During the last 4 years ChemStream participated in the LORCENIS project sponsored by the European Commission under Horizon 2020.During this project ChemStream developed its own superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) to be used as additives in concrete. Their water-absorbing properties ensure that the concrete has a longer lifespan by providing an improved internal water balance and the possibility to self-heal and self-seal the concrete when cracks occur. Recently the Innovation Radar of the European Commission put this development on the map of the 'Business Ready' Innovations in Europe. Read it via the following link.  In order to better understand how this award is made and what it means, please consult the following document.  

This year we celebrate the 10th anniversary of ChemStream.On the 29th of April 2010, ChemStream was created by 3 enthusiastic founders:Roland Claes, Frank De Voeght and Geert Deroover, each former employee of Agfa-Gevaert N.V.   In September 2010 they inaugurated a laboratory of 50 m2 in the then UBCA (Antwerp University Business Centre) in Edegem (Belgium), and in May 2011 a first employee was recruited.     Over the past 10 years, the small business has steadily grown to a total occupancy of 14 people and a total floor space of 550 m2, and ChemStream proved to be a class example of an independent chemical R&D company that according to Graydon is among the 10% best performing companies in its sector. Every year, profits are made that are reinvested into the company. A quick overview of the development of ChemStream over the past 10 years can be found in the following list of activities and memorabilia: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------01/01/2011 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------First subsidized IWT project ECOBLOCK (Development of UV-curable hydrogel coatings for yarn used as a protective component in optical cables), which led to 1 of ChemStream's patents EP2835385A1 (Poly-electrolyte polymer composition and its use). Meanwhile, ChemStream has been a partner in at least 9 other VLAIO projects, linked to FISCH (Flanders Innovation hub for Sustainable Chemistry), CATALISTI (the spearhead cluster for the chemical and plastics industry of Flanders) or SIM (Strategic Initiative Materials in Flanders). ChemStream is a member of FISCH and a member of the Board of Directors of CATALISTI.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Sept 2011 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Installation of a first modular inkjet printing system by VDW-Consulting bv, after which 3 more systems followed in increasing complexity (moving belt -> X, Y, Z-table / 2D -> 3D inkjet printing).    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------27-29/09/2011 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Participation in 1st fair - EUROFINISH 2011 at Flanders Expo Ghent.          In the meantime, ChemStream participated to many local and international fairs and created its own modular stand in collaboration with stand builder White House Design, which this year won a World Exhibition Stand Award in the category of Print Events (stand at INPRINT 2019).    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------01/11/2011 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The launch of the first European project participation ‘PANNA’ (Plasma And Nano for New Age "soft" conservation) in the context of the protection of cultural heritage.Meanwhile, ChemStream has been involved in 4 European projects, including 3 Horizon 2020 projects: ROBOX - Expanding the industrial use of Robust Oxidative Biocatalysts for the conversion and production of alcohols (01/04/2015-31/03/2019)LORCENIS - Long Lasting Strengthened Concrete for Energy Infrastructure under Severe Operation Conditions (01/04/2016-31/03/2020)InDIRECT – Direct and Indirect Biorefinery Technologies for Conversion of Organic side-streams into multiple marketable products (01/11/2016-31/10/2019) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Oct 2012 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Birth of the ChemStream LOGO.   ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2013 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Birth of the first website of ChemStream, after which a worthy more modern successor was designed and launched in 2017. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------27/06/2014 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ChemStream's 1st  patent  was filed. Meanwhile, 2 patents have been published with ChemStream as the Applicant:1. SURFACE ACTIVE AGENT AND PREPARATION THEREOFPublication info: EP2818237 (A1) 2014-12-312. POLY-ELECTROLYTE POLYMER COMPOSITION AND ITS USEPublication info: EP2835385 (A1) 2015-02-11, US2016040352 (A1) 2016-02-11  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------27/06/2014 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Participation in the first Inkjet Conference (Düsseldorf), in which we have participated every year since then and where we have already won 3 Best Speaker Awards.      Many other conferences were also visited by ChemStream, often with contributions such as lectures, posters or table tops.        ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------2017 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------First batch synthesis of a polymerized dispersing agent (up to volumes of 8 Kg), after which flow chemistry was introduced as an alternative synthesis method.     ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------25-28/03/2019 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------First ESMA INKJET ESSENTIALS Workshop organized at and by ChemStream. This workshop focused on ink design and integration and provided a mix between lectures and hands-on training to better understand the possibilities of inkjet printing in an industrial production environment.13 People from all over the world and from very different kinds of companies attended this course.    ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Over the years ChemStream invested in a wide range of measuring devices and other equipment to support its research and development. Some examples are listed below: Nordson UV-conveyor MiniCure and Aktiprint T-E UV Cure StationBrookfield viscometerKruss EasyDrop systemGCMS Varian 3800/Saturn200 and Agilent GCMSAgilent LCMS en GPCBruker Alpha FTIR spectrometerOcean Optics Jaz spectrophotometerTIGRES PLASMA BLASTER2 Dynomill Research LabMalvern Mastersizer 2000RETSCH centrifugal mill ZM200DATACOLOR Check 3 Lab-meterAgilent Cary 60 UV-VIS spectrophotometer...             

Last year ChemStream developed its first modular stand with the help of experienced stand designer Ronald Marien, stand builder White House Design and graphic designer Peter Boodts. The creative process required a lot of brainstorming and iterations and we are very proud of the result.It even led us to winning a SILVER World Exhibition Stand Award  in the category of 'Best Stand at a Print Event'! The 3 main goals of the stand were as follows:1) to stand out from the other stands/a stand with Stopping Power2) to raise questions about our business activities and attract the right target customers3) to create a unique and striking corporate image for Chemstream and have a modular structure, which is easy to re-use at next trade fairs    We chose for a warm look, opted for natural materials in wood and for sufficient spotlights to make the stand more attractive.We divided our stand in 2 zones: the 'exhibition corner' and the 'one-to-one communication area', but also made sure that a central eye catcher immediately grabbed the attention of the visitor and explained what we actually do (ex. making inks for the future).In the 'exhibition corner' we chose to make several cabinets where each cabinet represents an expertise that ChemStream is good at. For filling the cabinets we made sure that people's interest could be aroused through humour, exaggeration, beauty, movement, colour, light, etc. so by triggering people's senses and emotions.For the 'sitting area' we chose to make a more quiet, yet not exclusive, lounge environment in order to invite and welcome passengers to have a seat. More information about our nominated stand at INPRINT 2019 can be obtained via the following link. We finally want to thank Ronald Marien, Stijn Vandenberghe (White House Design) and Peter Boodts for their excellent translation and elaboration of our message.