MARKETS | PVC
In France, government ecological transition
PVC recycled within the VinylPlus framework through 2020 Source: VinylPlus
Norway, Switzerland and the UK. With 353,443 tonnes recycled in 2020, window profiles and related building products accounted for 48% of the total PVC recycled in the VinylPlus framework (see bar chart). Recovinyl ensures transparency by providing
certified recycling figures annually and monitors material’s quality and safety through a system of traceability throughout the recycling chain. To further enhance Recovinyl’s recording and tracing system, VinylPlus last year introduced RecoTrace, the first system to comply with the European Commission’s Circular Plastics Alliance (CPA)’s monitoring requirements. “VinylPlus confirms its commitment to recycle 900,000 tonnes and 1m tonnes of PVC per year in new products by 2025 and 2030, respectively, in line with the ambitions of the CPA and EU policy initiatives to encourage recovery, recycling and reuse of plastics,” says the organisation. In 2020, EPPA (the trade association represent- ing the manufacturers of PVC window systems and related building products in Europe) and Recovinyl joined forces to develop a common approach to boost the recycling of window profiles to attain the VinylPlus 2025 targets. The action plan will focus on Germany, France and Poland, which have been identified as the countries with the highest poten- tial for post-consumer window recycling. Rewindo, the German recycling initiative for PVC windows, roller shutters and related products, estimates that two-thirds of the approximately 300 million windows currently in use are made of PVC. As they come to the end of their useful lives in the coming years, there will be considerable potential for further expanding the recycling of PVC windows in the country.
18 PLASTICS RECYCLING WORLD | January/February 2022
agency Ademe is providing financial support to help companies move to the circular economy. One challenge it is addressing is to find sources of post-use PVC to be recycled. One company taking advantage of the support is Benvic Group subsid- iary Ereplast. This recycling company is using resources at Benvic headquarters in Chevigny to help create business for PVC compounds with recycled content that can be used in the original application. Benvic acquired Ereplast in October 2019 and has since refocussed its operations solely on the recovery of PVC. “This was already its main activity and thanks to Ademe’s help, the business will now be able to speed up its investment schedule to produce more material,” says Benvic. “The future challenge for recyclers is not so much to sell, but to find correctly sorted and identified materials to recycle. One of the strate- gies pursued by Benvic is to identify all likely PVC deposits to be recycled – either production scraps or end-of-life products – and then to find suitable recycling processes.” Benvic says it is particularly interested in PVC
products falling within the Extended Producer Responsibility framework which is being imple- mented in new sectors such as construction, DIY, and sports/leisure. It says relations are being established not only with product manufacturers but also eco-organisations. Prospecting work is underway in areas as diverse as inflatable mattress- es, bank cards, traffic cones, and decorative films for industrial applications. The company is also incentivising recovery of post-consumer PVC. At a sorting centre near Chevigny, end-of-life PVC building products such as windows, roller shutters, and cable ducts can be dropped off free of charge. Waste reception centre employees trained by Benvic assess what can be recycled. Benvic hopes to repeat the operation elsewhere in France. In the UK,CNC Recycling, headquartered in Middlesbrough and with several locations in England and Scotland, is a uPVC window recycling specialist. Sales and Purchasing Director Ian Ward says one barrier to cost-effective recycling of post-consumer window frames is the ability to retrieve meaningful quantities to support a recy- cling scheme with input feedstock. “CNC Recycling has grown from a single
North-East operation to a nationwide uPVC window recycling specialist company committed to offering a sustainable alternative to landfill for old windows and doors for the fenestration industry,” he says. “UPVC windows can be re-used and repurposed
www.plasticsrecyclingworld.com
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