Low Carbon Manufacturing
The potential benefits including cost savings and increased market competitiveness have been realized in the design and 2018 commissioning of MASTEC’s State of the Art Low Carbon Manufacturing facility in Adelaide. Sustainable Manufacturing is not just about how much recycled plastic can be used in a product, in the manufacturing process it is equally about the importance of increasing energy efficiency and all other material inputs, such as water use and evaporation.
With the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support Australia’s transition to a low-carbon economy, the initiative for MASTEC’s brand-new state of the art Low Carbon Manufacturing facility was significantly focused on avoiding outdated broad brush and generalised methodology and processes, and instead required a complete rethink of the most effective approach to quality and supply management and the production of goods and services with a minimal carbon footprint.
Mobile bins are produced using injection moulding technology. MASTEC have installed the latest high energy efficient German designed Krauss Maffei MX Series machines. They are powerful, very efficient and designed not only to save electricity to process, blend and homogenise a mix of recycled plastic resin, so as to obtain the optimum performance of the finished product. We estimate the use of the Kraus Maffei technology reduces by up to 30% the amount of energy used to make a bin depending on its size.
To mould a mobile bin the plastic raw material is heated to around 270°C, once moulded it has to be cooled to solidify. Traditionally this has required the use of evaporative cooling towers. Every day, huge quantities of fresh water are consumed through the use of traditional evaporative systems for the heat dissipation of industrial processes (cooling towers). The increasing shortage of water resources, the difficulty in finding them and the constantly increasing costs are pushing the industry towards new technology. MASTEC are able to save up to 95% of the water previously used, by the use of the Frigel adiabatic cooling system. This technology also provides greater efficiency in heat transfer in improving product quality, reduced maintenance along with the total absence of polluting chemical agents.
But MASTEC’s use of leading-edge technology does not stop there. Downstream from the Adiabatic cooling system, MASTEC have installed machine-side chillers, compact units designed specifically to serve each process independently, guarantee precise and efficient cooling, providing greater stability during the bin moulding phases adding to the overall optimisation of production of the highest quality durable MGBs with a long sustainable life span.
Using a range of computer controlled Weighbatch gravimetric material blenders MASTEC can sequentially doses a recipe of recycled and virgin material, UV stabilizers and colour chips, by weight, into a common weight chamber/dynamic mixer assembly. Each and every batch is captured and accurately blended by the mixer before being released to the downstream injection moulding process. With the emphasis on the reuse of plastics, MASTEC’s gravimetric blenders have a unique multi feed mechanism which provides high throughput and high accuracy of material feeds from MASTEC’s bulk silos. All components can feed 0% to 100% with no operator changes.
Other major features include:
Embracing extended producer responsibility [EPR] at MASTEC we have genuinely closed the loop with regard to the full range of mobile waste and recycling bins. Not only do we reprocess any factory seconds in house completly eliminating wastage, but we will readily take back all of our bins at the end of their useful life and re-process them back into the very same brand new products for reuse in the community – terms and conditions apply.
Over the past 5 years MASTEC have collected more than two million old used wheelie bins from residences in Council areas across Australia. Using a shredding, washing extruding and regranulation process, all of these bins have been reprocessed and moulded back into the very same products and re-delivered back to residential households in a variety of Council areas as completely new bins – a positive recoupling of the relationship between economy and ecology.
Most importantly, ongoing recycling challenges are an important reminder that recycling must be able to deliver worthwhile and practical outcomes. With that in mind, Local Government officers and contractors can rest assured of MASTEC’s unique commitment that its range of mobile garbage bins can not only be recycled into other plastic products, but more importantly, can easily be recycled and reprocessed back into new bins. A tangible benefit of focusing on the ‘circular economy’ – one that also considers the practical usability of the collected recyclable materials.
MASTEC’s state of the art low carbon manufacturing facility can significantly reduce the energy and water usage and carbon emissions in every bin that is made, in addition to the significant reduction in carbon footprint due to the use of recycled resins.
Note: Mastec will not use recycled material of unsuitable specification as this may compromise product performance capabilities required by Part 5 of AS4123-2008.
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