Technology Landscape
Ingredients for sustainable foam generation and stability in different industries
Client overview
An FMCG company was interested in understanding the technologies used for increasing foam production in a range of different industries
including household and industrial cleaning, food and beverage, pharma, firefighting, and mineral extraction. They wanted to learn how a range of industries employed surfactants and other ingredients to generate liquid foams, with a particular interest in sustainable solutions. The client was interested in using the technical understanding of foams to help them with internal programs of product development. Strategic Allies Ltd (SAL) proposed 2 phases of work – a top level overview of industry approaches and then a deeper dive into priority industries.
The search
In Phase 1, SAL summarised the foaming agents used in each industry and provided details of example ingredient suppliers. SAL identified recipes for foam formulations in the industries of interest by reviewing scientific publications, patents, trade press articles and product literature. Information about the sustainability and toxicity of the identified ingredients was also reviewed. Example ingredient suppliers were found by desk-based research. At the end of Phase 1, the client prioritised four industries for a deeper dive into foam-generating technologies.
In Phase 2, SAL identified illustrative case studies of foam formulations by reviewing scientific papers and patents from companies in the industries of interest. SAL used expert interviews to validate and provide a context to the findings. The final report contained summaries of the different foam compositions and an analysis of the functionality of the different foam-generating and foam stabilising ingredients including surface-active molecules, viscosity enhancers and microparticles.
“…very excited to present to internal stakeholders and get their ideas on how to implement…”
Outcome
SAL summarised foam-generating ingredients in 7 industries in Phase 1, with 14 example suppliers profiled in the PowerPoint report.
Detailed case studies on 12 foam formulations from 4 industry areas were provided in Phase 2, together with insights from industry experts, an analysis of the functionality of foam ingredients and SAL’s recommendations