Progress ProductStream / Arena PLM project at the Interceptor of The Ocean Cleanup


Rivers are the main source when it comes to pollution of the ocean with plastic. Research by The Ocean Cleanup showed that 1000 rivers are responsible for approximately 80% of the pollution with plastic. ProductStream helps with the use of Arena PLM in the development of a product to combat this plastic contamination: The Interceptor.

Prevent plastic from entering the ocean

If we want to rid the oceans of plastic, we must not only clean up what is already in the ocean. We must also prevent new plastic from entering the ocean. The goal of the Interceptor is to tackle these 1,000 most polluting rivers around the world by 2025.

The Solution

The Interceptor is The Ocean Cleanup’s response to river waste. It is the first scalable solution to prevent plastic from rivers from entering the oceans. The Interceptor works 100% on solar energy, extracts plastic autonomously and can work in the world’s most polluting rivers.

The Result

The Interceptor has been developed using the Arena PLM platform. This Arena PLM platform contains the complete Bill Of Material of the Interceptor. Together with all the details, the electronics and mechanical parts. Arena also helps with change management, calculations and supplier management. With the Arena supplier portal, the Interceptor’s team can also easily set which suppliers have access to which information about The Interceptor.

Now the entire team including suppliers is included in the process and suppliers always see everything that is needed in the correct version. This has laid the foundation for a scalable product and process. This results in a contribution to the goal of building 1000 Interceptors in the next 5 years, because then 80% of the plastic pollution is captured. A great project to work on together with the River team of The Ocean Cleanup and partners.