Take aim at recycling's emerging targets

 

Since its founding in France in 2001, Pellenc ST has been committed to providing sorting technology designed to identify and separate recyclable materials for successful diversion to a recycling outcome.

Today, the global company with more than 220 employees has completed 2,000 sorting machine installations in 40 countries. While its largest presence is in Europe, Pellenc ST has operated in the United States for more than 10 years and is ramping up its U.S. service via its test center in Pineville, North Carolina.

Located just 30 minutes from Charlotte Douglas International Airport, the test center has been equipped and staffed to identify and solve potential recycling challenges encountered by operators of mixed stream material recovery facilities (MRFs) in North America.

“All materials are welcome here,” says Harry White, business unit manager of Pellenc ST America. “We provide sorting tests, where a customer will send us a mix of their stream and we will carry out tests to determine the efficiency and purity we are able to achieve when ejecting their target material.”

The race to identify and divert greater volumes of plastic for recycling ties into a key capability of the Pellenc test center. “We also perform tests such as the Association of Plastic Recycling (APR) protocol, where we will work with manufacturers of new packaging at a design level to ensure that a new design is suitable for recycling,” White says.

Optical sorting technology is foremost among Pellenc’s MRF technology, and thus a focus of the test center’s work. White says, “We can help MRF operators determine the most effective and efficient way to use an optical sorter to recuperate their target materials. We can also demonstrate ways in which they can improve their current processes.”

“By sharing our knowledge and experience, we are always up to date with new and emerging recyclable products in the market.” – Harry White

The automation is matched by a depth of human knowledge. “Our team has many years of knowledge and experience in the recycling industry, including technicians who are carrying out the day-to-day operations of Pellenc ST America,” White says.

Vitally, what is learned by Pellenc ST in Europe or the U.S. is shared with customers and the wider Pellenc technician staff everywhere. “By sharing our knowledge and experience, we are always up to date with new and emerging recyclable products in the market, on a worldwide scale,” White says. “This really allows us to find the best solutions for recycling.”

More information on the Pellenc ST optical sorting technology product line and its capabilities can be found at https://www.pellencst.com/products/#opticalsorters.