PETpla.net Insider 09 / 2012

NEWS 7 PET planet insider Vol. 13 No. 09/12 www.petpla.net > stretch-blow moulding and filling machines > shrinkwrappers > wrap-around casepackers > conveyor systems > palletisers PET collection rates up Petcore and EuPR have announced that European post-sorting PET collection reached 1.59 million tonnes in 2011, an increase of 140kt (9.4%) over 2010 and a record of 51% of all PET bottles in the market. Total mechanical reclamation capacity in the EU27+4 countries is esti- mated at around 1.9 million tonnes. Growth in collection across the EU27 is stable at 2%. Collection rates of over 70% are being recorded by about a third of the countries surveyed and all but three have a collection rate above the 22.5% target rate for plastic recovery set by the Packaging Waste Directive. More than 50% of the rPET produced in 2011 was used to make containers or sheet for new packaging applica- tions. The 2011 share of fibres as an end use for rPET flake remained at 39%. The strap- ping market increased to just over 100kt. Net exports of PET bales to the Far East fell, for the third year running. www.petcore.org www.plasticsrecyclers.eu KHS supports Blue Competence initiative KHS GmbH has formally and publicly announced that it supports the VDMA Blue Competence Initiative, a growing European commitment by engineering companies aimed at improving environmental responsibility. The Blue Com- petence Initiative started in Germany. It covers the entire mechanical engineering industry and is operated by VDMA, the German Engineering Federation, under the slogan ‘Engi- neering a better world’. The industry has agreed on common principles and procedures which participating companies will follow, in order to achieve reduction of resource and energy use and implement improved management systems for handling waste and recycling, as well as implementation of sustainability principles in its own production. The organi- sation says that “…Blue Competence defines credible and resilient sustainability criteria and standards that all those who join the initiative must meet”. Among the developments that KHS highlighted in connection with Blue Competence were its new Innofill Glass DRS-ZMS pressure filling system; Innopack Kisters packaging machines; InnoPET Blomax Series IV stretch blow molding machines; and Petainer Kegs. All are claimed to offer reduced energy consumption, increased recyclability, improved material usage, or a com- bination. www.khs.com