Premifab: truly circular

“Our green solution is cost-effective for businesses. Previously, companies could only use these chemicals a few times before discarding them as waste. That’s where we come in,” explains Igor Podravac, founding partner at Premifab.

Truly circular

Based in Kerestinec, Croatia, Premifab is rewriting the story of hazardous waste in Croatia. Founded by Igor Oreški, Dominik Mahnić, and Igor Podravac, the company turns costly, polluted solvents back into usable products. At its core, Premifab offers a simple but powerful proposition: circular business in action. “A company gives us waste, we turn it into a product, and then we return that product to the same company that gave us the waste in the first place,” Igor explains.

Premifab’s clients come from across the automotive, pharmaceutical, food packaging and paint industries. The company's approach helps these companies cutting transport of hazardous materials to foreign countries, creating a local solution.

The process is highly technical. Take the automotive sector as an example: chemicals are used to clean robotic painting equipment between colour changes. After just a few uses, they become heavily polluted and would normally be sent abroad for incineration. “We collect the solvents, put them through vacuum and atmospheric distillation, and restore them to a reusable state,” Igor says, while adding that each batch is tested in the company’s accredited laboratory before being returned to the client. “We are truly a circular business”, smiles Igor proudly. For two years in a row, Premifab has been recognised as Croatia’s best small sustainable company.

In Western Europe – Germany, Belgium, France – companies like ours have been around for decades. ”

- Igor Oreški, Premifab Co-founder

Good for business & planet

Premifab’s impact goes far beyond profit. “Everybody wants this service now,” Igor explains. “With EU2050 and the Green Deal, reducing waste is on everyone’s agenda.”

From a small pilot, the company has grown into an SME employing 25 people, with plans to reach 30–35 once its new Ivanić Grad plant opens. Supported by financing from Erste Bank and the EU, Premifab the new plant will nearly triple its distillation capacity to keep pace with demand.

The next step is geographical. “In Western Europe – Germany, Belgium, France – companies like ours have been around for decades. We started in Croatia as the first to do this, and now we want to replicate that model in Eastern Europe, in places like Hungary, Slovakia and Poland,” Igor says.

For Premifab, the mission is clear: turning waste into value. It’s a model that works for business – and one that the environment urgently needs.