FCS3

 Research & testing of new products  Staff time spent in: evaluating opportunities: formulating, testing, and proving production processes; establishing acceptable crumb rubber and/or compound specifications, sources and pricing terms; conducting product testing and refining marketing materials and sales processes;  Potential investments in molds, new or adapted production equipment, plant layout adjustments, and adjustments to electrical and/or other hard infrastructure;  Reduced production of established products when capacity is shifted to development and testing of feedstock conversion products; and  Space constraints for storing adequate supplies of crumb (on both the processor and product manufacturer side). While the specific costs vary across companies and market niches, the time commitments alone guarantee that cost will almost always be a major consideration. Overall, feedstock conversion advocates should expect successful efforts to take time and unfold slowly, but steadily. Establishing a time line can be a helpful way to drive efforts, but the timeline will most likely need to be revisited as the project unfolds and the firm addresses the challenges described above. Above all, a sustained effort, ideally with tangible support in the form of funding or technical assistance or product promotion may be needed to monitor progress and continually encourage candidate firms to remain committed to the effort.

Contractor’s Report

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