FOR REC inaugurates world-first plant for boiler recovery

In recent years, the concept of the circular economy has been transformed from being a slogan to a concrete necessity for industry. One of the most challenging waste streams is electric water heaters – commonly known as boilers. Italian technology provider FOR REC has come up with a dedicated solution.

At the end of their life cycle, boilers become difficult to treat for several reasons. They are manufactured with a variety of materials including steel, copper, aluminium, plastics, electrical cables, insulating foams and limescale, all of which require accurate separation processes and specialised technologies.

Ozone-depleting gases, such as CFCs, are trapped inside the polyurethane insulation, the management of which requires safe extraction and neutralisation systems. Furthermore, the boilers’ cylindrical shape and considerable volume make them incompatible with generic shredding plants, hindering the efficient recovery of raw materials.

Until now, there has been no facility in the world capable of addressing all these critical issues in a comprehensive manner and in compliance with European regulations. This is where FOR REC comes in, an Italian company with over 20 years of experience in the design and construction of waste treatment plants.

With its multidisciplinary know-how and constant investment in research and development, the company has put its expertise to work, developing a tailor-made industrial solution capable of addressing all these challenges through a fully automated cycle. FOR REC has designed and built the world’s first line entirely dedicated to the treatment of electric boilers.

Steady growth

The history of FOR REC is of a company successfully combining technical expertise, entrepreneurial vision and the ability to innovate. Founded by a group of experts in volume reduction and waste treatment, it has experienced rapid and steady growth. In just a few years, it has expanded, diversified its product range, and moved its headquarters to Santa Giustina in Colle, in the province of Padua.

In 2015, FOR REC took an important step by setting up a warehouse dedicated to spare parts for the various machines it offers, a choice dictated by the desire to guarantee customers fast and effective after-sales service. In the following years, thanks to the quality of its products and its ability to customise each system according to customer requirements, the company installed machines and systems in more than 60 countries, consolidating its presence in Europe, America, Asia and Oceania.

2023 marked a turning point: FOR REC became a joint-stock company, FOR REC’s QHSE manager Gianluca Riondato (left) and the company’s coo, Emanuele Bonaldi. FOR REC installed machines and systems in more than 60 countries. the solidity of its corporate structure, and inaugurated a new production site in Serbia where TZR specialises in heavy carpentry and the implementation of projects developed in Italy.

In 2024, offices were expanded to meet growing demand and to accommodate new professionals. Finally, in 2025, a new 1 200-squaremetre production warehouse was inaugurated at the headquarters, designed to increase production capacity and improve delivery times for the plants.

The company’s main plant covers 7 500 square metres, plus a 1 500-square-metre spare parts warehouse. This structure guarantees fast and efficient service, confirming FOR REC as a responsive and reliable partner for after-sales needs.

EXPANDING FOCUS

Thanks to its technologies, FOR REC can process a wide range of materials from tyres to wood, paper to solid urban waste, metals to photovoltaic panels, electrical cables to refrigerators and many other types of WEEE. The company supplies both individual machines and complete turnkey systems for volume reduction, material separation and recovery.

The new electric boiler treatment plant is the latest demonstration of how experience, innovation and strategic vision can transform an environmental challenge into an industrial opportunity. It is a concrete solution that contributes to creating a cleaner and more sustainable world, combining Italian technical expertise with a global perspective. The boiler treatment plant, designed and built by FOR REC in France, is at Le Vigeant in the New Aquitaine region.

Inaugurated earlier this year, it represents a concentration of technology and applied engineering and is already capable of treating 5.5 tonnes of boilers per hour, operating without interruption 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

How does it work?

Stage One – unloading and shredding

The process begins with the automatic unloading of the boilers and the emptying of any residual water. The units are then conveyed to a shredding tower, which is the heart of the process, consisting of a TBB2000H twin-shaft shredder and a TQB2000H four-shaft shredder, both designed for bulky and difficult materials.

In the shredding tower, in a controlled atmosphere, air is sucked in from below to capture the gases.

Stage Two – material separation

Shredded material is collected in a screw conveyor and lifted by a chain conveyor. Separation begins with a vertical drop hopper, followed by:

– magnetic separation: iron is extracted with a magnetic drum and sent to a Z15 hammer mill for further refining

– nutation screen: non-magnetic materials (copper, aluminium, plastics, cables, foams, and limestone) are screened to isolate the limestone

– air separation: two systems separate the light polyurethane foam fraction from the heavy fraction (metals, plastics, stainless steel);

– induced current separator: separates copper and aluminium (positive fraction) from plastics, stainless steel and cables (negative fraction). The result is extremely precise separation with high levels of purity in the recyclable fractions.

Stage Three – gas management and recovery

One of the plant’s strengths is an advanced gas management system. During the shredding and pelletising stages, CFCs and other insulating gases are:

– extracted by a centralised suction system treated by adsorption on activated carbon

– converted into liquid form by cryogenic condensation

– stored in pressurised cylinders and before safe disposal

This process is fully compliant with European environmental regulations, contributing to the reduction of climate impact and the elimination of harmful substances.

Stage Four – pelletising polyurethane

The polyurethane insulation, separated as a light fraction, is treated in a pelletiser where it is heated and compacted to eliminate residual gases, cooled to approximately 35°C and then bulk-bagged for storage or final disposal. This stage is particularly important as polyurethane is one of the most critical components from an environmental poin of view.

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