Eco Plastics, Gainsborough
Peter Marshall Steel Stairs recently completed a project for ECO Plastics at Hemswell Business Park in Gainsborough which includes office escape stairs, and steel stairs for a new extrusion facility.
The ECO Plastics plant sorts and cleans used plastic packaging, which is then turned into new plastic bottles within six weeks. The state of the art facility is designed to transform recycling in the UK and ensure that the country can incorporate 25% recycled polyethylene terephthalate (PET) in all plastic bottles.
The plant will enable the UK to process 75,000 tonnes of PET per year. PET is the most commonly used type of plastic found in bottled water and fizzy drinks. The plant is estimated to save approximately 33,5000 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year.
The plant is capable of producing 11 different types of plastic, ensuring zero waste production. There is growing demand for low carbon packaging and the new facility will go some way towards meeting the national demand. By producing plastic bottles from recycled materials, the Hemswell facility produces 68% less carbon than brand new bottles.
One of the major investors in the facility is Coca-Cola Enterprises who previously formed a joint venture with ECO Plastics to expand the Hemswell facility. The facility includes a number of optical sorters, as well as hot wash and an extrusion line. In addition ,there is a closed loop water processing system that can recycle water used in the process. This helps to reduce the amount of water used at the bottle processing plant.
The processing plant uses the latest technology to break down the items and wash them to produce clean flakes. This includes removing contamination from items such as labels, glue and dirt. Further impurities are then removed with heat to produce food grace plastic pellets. Scanning technology and infrared sensors allows material to be sorted by quality, as well as material type and colour.
The contract with Compass Engineering was to supply and install three sets of steel stairs – two external staircases to an Aerobic Tank, and an office escape stairs, including office roof balustrade. Compass Engineering was in turn carrying out works for Clugston Construction, the main contractor on the project.
