PETpla.net Insider 06 / 2015

ON SITE 43 PET planet insider Vol. 16 No. 06/15 www.petpla.net ON site 24 th Fakuma International trade fair for plastics processing Injection moulding machines Thermal shaping technology Extrusion plants Tool systems Materials and components 13.–17. OCT. 2015 FRIEDRICHS- HAFEN www.fakuma-messe.de First Swiss sorting centre for plastic bottles opened Not all plastics are equal; new PET can only be extracted from old PET. The same goes for all the differ- ent kinds of plastic found in the new range of plastic bot- tles. Müller Recycling AG have invested SF10m in a new sorting line, making it now possible for plastic bottles used for shampoos, washing and cleaning materials and made from completely different types of plastic to be mechani- cally sorted and sent for recycling and all whilst main- taining a high level of quality. It is essential, however, to keep the various items separate during collection. Despite these mechanical innovations, the two material flows of PET beverages bottles and other plastic bottles need to be kept separate for reasons of food hygiene. The aim for the foreseeable future is to create new plastic bottles from old ones, as has been the standard for 15 years now in the recycling of PET beverage bottles. Bottle-to-bottle processing, as it is known, is the main reason why PET recycling today is twice as environmentally friendly as landfill disposal. The traditional family concern Müller Recycling AG has been in operation since 1957 and is now run by mem- bers of the second and third generation of the family. In the last few years more and more materials have come to be recycled, from a mere 500 tonnes in 1991, to almost 20.000 tonnes last year. Since earlier this year it has also been possible to sort plastic bottles mechanically, thanks to the company’s rapid reaction to news that retailer Migros, followed by the Co-op, had also begun to collect plastic bottles. Positive influence on PET recycling quota Studies have shown that PET beverages bottles which could be of relevance for calculating quotas are frequently to be found in PET bottle collections. With the sorting facilities in the new plant, even these can now be «sal- vaged» and recycled, something which will have a posi- tive effect on recycling quotas. www.mueller-recycling.ch