Dutch recyclate producer Coolrec (Eindhoven; www.coolrec.nl) has opened a new plastics compounding plant in Emmen / The Netherlands. Situated on the facility formerly operated by bankrupt recycling specialist Plastinum (see Plasteurope.com of 07.01.2010) – which Inverko Compounding had unsuccessfully tried to manage – the 10,000 t/y plant will turn out mostly PE, PP, PS and ABS recyclate. According to local media reports, the site is currently home to 11 employees, although there are already plans to lift output, which would go hand-in-hand with the hiring of additional staff.

The material is produced in two steps. The relevant waste product – consisting mostly of scrapped electronic appliances like screens, fridges and computer equipment – is first processed at the Waalwijk / The Netherlands-based facility of affiliate Coolrec PHB (see also Plasteurope.com of 16.12.2014). From here, the sorted flakes are then sent to the Emmen-based Coolrec Plastics Compounding, “where we have the technology to refine the specification of these materials even further,” said Coolrec director Arjen Wittekoek, adding that the material is converted into pellets at the facility and sold to consumer goods manufacturers. Speaking to local news media, Wittekoek said the recyclate is used by Philips, for example, to make new vacuum cleaners.

Coolrec is a subsidiary of waste management specialist Van Gansewinkel (Eindhoven / The Netherlands; www.vangansewinkelgroep.com), which purports to be the market leader in the Benelux states, and also has operations in Germany, France, Portugal and Hungary. With 4,350 employees, Van Gansewinkel posts annual sales of about EUR 1 bn.