WM completes $40M automation project at Philadelphia MRF

Earlier this week, Houston-based WM completed a $40 million upgrade of its Philadelphia Recycling Facility, the latest move in the company’s effort to automate and upgrade dozens of its recycling facilities across North America over the last several years.

The upgraded facility is expected to process up to 192,000 tons of material per year, according to city officials, marking a significant increase from the 120,000 tons processed annually prior to the upgrades.

The Philadelphia Recycling Facility’s technological upgrades are intended to collect more types of plastics; utilize sorting technologies, supported by artificial intelligence, that allow conveyors and optical sorters to communicate with each other and with technicians to improve material quality; and include an additional optical sorting line that serves as a final quality control measure for any recyclables not initially captured.

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According to a report from The Philadelphia Inquirer, the 57,860-square-foot site is set to process material from Philadelphia as well as Delaware and Bucks counties and South Jersey and can process up to 45 tons per hour.

The project is the most recent in WM’s plan to invest more than $1.4 billion in new and upgraded recycling facilities across North America from 2022 to 2026.

In early October, WM officially opened its new 45,000-square-foot recycling facility in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.

The company’s planned investments in recycling infrastructure are meant to increase access to recycling while increasing overall capacity, collect more types of plastics and utilize intelligent sorting technologies.

WM says with demand for recycled-content products expected to rise, its planned investments enable the company to increase its ability to manage more recycled materials and potentially enhance access to recycling for its customers.