KC Recycling expands capacity for CRT glass

KC Recycling, an electronics recycler based in Trail, British Columbia, plans to make investments to add capacity for all of Canada’s scrap cathode ray tube (CRT) glass. 

KC Recycling has been a recycler of CRT glass from old televisions for many years, processing most of the glass generated in western Canada and the Pacific Northwest. The company operates one facility in Trail that employs about 65 people. The Trail facility has three main recycling plants—one for automotive batteries, one for electronic scrap and one for CRT glass. 

Pete Stamper, CEO of KC Recycling, says the company processes about 8,000 tons of glass per year. He says the capacity additions will allow KC Recycling to more than double its production. 

With the closure of Glencore Canada Corp.’s smelter facility in Belledune, New Brunswick, KC Recycling’s investment will enable recycling options for CRT glass in eastern Canada, the company says in a news release about its expansion plans. 

“The trucks from eastern Canada showed up overnight about one month ago, and once we heard the news about the closure of the smelter in Belledune, we figured that it’s up to us to make sure that all the glass from eastern Canada continues to be processed,” Stamper says. “At this point, we are forecasting an additional 6,000 to 8,000 tons from eastern Canada, which would bring us to 15,000 tons annually.” 

As part of the company’s expansion, Stamper says KC Recycling is installing a large silo and automated conveyor at its facility in Trail that will move processed glass to a convenient location for transferring to the transport containers that are hauled to Canada-based Teck’s smelter operations nearby in Trail.

“Currently, we manually move the glass in small bins with forklifts, so the new system will result in efficiency and safety improvements,” Stamper says.

In addition, the company is adding an additional shift to the production schedule, creating new jobs in the Kootenay region of British Columbia. Stamper says KC Recycling added a second shift to the CRT glass plant, which includes one lead and two plant operators. The company also added another maintenance worker on Mondays to help keep up with the expanded preventive maintenance needs.

“The whole team at KC Recycling is proud to expand its operations to serve all of Canada,” Stamper says. “The investments will help us to realize our mission of preserving a sustainable world for future generations.

“Electronics scrap, including CRT glass, is a highly regulated industry and each downstream processor must be approved by the governing bodies before they can begin processing,” Stamper adds. “Since KC Recycling and Teck are already approved, it was very simple to move production to us. Setting up new downstream processors and getting them approved (if there are any) requires a lengthy process.”