Glass & Mixed Plastics
TURMEC UPGRADE on PRF Plant FOR BIFFA ALDRIDGE UK
Overview
Biffa was looking to double the amount it can recycle at its Aldridge facility to 80,000 tonnes per year, recycling the equivalent of 38 times the weight of the London Eye. Biffa is a key enabler of a circular economy in the UK, ensuring materials can be recycled time and time again through its facilities
The extra capacity at its Aldridge site will mean more plastic waste can be recycled. Biffa has set itself a target of quadrupling its plastic recycling capacity by 2030.
PRFs are essential to provide raw materials for the production industry, separating out different items and preparing them for future use. The Aldridge PRF is a multifunctional facility which can process the following from a household recycling stream:
Plastic bottles and containers
Aluminium and steel cans
Glass Bottles and Jars
The Solution
PRFs are essential to provide raw materials for the production industry, separating out different items and preparing them for future use. The Aldridge PRF is a multifunctional facility which can process the following from a household recycling stream
- Plastic bottles and containers
- Aluminium and steel cans
- Glass Bottles and Jars
Turmec used best-in class technology to automate the recycling process and remove the requirement for manual handling of materials.
Turmec, as part of the upgrade installed state of the art Pellenc Optical Sorters to sort the material into the highest of standards. The new upgraded facility will provide:
All plastic grades from the Aldridge facility will be used to feed Biffa’s new and existing polymer’s facilities. Aldridge will have the technology to produce a high grade PET Natural for Biffa’s £27.5m Seaham facility, where its state of the art optical sorters will be able to remove multilayer food trays providing an industry leading product for Seaham.
Outcome
Turmec’s upgrade was delivered successfully, carried out around existing works.
Our client Biffa should see significant reduction in manual labour as well as increased recovery and decreased contamination – up to 99% purity levels in different streams.
Mick Davis, Chief Operating Officer for the Recourses and Energy Division at Biffa, said: “Doubling the amount of materials we can recycle at one of the country’s largest plastic recycling facilities (PRFs) is great news both for Biffa and the UK as a whole. It means more recycling can happen on our own shores and creates sustainable materials that can be used in manufacturing. The additional capacity is a significant investment in our business within the North East and further establishes Biffa as a leader in in closed-loop plastic recycling”
