As a long-term Erema customer, PreZero had previously installed recycling systems from the Austrian machinery manufacturer at its facilities in Europe and elsewhere, including the US. The company recently hit a milestone with the commissioning of its 1000th machine in North America, at a recycling company called PreZero US. PreZero US, since 2018 a subsidiary of Germany-headquartered PreZero International following the acquisition of a recycling services provider, collects and processes washed LDPE and LLDPE film, containers and lids on both the east and the west coast of the US. The company operates recycling facilities in Southern California and South Carolina, processing these post-consumer material streams to produce high-quality LDPE, LLDPE, HDPE and PE resins, which are suitable for different applications.
“With our recycling facilities on both the east and west coasts, we can significantly shorten transport distances, which in turn also reduces CO2 emissions," said Hendrik Dullinger, Vice President of Business Development. "This way we prevent this waste material from ending up in landfills.”
With the purchase and installation of a brand new INTAREMA 1716 TVEplus machine, PreZero has become the owner of the 1000th recycling machine sold through Ipswch, Massachussetts- based Erema North America. The company emphasised that ‘strong local support and experience in the US recycling market played a major role’ in its decision to again opt for an Erema system.
The new machine, which has just been started up at PreZero’s South Carolina site, is equipped with a twin laser filter and is used for processing washed LDPE flakes. The output rate is 3300 to 3900 lbs/h (1500 to 1800 kg per hour), bringing the combined production capacity of the two US facilities to at least 20,000 tons per year.
Because of its mixed composition, recycling post-consumer waste plastics offers special challenges, said Andreas Kreindl, Sales Manager at Erema."The film material is printed and contains moisture, which makes it difficult to process. However, our technology copes very well with this.”
Complete homogenisation, filtration and degassing of the melt take place in one step, with melt filtration upstream of extruder degassing, thanks to TVEplus technology. This ensures that only thoroughly melted, filtered and homogenised material can pass the degassing zone of the extruder.
The recycled pellets are used primarily in the production of film and grocery bags.
PreZero's goal is to expand its recycling capacity for film and other grades of plastic across the States and promote plastics recycling in the USA. The company provides a complete range of waste disposal, sorting, processing and recycling services, and positions itself as an innovation driver in the industry. The company has more than 13,000 employees at over 280 locations in Europe and North America.