Viridor opens multi-million plastics recycling plant in UK

United Kingdom – UK waste management major Viridor has started up a new polymer recycling plant at Rochester, east of London. The Euro 15.7 million facility has been created to help local councils and businesses to recycle more of their plastics.

Using what the company calls ′the most advanced materials sorting technology available′, the facility is capable of processing 75 000 tonnes of mixed plastics per year while also separating up to 10 000 tonnes of glass.

For a small facility, Rochester PRF ′packs a punch′. The new plant contains 121 conveyor belts for moving the streams of materials. Metals are removed using 7 overband magnets and 5 eddy current separators whilst 3 picking cabins ensure the manual separation of unwanted items such as paper and film. After ballistic separation, a series of 16 Titech optical sorting machines isolate the required mixture of plastic grades for the baling machines.

Viridor′s ceo Ian McAulay comments: ′Transforming what others see as waste into quality resources that can be used within manufacturing is a key requirement to greater resource efficiency in the UK. That is good for UK business and for the environment.′

The project was constructed in conjunction with Stadler UK. The site has been in development since May 2014 . Viridor argues that by accepting a broader range of materials in, it can create more quality materials going out.

For more information, visit: www.viridor.co.uk