From the Sector

At K 2025, the Reifenhäuser Group will demonstrate Industrial AI's full potential for productivity in plastics processing. At the heart of the dedicated “Reifenhäuser NEXT” brand is a powerful AI chatbot that enables even inexperienced line operators to quickly solve complex tasks in their daily work, thereby maximizing availability, productivity, and quality.

In Germany, 86 percent of companies are affected by the shortage of skilled workers – more than twice as many as ten years ago. The global average is currently 74 percent*. Production companies rank fifth in the industry comparison. The low availability and high turnover of experienced production specialists is one of the biggest challenges facing the plastics industry. *Source: MPG study on the shortage of skilled workers in 2025

With Reifenhäuser NEXT, plastics manufacturers can reduce their dependence on highly qualified personnel and increase their overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) by optimizing availability, performance, and quality. This is made possible by a unique ecosystem that combines state-of-the-art AI technologies with Reifenhäuser's proven expertise and live data from production.

"Google, OpenAI, and others are already impressively demonstrating what AI solutions can achieve in the consumer sector. However, AI is only as intelligent as the data it has been trained with,“ explains Jan Karnath, Chief Digital Officer (CDO) of the Reifenhäuser Group and responsible for the NEXT brand. ”Reifenhäuser has decades of experience in plastics extrusion. We have integrated this bundled knowledge into an AI solution that is unique on the market."

The Reifenhäuser NEXT portfolio is based on three product streams that seamlessly interlock:

NEXT.AI – Intelligent assistance systems 
At the heart of NEXT.AI is an AI chatbot that provides real-time support to machine operators and service teams during ongoing operations. The AI accesses Reifenhäuser's comprehensive expertise in engineering, service, maintenance, and process technology – and, if desired, on the user's documentation and live production data. Operators receive immediately actionable recommendations via simple text entries (prompts) in the chatbot – for example, in the event of quality problems. Thanks to this support, even inexperienced employees can achieve optimal results. This reduces downtime, lowers service costs, and makes production processes more efficient.

“Our assistance systems act as constant companions for the production teams. They not only provide quick solutions to problems, but will also deliver proactive alerts and optimization suggestions in the future,” says Karnath.

NEXT.Learning – Knowledge as the key to success 
To build up and establish the necessary expertise among plastics processors in the long term, NEXT.Learning offers a combination of on-site training and a digital learning platform. This is individually tailored to the needs of customers and helps producers to retain expertise within the company despite staff turnover and make it available to new employees at any time. Thanks to the use of AI avatars, customers can access the virtual training courses in over 100 languages. On request, Reifenhäuser NEXT can also adapt and provide content very quickly to meet customer-specific requirements.

“By using natural language processing (NLP), we are democratizing specialist knowledge for our global customer base in a whole new dimension. Initial pilot projects have generated extremely positive feedback and highlight the added value of our solution – especially for international customers whose production employees speak different local languages and, for example, do not have sufficient English skills,” explains Karnath.

NEXT.Data – Generating added value from data 
The third product stream, NEXT.Data, enables producers to exploit the full potential of their production data. The data is automatically aggregated via robust system integrations (e.g., OPC UA or GraphQL) and displayed in clear dashboards using the ExtrusionOS application suite. ExtrusionOS is specially designed for the requirements of the plastics extrusion and packaging industry. Among other things, customers can use it to create real-time analyses and automated OEE calculations to make data-driven decisions.

“With Reifenhäuser NEXT Product Streams, we provide our customers with a customized industrial AI journey. Depending on their requirements, we combine our NEXT.AI, Learning, and Data solutions, select the appropriate level of integration, and thus create the basis for operational excellence in line operation,” explains Karnath.

Recent studies show that the use of Industrial AI offers considerable potential for increasing overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) – with improvements of up to 15 percent. Among other things, this is made possible by reducing downtime and waste by up to 20 percent*. In addition, cost savings are expected in the area of maintenance, which can be achieved through optimized service and spare parts planning. Reifenhäuser NEXT focuses on precisely this area and supports companies in integrating the use of AI into industrial production in a targeted manner in order to fully exploit this potential and achieve sustainable improvements. 
*Source: McKinsey / Deloitte

The third expansion of ECHA’s new chemicals database, ECHA CHEM, incorporates overviews of different regulatory activities by authorities and the resulting outcomes.

ECHA maintains the largest chemicals database in the European Union (EU), combining industry-submitted data with information generated in the EU’s regulatory processes. 

The regulatory data includes information from various pieces of legislation under ECHA’s remit. Visibility of authorities’ regulatory activities on specific chemicals and resulting actions help stakeholders to effectively participate in the decision-making process via consultations, and comply with the laws concerning the chemicals they use.

Peter van der Zandt, Director of Risk Management, said:
“Transparency and predictability of the EU’s regulatory activities are a cornerstone of well-functioning chemicals regulation. We have now made this regulatory information available in a consistent manner and in a more user-friendly format, allowing all impacted and interested parties to follow the authorities’ ongoing work.”

In this release, ECHA CHEM incorporates regulatory processes and lists from four chemicals regulations and directives:

REACH Regulation

• The list of substances restricted under REACH and the restriction process;
• The Authorisation List and ECHA’s recommendations for including substances in the Authorisation List;
• Substances of very high concern (SVHC) and the Candidate List;
• Dossier and substance evaluation;

Drinking Water Directive (DWD)

• European positive lists (EUPL);

Classification, Labelling and Packaging Regulation (CLP)

• Annex VI - the list of substances with EU harmonised classification and labelling (CLH) and the CLH process;

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) Regulation:

• The lists of substances subject to POPs Regulation and substances proposed as POPs.

These lists will, except for the new DWD European positive lists, also continue to be available under the Search for chemicals section on ECHA’s website. However, as ECHA CHEM continues to expand with more data sets, the old Search for chemicals pages will be gradually decommissioned. 

The European Chemicals Agency plans to launch a consultation on the draft opinion of its Committee for Socio-Economic Analysis (SEAC) on the proposed EU-wide restriction of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) following the Committee’s meeting in March 2026.

The SEAC draft opinion on the PFAS restriction proposal will cover the evaluation of the socio-economic aspects, including the availability of alternative substances and technologies. SEAC intends to agree its draft opinion at its meeting, which is provisionally scheduled for the first half of March 2026. The consultation will begin shortly after this meeting and remain open for 60 days, during which stakeholders can provide feedback.

Survey structure
The consultation will use a structured survey format, inviting participants to respond to questions on the potential impacts of restricting the use of PFAS across various sectors. Participants will also be asked to provide specific information about the availability and feasibility of alternatives to these widely used chemicals. Any information marked as confidential will be treated appropriately. Information on the risks associated with PFAS will not be considered, as these are evaluated in a separate opinion by the Committee for Risk Assessment (RAC).

All feedback will be entered directly into the question fields for each survey topic to streamline the processing of information. Attachments cannot be submitted as part of the consultation.

The consultation is open to all interested parties, including industry representatives, non-governmental organisations, researchers and members of the public. Stakeholders are encouraged to prepare in advance and to participate in this consultation to ensure that SEAC’s final opinion on the restriction proposal is scientifically robust and fit for purpose.

To support interested parties in preparing for the consultation, ECHA will hold an online information session on 30 October 2025. More details about this event will be provided on ECHA’s website. Consultation guidelines will also be published to help stakeholders submit relevant information that can be considered by the Committee when finalising its opinion.

ECHA will confirm the exact starting date of the consultation in March 2026.

Next steps
After reviewing the consultation feedback, SEAC is expected to adopt its final opinion by the end of 2026. This adoption will conclude ECHA’s committees’ scientific evaluation of the proposed restriction as announced on 27 August 2025.

Background
The proposal to restrict PFAS in the EU/EEA was prepared by authorities in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden. It was submitted to ECHA on 13 January 2023. It aims to reduce PFAS emissions into the environment and make products and processes safer for people. The six-month consultation ran from 22 March to 25 September 2023.

Currently, ECHA’s scientific committees, comprised of independent experts from EU Member States, are evaluating the proposal.

The European Commission will decide on the restriction in consultation with the EU Member States.

It’s time to dance to the Rhythm of Blues™ and celebrate AkzoNobel’s Colors of the Year 2026 – an upbeat and versatile color family that’s calming, connecting and creative.

There’s a trio of shades for next year – the light blue Mellow Flow™, the dark blue Slow Swing™ and the vibrant Free Groove™ – so everyone can find a style that works for them. The harmonious collection of signature indigos is just what we need in our homes, according to the results of the company’s extensive annual trend research.

“With everything that’s happening in the world, we see that people are reacting in various ways,” explains Heleen van Gent, Creative Director of AkzoNobel’s Global Aesthetic Center. “They’re either slowing down and recharging their batteries, wanting to feel in tune with others and celebrate kinship. Or they’re choosing to be bold, have fun and feel carefree.”

She adds that the three color palettes will help create living environments that fit everyone’s individual decorative needs. “To reflect these various moods – and because we understand that color is emotion and therefore personal – we’ve chosen a family of colors for 2026. They’re centered around three different rhythms that offer endless scope for changing the pace of your space.”

The colors, textures and special effects that take center stage in the Rhythm of Blues collection have been designed to strike a chord in a wide range of markets. Along with decorative paints, inspirational palettes have also been created for the aerospace, automotive, consumer electronics, metal furniture, lighting, cabinetry, flooring, building products and architecture markets.

“We pride ourselves on setting the tone together with architects, interior designers, trend specialists and product developers – who all make important contributions to our in-depth research,” says Daniel Geiger Campos, Global Director of AkzoNobel’s Decorative Paints business and member of the Executive Committee. “Our Rhythm of Blues family is perfectly in tune with evolving trends in various industries and will help us deliver market-specific solutions to customers so they can more confidently apply their own style to their projects.” AkzoNobel’s Global Aesthetic Center has been translating trends into desirable colors for more than 30 years. Its annual ColourFutures trend forecast meeting brings together in-house experts, international architects, designers and journalists to share insights into how our reactions to the world around us impact our color choices.