Customer Problem
We saw that customers were looking for deeper analysis on prices for post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic, and were often confused about what index or benchmark to use. Some customers use PCR resin indexes, some use virgin, some also want to see flake and bale. Very few customers have a complete picture of all available indexes out there, and many also asked for help interpreting movement in indexes, especially PCR vs. virgin. Opacity challenges like this are rife within sustainable materials markets and can result in blocking or delaying commercial activity.
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Circular Feature Solution
Our goal is transparency. Our new Market Insights feature in our Explore module aims to tackle these issues head-on. The new tool gives users the ability to select any index from any stage in the value chain anywhere in the world and then compare them. They can also compare them to data we have from our latest transactions. Our charts come with quick analyses as well as options to upgrade to advanced features like projections and tariff calculators (more on that soon).
Users can then set a benchmark for future sourcing events and tie their contracts to specific indexes or cohorts and automatically monitor changes.
One noteworthy element here is data licensing: in order to actively use the data, customers need to be subscribers to the underlying indexes. If they are not already subscribers, then our platform can help them access that data, too. This obviously is a bonus for the index data providers themselves.
These tools have been requested by our customers, and we’re excited to see them being used in earnest now, helping them make faster data-driven decisions along the road to ultimately securing the right sustainable materials for their business, at the right price.