Zero plastic waste to landfill at Thermoseal

Thermoseal Group has invested in a new recycling plant that will reduce the amount of manufacturing waste going to landfill.

Situated at the company’s Wigan factory, the recycling plant can handle all lengths of Thermobar warm edge, turning them back in pellets that can be reused in the manufacturing process.

“We have always been able to recycle the core material of Thermobar – polypropylene – but if it had the barrier tape attached, it would have to go to landfill,” said sales director, Mark Hickox.

“Our new recycling equipment can remove the backing tape from the finished Thermobar, which means that any waste created during the extrusion setup process can now be shredded and reused.

“We can add up to 20% of the normal compound without any loss of performance, and it means that we send zero plastic waste in all the Thermobar production.

“Plus, the plant is also powered by a solar PV system that we installed last year, so we are minimising our emissions in the process.”

This new investment forms part of the company’s ongoing sustainability strategy.

In 2023, new automated production lines reduced energy usage in Thermobar’s manufacture by almost 40%, and the company is expanding its steel stillage scheme, where Thermobar is delivered to customers without the need for cardboard packaging.

Also, the company’s Thermoflex flexible spacer bar is supplied coiled onto plastic reels, in a plastic bag, inside a cardboard box. To prevent this packaging from being scrapped, the company has developed a system where, similar to Thermobar’s metal stillages, the packaging is collected and reused.

This unique packaging method is said to have successfully diverted 80% of packaging away from landfill and has kept the price point of Thermoflex lower for customers.

“We manufacture over 50 million metres of spacer bar a year,” Mark said. “Imagine how much packaging is required for that amount of product. But with our recycling processes, we significantly cut the amount of packaging that we use, and we use everything until its lifespan is completely over, limiting the amount of waste we’re sending to landfill.”