FEATURE MACHINE BUILDING, FRAMEWORKS & SAFETY
sponsored by DRIVING THE FUTURE OF PAC
Not only does up to 91% of packaging waste end up in landfill or incinerators, but a portion of the remaining waste contaminates the environment, contributing to plastic pollution, the degradation of
ecosystems, and even entering the food chain in the form of microplastics. To help combat the issue, Nidec Drives is collaborating with TOMRA, a designer of machines that optimise resource recovery
for over 50 years. The company’s innovative technology handles the intake, sorting and processing of empty beverage containers such as bottles and cans, with its ‘Clean Loop Recycling’ model facilitating the collection of over 46 billion containers annually. This approach ensures that collected packaging materials are recycled into new packaging, reducing the demand for raw materials and minimising greenhouse gas emissions. With more than 100,000 installations across
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80 global markets, TOMRA is a vital player in the effort to promote sustainability and reduce packaging waste.
RECYCLING SOLUTIONS Packaging machines play a vital role in recycling, with their operation broken down into two main components. The first part is customer-facing, where users can deposit their empty packaging through an opening. Once placed, the machine scans the packaging – identifying the type of packaging and calculating the deposit the customer will receive – and transports it via
perating extensively across Europe, Norway-based TOMRA has been at the forefront of global packaging collection
Feature
The first part of the process is customer-facing (above), the second is the ‘backroom’ (below)
a conveyor system. The customer can press a button to retrieve a receipt for their deposit or can donate this to charity. The second part of the machine, known as the
backroom and located behind the customer interface, collects the empty packaging for further handling. Depending on the machine, the packaging may be temporarily stored for transport, sorted by size and material, or compressed to save space. At TOMRA’s facility in Apeldoorn, Netherlands, the backroom component is assembled and customised for each client’s specific needs and location. This tailored approach ensures that TOMRA’s machines maximise efficiency and adaptability for different environments.
MAKING CHANGES In April 2023, the Dutch deposit system expanded to include cans in addition to plastic bottles, with the goal of reducing ‘street waste’. The new target aimed to collect 90% of all packaging sold, equating to 900 million small PET bottles and 2.5 billion cans annually. The expansion of the deposit system in the Netherlands required extensive modifications to the existing recycling infrastructure. Key updates were made to the software to enhance the database, and modifications to the equipment behind the packaging machines were necessary
20 DESIGN SOLUTIONS MAY 2025
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