The plant will have the capacity to recycle about 75,000 tonnes of electronics each year to help meet the demands of Europe's Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive, which should affect the UK from 2006.
” This is a significant investment to facilitate the full spectrum of recycling and reprocessing services across the UK.“
– Gordon Scott, Wincanton
Wincanton's new plant sees technology installed that has been developed and manufactured in Germany by recycling equipment producer MeWa. The plant will be based at Wincanton's existing recycling site at Billingham.
Electrical items fed into the machine will go through a cross-cut grinder machine to release internal components – such as circuit boards, batteries and capacitors. These can then be recycled, while the remaining components, including metals and plastics, are granulated and separated to their constituent parts for recycling.
Collection
Wincanton's new plant is able to deal with most elements of WEEE, although cathode ray tubes, light tubes and fridges will not be processed there. Wincanton does, however, have a separate fridge recycling centre at the site.
The company also provides a national collection network for WEEE, and is working with waste firm Grundon, Sims Group and Remploy to provide collection and recycling services.
Under the WEEE Directive, it will be necessary for retailers and manufacturers to take back and recycle end-of-life electrical goods using “best available treatment, recovery and recycling techniques.”
Gordon Scott, managing director at Wincanton, said: “This is a significant investment to facilitate the full spectrum of recycling and reprocessing services across the UK. We have forged strategic partnerships to offer an all-encompassing solution for all aspects of the WEEE Directive, including refurbishment, sorting materials, recycling and waste management.”
Register for free to comment