
Preston Plastics
A recycling business in Lancashire, UK, is now able to double its production thanks to the installation of a state-of-the-art system.
Preston Plastics has unveiled its new INTAREMA plastic recycling and extrusion machine at its facility near Garstang - making it the first company in the UK to have this technology developed by Austrian firm EREMA.
The recycler invested £1.3 million (€1.64 million) in the machine - which is also the largest of its kind in the world - as part of a £2 million drive to upgrade the machinery at its premises. The INTAREMA will allow Preston Plastics to recycle previously hard-to-process materials such as printed packaging waste, in addition to improving quality, efficiency and overall consistency.
Edgar Wallace, Managing Director of Preston Plastics, said: "This new machine gives us nearly three times the capacity we had previously. It means we can continue to meet the increased demand we are seeing from the plastics industry, both in terms of volume and the types of plastic being recycled, diverting thousands of tonnes of waste from landfill and incineration.
"Constantly investing in new technology ensures we remain at the cutting edge of the plastics recycling industry. These are exciting times for the business as we plan for the future."
The new INTAREMA recycling plant operates 24-hours a day, collecting and processing a wide variety of waste plastics from across the UK from sectors including packaging, medical, building and construction, and automotive.
Preston Plastics employs 27 full time staff and exports 60 per cent of its products into European markets. The company handles all forms of plastic waste including head waste, redundant material and purgings, collecting it from across the country.
Utilising the latest technology developed by EREMA, the waste is then converted into quality, reprocessed plastic compound which is sold back to the plastics industry to be used in the manufacture of products such as plastic storage boxes, paint trays, car bumpers and pallets.