SITA awards contract to build four MRFs in the UK

The facilities located in Avonmouth, Birmingham, Darwen and South London (see map) will sort more than 250,000 tonnes of commercial recyclables per year into different material streams. Construction on the first two MRFs, at Avonmouth and Birmingham, will begin later this year.

Based in Eugene, Oregan, Bulk Handling Systems is a specialist in the design, engineering, manufacturing and installation of sorting systems and components for the solid waste, recycling, waste-to-energy, and construction and demolition industries.

The announcement comes as BHS continues to expand its global footprint. In the UK the company has already built facilities including Casepaks MRF in Leicester and the SCA MRF in Southampton.

Commenting on the deal, Ben Harding, SITA UKs head of infrastructure development, said: These facilities, of which two will be built before the end of this year and two the following year, will provide us with additional processing capacity in strategic areas across the UK, allowing us to improve our service offering to our customers. The new facilities will also lead to the creation of many jobs, both in their construction and long term operation and maintenance.

Flexibility

Mr Harding said SITA was excited to be working with BHS on the projects: From the outset of this procurement they have shown a key understanding of our key objectives in developing facilities that will allow us to recycle a wide range of materials, but also have the flexibility to upgrade them in the future should we wish to target different markets.

BHS chief executive Steve Miller said: SITA UK is the type of visionary company that we believe make the best customers for BHS. We are thrilled to be entrusted with helping them grow their business for the future.

A spokeswoman for SITA UK said that she could not reveal the value of the contract or the exact timelines for when the MRFs would be built. But, she confirmed that they would process mainly commercial and industrial waste.

In Avonmouth the MRF will sit alongside SITAs planned plastics-to-diesel plant (see letsrecycle.com story). In Mitcham in South London SITA UK already operates a waste transfer station and materials recycling facility capable of handling 54,000 tonnes of recyclables a year.