VIDEO REPORT: Global polymer and window firm the Rehau Group has announced a ‘further investment of £10 million’ into its PVC window recycling plant in Runcorn, Cheshire. With the expenditure, it plans to double the amount of PVC windows it can handle for recycling by 2024.
The Rehau Group manufactures a range of products and since 2014 has owned PVCR, a recycling company with the facility in Runcorn which specialises in PVC window recycling. Currently, the plant processes around 12,000 tonnes a year of what it describes as ‘polymer windows and doors’. Alongside the increase in capacity Rehaus said the plan is to boost the percentage of a PVC window which can be reused into its own products from 55% to 65% in that time.
Material being shredded at PVCR, Runcorn. (Picture: @ProfImages)
PVC windows are predominantly made of plastic but also feature metals and other residues which can be separated at the Runcorn plant. Around 80% is recycled and used either by the Rehau Group or other customers, as well as in applications such as children’s playgrounds.
The remainder is “dealt with responsibly by the company” in either landfill or energy recovery.
‘Familiar’
‘Sustainability is much more than a hot topic at Rehau’
Martin Hitchin, chief executive
Rehau
At a press briefing, Rehau chief executive Martin Hitchin said the UK is becoming “more familiar” with the benefits of PVC windows, more work is needed to raise awareness of their recyclability.
Mr Hitchin declared: “In order for window recycling to become commonplace, industry needs to collaborate, inform and educate around its importance.
“Sustainability is much more than a hot topic at Rehau. It is a driving force within our strategy. It is something we act on and invest in, so we hope industry will join forces with us in making window recycling a mainstream process.”
Facility
Ceri Davies, general manager of PVCR, explained how the recycling process at the facility works.
“For every PVC window frame we receive, around 55% will be converted into recyclate material that can be used by Rehau for future new products. Currently, the site is processing 12,000 window frames per annum, however we aim to make this 24,000 tonnes by the year 2024,” he said.
The site takes around 3 to 12 deliveries a day, where the material is transported to a high speed shredder, which processes around 10 tonnes an hour, and removes other materials from the frames, such as metal.
Below, in this video, Mr Davies explains the process of the window recycling facility in more detail.
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Source: letsrecycle.com Plastic
