The facility, which is the first ‘bricks and mortar’ recycling site owned by the export-focused company handles a range of plastic materials including LDPE films, rigid HDPE and PP plastics, woven PP sacks, HIPs and uPVC window and door frames.
Opened in May, the Gosport facility is operated as a ‘hub’, Plastic Expert claims, where materials are stored and sorted and then sent for onward processing either in the UK or overseas, depending on the material.
Plastic Expert says it has developed a partnership with a UK processor for uPVC door & window frames, where the material is processed and turned into a granulate. This material is then sent to a compounder which turns the recycled polymer into PVC piping, to be used within the construction industry.
Domestic
Some of the HDPE & PP scrap is also processed and re-used in the UK, Plastic Expert says, while other grades are sent for export into mainland Europe.
The site has handled close to 100 tonnes of materials per week since opening.
Commenting on the opening of the site, Russell Greig-Bartram, managing director of Plastic Expert, said: “We are solving a real problem for many waste management companies in Hampshire, as they don’t always have the resources and equipment to recycle certain types of plastic waste. Our facility can take in both baled and loose materials, thus removing the need for skip hire companies to store dozens of tonnes of baled product. Our aim is to make things simple, cost effective and efficient for our customers.
“Despite the impending government changes, we are trying to use the ‘circular economy’ approach where it’s commercially viable. Whilst the Far East is great for certain material, the UK prices for PE & PVC remain reasonably strong and we want to back our manufacturing sector.”
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