Intercontinental gears up for plastics recycling
[2008-4-9]
Intercontinental Recycling has started trials at its first plastics recycling plant in the UK as it gears up to convert an annual 30,000 tonnes of post-consumer plastic bottles.
Lee Clayton, general manager of IRL, told PRW that the multi-million pound plant, which took nearly two years to set up, is on course for full production by mid-November.
The bottles will come from across the UK, said Clayton. Equipment installed on-site includes front-end sorting, hot-washing machines and post-hot-washing sorting.
Production will be half HDPE pellets and half PET flakes.
The Skelmersdale plant, the first facility for Indian-owned IRL in the UK, is on the 110,000 square foot site of a former liquid soap maker and includes a ten-year-old building. “Around 60,000 square feet is under cover,” said Clayton. “The site building is ideal for us because the former owner had also been dealing with chemicals.”
Clayton said IRL upgrades the recycled PET flakes to bottle-grade, which is suitable for a buyer to further upgrade to food-grade.
The market is expanding for food-grade rPET and most UK manufacturers have to source food-grade rPET from the continent, said Clayton, who has 18 years in the recycling industry and who joined IRL around 18 months ago from JFC Delleve, a recycler of fibre-grade pellets.
The upgrading of rPET flakes requires more complex and expensive machinery that melts and decontaminates the PET in de-gassing stages. This removes organic components such as beverage aromas that have entered the plastic.
He said IRL is considering upgrading to food-grade rPET in the future. “But we’ve not taken that decision yet, because a lot of PET sheet makers that we sell to already have that ability.”
Lee Clayton, general manager of IRL, told PRW that the multi-million pound plant, which took nearly two years to set up, is on course for full production by mid-November.
The bottles will come from across the UK, said Clayton. Equipment installed on-site includes front-end sorting, hot-washing machines and post-hot-washing sorting.
Production will be half HDPE pellets and half PET flakes.
The Skelmersdale plant, the first facility for Indian-owned IRL in the UK, is on the 110,000 square foot site of a former liquid soap maker and includes a ten-year-old building. “Around 60,000 square feet is under cover,” said Clayton. “The site building is ideal for us because the former owner had also been dealing with chemicals.”
Clayton said IRL upgrades the recycled PET flakes to bottle-grade, which is suitable for a buyer to further upgrade to food-grade.
The market is expanding for food-grade rPET and most UK manufacturers have to source food-grade rPET from the continent, said Clayton, who has 18 years in the recycling industry and who joined IRL around 18 months ago from JFC Delleve, a recycler of fibre-grade pellets.
The upgrading of rPET flakes requires more complex and expensive machinery that melts and decontaminates the PET in de-gassing stages. This removes organic components such as beverage aromas that have entered the plastic.
He said IRL is considering upgrading to food-grade rPET in the future. “But we’ve not taken that decision yet, because a lot of PET sheet makers that we sell to already have that ability.”
Related News »
In Focus »
footwear exports
Last month, European footwear manufacturers proposed extending anti-dumping measures against ..
B2B Keywords:
International market Chinese Importer Wholesale trade Wholesale products World trade Wholesale distributors International trade Foreign trade Wholesale distributor Importers Import export business Sell online Help u sell Global trade How to market a product Online supplier Wholesale product
International market Chinese Importer Wholesale trade Wholesale products World trade Wholesale distributors International trade Foreign trade Wholesale distributor Importers Import export business Sell online Help u sell Global trade How to market a product Online supplier Wholesale product
Feature Products»
Hot Products: A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0-9
-
-
About Us -
Links -
Privacy Policy -
Terms of Use -
Site Map -
Contact Us -
Call Center: 0086-95105561 © 2007 Tootoo.com -
