Extended Funding for Mirka-Driven SHAPE Programme to 2030
Scaling circular solutions to reduce the carbon footprint of manufacturing
The SHAPE programme and its surrounding ecosystem, originally launched three years ago with funding from Mirka and Business Finland has been granted extended financing from Business Finland through 2030.
The extension enables the programme to further accelerate its mission to reduce the carbon footprint of the manufacturing industry together with its surrounding ecosystem. Praised for its uniqueness, the SHAPE ecosystem brings together Finnish companies, universities and research institutions in close collaboration.
Since its launch, the global operating environment has evolved significantly. Climate targets have tightened, geopolitical shifts have impacted raw material availability, and the cost of waste and emissions has increased. At the same time, manufacturing remains one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions globally, and only a limited share of industrial materials is currently recycled back into production. This creates both urgency and opportunity.
Experience from the first phase of SHAPE highlighted scalability as a key barrier. Although alternative materials and circular concepts exist, they are often not yet viable at the scale required by global manufacturing. With the extension to 2030, SHAPE 2.0 therefore deepens its ambition by moving toward systemic transformation of industrial value chains. A central objective is to ensure that sustainable materials are not only developed but made available at industrial scale with sufficient volumes and delivery security.
Intelligent and automated remanufacturing is another core priority. Remanufacturing and refurbishment processes today are complex and difficult to automate, creating bottlenecks in circular systems. Through digitalisation, robotics and advanced automation, SHAPE 2.0 seeks to make these processes more efficient, scalable and economically viable.
The extended programme builds on the existing SHAPE framework and further develops its work packages to address evolving industrial challenges.
“SHAPE was established to challenge conventional manufacturing models, provoke change and to develop practical, scalable solutions that lower emissions while strengthening long-term competitiveness. With the extended funding, we can scale what we have started, deepen ecosystem collaboration and secure long-term industrial impact,” says Mirka’s CTO Mats Sundell.
Mats Sundell, CTO at Mirka
Through continued cooperation with Business Finland and a growing network of industrial and research partners, Mirka remains committed to driving value-driven innovation that combines sustainability, competitiveness and circular value-chains.
“The question is no longer how to reduce harm, but how we can actively restore and regenerate. Our long-term ambition is to be a forerunner in regenerative manufacturing, ensuring that what we give back to nature matches, or even exceeds, what we take”, says Mirka’s General Manager Innovations and Ecosystems Charlotta Risku.
Contact information:
Mats Sundell, Mirka Chief Technology Manager
Mats.Sundell@mirka.com
+358 40 094 8019
Charlotta Risku, Mirka General Manager Innovations and Ecosystems
Charlotta.Risku@mirka.com
+358 40 526 3623