Carpet manufacturers attend circular economy workshop

Carpet manufacturers were encouraged to consider how their products could be realigned along circular economy principles at a ‘hands-on’ workshop organised by Carpet Recycling UK (CRUK).

CRUK’s Steering Committee members were invited to tear down their carpet products to see how they could be redesigned for reuse or material recovery at The Great Recovery event, led by the RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce).

The RSA’s Circular Economy Expert, Mark Shayler, also invited participants to think about how they could improve their products’ sustainability across the entire supply chain taking into account design, composition, materials and longevity.

Shayler said: “In my view, we should make flooring products that last as long as possible and be as easy to clean as possible. If they are designed specifically to have a shorter life, then let’s look at single materials and all the strategies we can employ in order to make them recoverable, recyclable, and that’s going to mean a change of business models.”

CRUK Director Laurance Bird commented: “Carpet is a challenging composite material to recycle, so this was a great opportunity to focus on innovative design and manufacturing for the future.”

Vorwerk UK Director Ian Hammond said he found the event ‘very useful’, adding: “I’m planning to share these ideas at a similar small workshop in our plant at some future time.”

Find out more about Carpet Recycling UK or The Great Recovery.

Ripon Recycling wins Dyson Contract

North Yorkshire-based waste management business Ripon Recycling has been awarded a contract to recycle components from defunct Dyson vacuum cleaners.

Each month, Ripon Recycling, based on Pannal Business Park, will take delivery of the machines, which are then stripped of parts that can be recycled.

Ripon Recycling owner Steven Hullah said: “We live in a disposable society where it is cheaper to replace electrical items rather than repair them.

“However, within these items there are elements that can be used again, and our expertise is in extracting them.

“We won the Dyson contract thanks to our expertise with recycling component parts from plasma and LCD televisions. I’m incredibly proud of our achievements to date, and in particular knowing that the work we do is helping to reduce the impact on the environment.”

Find out more about WEEE recycling.

Recofloor announces joint winners of its design competition

Ideas for an extendable compost bin and a modular roof tile with pre-drilled nail holes have been chosen as the joint winners of a £1,000 prize in Recofloor’s design competition.

Launched in March, the vinyl flooring scheme called for ideas for recycling post-consumer vinyl flooring into new products, as currently the material is mainly only used for making traffic cones.

The two winning group submissions from Hertfordshire University students (Matthew Lodge, James Lyttle, Shivani Majithia and Stephen Rothwell – compost bin group, and Cem Gulcen, Sufyan Akram, Anchal Goel and Ang Waye Shyang – roof tile group) will each receive £500 at the annual Recofloor Awards event in March 2015.

Nichola Mundy from Recofloor said that the calibre of entries into the competition had made “the decision for [the] judging panel very difficult”.

Find out more about Recofloor.

Magna Science Adventure Centre teaches children about recycling

Magna Science Adventure Centre in Rotherham, in partnership with Barnsley Doncaster and Rotherham Waste Partnership and Shanks Group plc, last week (29 October) launched a new series of workshops that aim to educate schoolchildren about what happens to black bag waste once it’s collected.

‘It’s a Rubbish Adventure’ focuses on the science and engineering used to sort, separate and recycle materials from residual waste collections, and challenges children aged between seven and 11 to sort through a black bin bag using conveyor belts, air blowers and electromagnets to separate recyclable material.

‘It’s a Rubbish Adventure’ has been supported by a grant of £28,000 from The Royal Academy of Engineering, as part of a public education scheme aimed at encouraging children to consider engineering as a profession.

Engineers from Shanks Waste Management (which is building a new waste facility at Manvers in Rotherham) will also be working with the centre to deliver the workshops.

Magna’s Education Manager, Stuart Ballard, said: “The workshops will show the processes involved in moving, sorting, reusing and recycling the waste, just as it will be done at the new waste treatment facility at Manvers.”

Shanks Contracts Director, Colin Fletcher, added: “This is really all about getting children interested in recycling and excited about engineering, encouraging them to think about it as a career choice.”

Find out more about ‘It’s a Rubbish Adventure’.