Kurz (ge)sagt: “Milestone” recycling pilot gives PET high-quality second life

15 Jul 2020 --- German thin film technology specialist Kurz Group has launched a pilot recycling operation to upcycle residual PET waste into injection molding material. The recycled waste can be reused for high-quality technical packaging for industrial applications and magnetic foils in credit cards. Three years in the making, this novel recycling scheme located at Kurz’s headquarters in Fürth, Germany, enables PET carriers to be fully utilized and replaced with plastics that would otherwise depend on virgin material production.

“We have succeeded in recycling and refining PET to create a plastic that, in the end, is more high-quality and usable than anyone believed it could be,” Markus Hoffmann, Management Board Member at Kurz, tells PackagingInsights. 

The company has invested €7 million (US$8 million) in making this recycling program – a cost Hoffmann determines higher than conventional waste disposal, but lower than producing a new plastic material. Along similar lines, a new Veolia report detailed that “plastic is not the enemy,” but rather the inertia of throwaway culture and underfunded recycling infrastructure.

Kurz customers are required to contribute “a certain amount” to the company’s recycling service, including the residual PET materials’ pick-up. “The amount of residual material differs a lot from customer to customer. PET material from stamping technology is usually less than 5 percent from the total waste of a printing house,” Hoffmann details.

 Kurz aims to expand its recycling program to all of its international manufacturing locations.Edelmann, a local packaging manufacturer focused on resource-efficient production, is Kurz’s first customer to make use of this recycling scheme. “We do already have several interested parties throughout Europe, printing houses as well as brand owners. But for confidentiality reasons, we can’t mention names,” notes Hoffmann.

While recycled plastics are usually used for simple secondary applications – such as exercise mats, park benches or flowerpots – the PET material developed by Kurz can be utilized for magnetic foils found in credit cards, furniture or consumer electronics, adds Hoffmann.

Green energy for the future
Kurz is also demonstrating consistent environmental sustainability practices in its use of energy at the recycling facility in Fürth. As with all its manufacturing plants in Germany, the recycling facility will use only power from renewable sources in its pilot recycling operation.

“At an additional cost, it is possible to obtain exclusively renewable energies in Germany. That’s what Kurz has put into practice. The energy sources are principally wind, photovoltaic and water power.” Moreover, Kurz runs its own photovoltaic power plants, Hoffmann explains.

The use of renewable energy and the new recycling system align with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) and Goal 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), respectively.

With eyes on the medium term, Kurz plans to establish recycling facilities at all of its international manufacturing locations – located in over 30 sites in Europe, Asia and the US – to ensure a universally sustainable approach through short transport distances. 

By Anni Schleicher