Funding Round Completed: SUPASO Brings the Modular Upcycling Hub to Series Production
SUPASO has completed a funding round. The capital will be used to bring our machine technology to series production and to set up the first pilot plants at partner facilities. The round is led by Gerald Jeitler GmbH, with Raiffeisen-Landesbank Steiermark and FMMS Beteiligungs GmbH also participating.
The Key Challenge: Distance
Sustainable cold-chain packaging faces a challenge that is rarely mentioned in public discourse. It must be transported before it can fulfill its actual function. Insulation material is lightweight and bulky. With every additional transport leg, the cost per shipment rises, and the environmental impact worsens.
In practice, cost-effective delivery is feasible within a radius of about 300 to 400 kilometers. Beyond that, transportation either erodes profit margins or gives nearby providers a competitive advantage. Transporting sustainable packaging over long distances across Europe solves one environmental problem but creates a new one elsewhere.
Our Approach: The Modular Upcycling Hub
Instead of shipping finished insulation inserts across the continent, we’re moving production to where it’s needed. The Modular Upcycling Hub - MUCH for short - is a “Machine-as-a-Service” model: partner companies produce the insulation on-site using their own paper and cardboard waste. From waste materials that would be generated anyway, we create recyclable cold-chain packaging with short supply chains that closes the paper loop.
This transforms waste into a resource, reduces the importance of transport distance, and ensures that the sustainability benefits are realized in practice rather than just on paper. For us, this is the logical next step in advancing what SUPASO has stood for since 2021: packaging solutions that combine environmental responsibility, technical performance, and economic viability.
There are no plans to build a large-scale factory of our own. “We want to integrate ourselves directly into the value chain of packaging and cardboard manufacturers and paper mills,” explains co-founder Fabian Gems.
Five Partner Companies, First Pilot Plant in the First Quarter
Five partner companies have already been identified, including a polystyrene manufacturer that is directly feeling the impact of market changes. The first pilot plant is scheduled to go into operation in the first quarter of next year, with two more to follow if possible. The validation phase is scheduled to last until around 2028. The markets in Croatia and Slovenia are currently experiencing particularly dynamic growth.
We are deliberately keeping the specific billing model open. Various options are being tested, ranging from a leased system with a license fee to a pay-per-use approach. Raiffeisen-Landesbank Steiermark is contributing its expertise to the design of these models, which is a key factor in a Machine-as-a-Service model.
Why We Deliberately Chose Austrian Capital
A faster financing route would have been possible, but we deliberately chose not to take it. “We’re not exactly a clear-cut VC case,” says Fabian Gems. As a hardware company with a product that requires explanation, we don’t think in terms of two-year exit windows, but rather in the long term.
Accordingly, we chose investors with a long-term perspective. FMMS Beteiligungs GmbH is part of the investment holding company of Franz Mayr-Melnhof-Saurau, which focuses, among other things, on resource management and the green tech sector. Raiffeisen-Landesbank Steiermark has specifically aligned its investment activities with sustainable and regional industries of the future. Both partners are a good fit for a project designed for substance and long-term growth. “We really want to make this a big success now,” says Gems.
A Structurally Growing Market
The demand for recyclable packaging is not a short-term trend. It is driven, among other things, by the European Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), which continues to increase pressure on non-recyclable solutions such as EPS Styrofoam. Within just a few years, our customer base has grown from a manageable size to several hundred across twelve European countries. For us, the Modular Upcycling Hub is the way to make this growth sustainable without having to deal with the distance-related challenges described above once again.
Our goal is packaging that isn’t just sustainable on paper, but that functions as a system at the right point in the supply chain.
Want to know what a circular cooling solution for your supply chain could look like? Talk to us.