Plastic waste? Doesn't exist anymore. It's raw material for new products. It feels impossible, but Uppact shows that it can be done. The startup in Eemshaven processes mixed and contaminated plastic and is expanding its production capacity in Farmsum.
Unwastor. That's the name of the machine the startup uses. Plastic waste goes into it, and it doesn't matter if it's different types of plastic, if it's plastic textiles or there's a bit of other material in between. On the other hand, the machine presses the processed plastic into molds, creating highly usable posts, boards and beams, directly applicable in construction and infra, for example.
This is extraordinary. Recycling plastic usually presents several problems that Unwastor does not. Throwing different types of plastic together, for example, is virtually impossible in existing processes. Contamination of the plastic with other substances is also quite a dilemma in the industry.
''None of that matters with us,'' explains Jan Jaap Folmer. He started the startup a few years ago together with Michel Walstock. They brought the Unwastor, which was developed by Plastech in Australia, to the Netherlands and found a home in a shed of waste processor Bek & Verburg in Eemshaven. ,,We tested with dozens of percent of contamination like cigarette butts added. Even then a stable product comes out.''
13.4 kilotons of CO2 saved
It sounds like a miracle, but essentially the process is not that complicated. The plastic waste is heated under pressure and by friction, making it progressively softer, and is then mixed together and pressed. In the process, an exceptionally good mixing of the various plastics occurs to form a very homogeneous mass. This homogeneous mass is then pressed through an extruder into molds to form planks, beams and posts.
And there is interest in that. ,,Our customers are enthusiastic about the quality. That is obviously a prerequisite for continued growth. I see it this way: in terms of quality we compete with the most expensive materials, in terms of price with the worst. Our main principle is that we want to make as much impact as possible. And that will only succeed if we can get bigger and keep more plastic out of the incinerators.''
Because that's what happens in large numbers to plastic waste streams now: recycling no longer works, so the incinerator awaits. Uppact wants to radically change that model. Waste gets value. We had experts investigate how positive the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) of our model is, and it is even more positive than we already thought. For every kilogram of product we save more than three kilograms of CO2 emissions. That means that with our new factory we will soon save 13.4 kilotons of CO2 per year. And that's just the beginning!''
The startup is scaling up at the Chemport Innovation Center (CIC) in Farmsum. The lease agreement had already been signed; the funding is also in place. The NOM and the Groninger Growth Fund are taking a stake in the company. The Polestar Capital Circular Debt Fund is offering a loan and a grant from the Just Transition Fund is doing the rest. This will soon allow Uppact to process three times as much as in the test setup now.
,,The new machine has been ordered in Australia; we have already started preparations for the new production line in Farmsum. I expect that we will be able to start in the first half of next year'', says Folmer. The production line will soon process 4,000 tons of plastic waste per year. Even with that, the end is far from in sight, as far as the founders are concerned. In the end? We have been given the right to roll out the concept in Northwestern Europe. Our goal is to have several production sites in different countries, starting with the Netherlands.
Quite a few jobs
Uppact travels from milestone to milestone. The arrival of the Unwastor at Eemshaven was one such, the finalization of plans for the larger production line is another. The opening next year will undoubtedly be one as well. ,,In Farmsum the machine is so big that we can put whole bales of pressed plastic waste in it at once. Australia has already succeeded in doing that. We will have the second machine that Plastech makes, and I am very happy about that. The teething problems will be out of the way, the technology optimal.''
Once properly started up, it should run 24/7. A shed rising outside the CIC will store plastic waste. ''A lot is automated, but I think we'll have two operators continuously walking around in production when we're fully up and running. Together with the people in logistics, that's already quite a few jobs.''
Until that time comes, Folmer and his team are certainly not sitting still. ,,We are going full steam ahead with development and research. Together with the Rijksuniversiteit, Hanzehogeschool and Stenden, among others, we are looking at products and the market. Where is the need, what can we adjust? We are already cautiously experimenting with more complex forms than the poles, planks and beams, because we see that there could be a market for that.''
In his future dream, there will soon be Unwastors in many different places around the world. Always close to the supply and sales areas. ,,There too we want to do as well as possible for the climate. This means that the supply lines should not be too long and the sales lines should not be too long either. There is enough plastic waste in the world that we can give it another life this way.''
In the Netherlands, that vision leaves room for two to three locations with about four production lines each. ,,Then we will look further into Germany and Scandinavia. I imagine we will work there under license. We supply the entire production line and help with logistics, market research, regulations and more. That will put the fastest foot forward.''