903
Email [email protected]
Harvard Business School Publishing
60 Harvard Way, Boston MA 02163, USA
Tel (800) 545-7685 Tel (617)-783-7600
Fax (617) 783-7666
Email [email protected]
NUCB Business School
1-3-1 Nishiki Naka
Nagoya Aichi, Japan 460-0003
Tel +81 52 20 38 111
Email [email protected]
IMD retains all proprietary interests in its case studies and notes. Without prior written permission, IMD cases and notes may not be reproduced, used, translated, included in books or other publications, distributed in any form or by any means, stored in a database or in other retrieval systems. For additional copyright information related to case studies, please contact Case Services.
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
The A case in this two-part series outlines the challenges Isabella Phoenix faced in designing a global sustainability program for HP's vast network of channel partners in just 12 weeks with only one team member and limited resources. The initiati...
The B case outlines how, by early 2025, Isabella Phoenix's initial vision for HP's Amplify Impact sustainability program had grown into a global initiative involving 4,800 partners in 48 countries. The program surpassed its goals, enrolling 59 of ...
Existing research on social entrepreneurship has tended to focus on its favorable outcomes and positive societal impacts. While we acknowledge and commend this optimistic perspective, we contend that the lack of robust and systematic attention giv...
Last week, a notification flashed. “Add your email address for extra security,” my phone chirped. It was from WhatsApp. I stared at the screen, a single question forming in my mind: Security? Or surveillance? I tapped “No.” The feeling wasn’t ange...
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
in I by IMD
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Case reference: IMD-2681 ©2025
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Case reference: IMD-2695 ©2025
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
in Small Business Economics 8 July 2025, ePub before print, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-025-01094-3
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
in I by IMD
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications
in I by IMD
Research Information & Knowledge Hub for additional information on IMD publications