Plastics Recycling Show Europe 2019

On the 10th of April the third annual Plastic Recycling Show was held in Amsterdam, which Primex attended to learn the most up to date information about recycling Plastics and broader environmental issues.

The event was held in one of the large halls of the RAI, with various recycling businesses exhibiting their stands, and a speakers auditorium which several key speakers from the Plastic industry and beyond gave talks from.

The speakers ranged from CEO's of large recycling businesses with updates on their latest products and processes, to members of the European Commission, who gave some information on how plastics are being treated from a governmental level.

With the current political rhetoric surrounding "plastics" and its negative impact on the environment it is vital that those in our industry are up to date with the facts.

Plastics offer a plethora of benefits to the economy, and their usefulness is rarely debated. Hence why in the past 50 years the use of plastics has increased 20-fold. And in the next 20 years it is expected to double again.

But it is abundantly clear that the after-life of Plastics offers a real threat to the environment, Some astounding facts were presented during these discussions: By 2050 there will be more plastic than fish in the world’s oceans; 95% of plastic packaging material (£100 billion) annually is lost to the economy after its first life; 32% of plastic packaging escapes collection systems.

In short, it's clear more needs to be done.

Though as the majority of this environmental damage comes from single-use plastics, the sheet which Primex produces, as it goes into mostly industrial and automotive applications, has a relatively small impact on the environment.

In fact, what Primex offer in our Polyolefin products is actually one of the most environmentally-friendly plastics available. Polyolefins have a very low carbon footprint compared to other types of plastics (e.g. PS and PVC). They’re also totally recyclable. And due to their inherent nature are lightweight and offer long term industrial solutions to most types of packaging. And now, with renewable source polymers coming onto the market, this "green"-ness looks set to grow further.

However, it is still important to learn about what more can be done to limit the impact we have. We took away several points from the PRS and are looking to implement new recycling systems within Primex. We are also looking at the factors around the extrusion process too. Recently, for example, we changed our adaptors from DC to AC and saw a huge reduction in our energy consumption.

For more information on the changes Primex are putting into place, get in touch with a member of the team!