Maximise revenue with onsite recycling facility solutions
When setting up a new manufacturing facility, there are huge benefits in provisioning centralised on-site waste storage and recycling facilities during the concept design stage. These can be firmed up as operational requirements become known and key stakeholders (i.e. end users) join the project team.
Not only can operational savings and reduced ‘Cost per Unit’ metrics be achieved, such facilities can help companies achieve BREEAM ‘Excellent’ certification for their flagship building - showcasing their commitment to sustainability and increased customer confidence in their products.
Biyat Energy & Environment Ltd are world leaders in the turnkey design & build of customised recycling facility solutions for municipal and industrial clientele. We also specialise in the design & provision of customised waste logistics solutions to ensure your operational waste management system is best in class!
There are several design & construction requirements that should be considered, summarised below:
Size and Location
It’s important to reserve a centralised footprint for your recycling facility in the conceptual site layout early in the game. If you’re still in the stage of mapping out your potential waste streams, then benchmarking similar existing facilities in your sector can help give you a ballpark m2 figure.
The location should be accessible via key production hall egress points. Typically, we site such facilities externally with a dedicated one-way HGV access road looping from the site entrance and back again for enhanced logistics.
It is vital to allocate space internally within the facility for skip access and manoeuvring, and also for machinery, segregated waste storage bays, waste liquid storage, operational cabins, operative walkways and a weighbridge for enhanced control over your operation.
Machinery requirements
Our experience tells us that off-the-shelf waste recycling equipment typically requires custom modification to comply with the stringent health & safety expectations of flagship manufacturing facilities. In some cases, CE marking re-certification may be required where significant alterations are needed. Typical focus areas include provision of safety interlocks, hydraulic protection, accessible isolators, visible guarding, hazard signage, safety control systems & LOTO placards.
During design & commissioning; PUWER assessments, LOLER inspections and DSEAR risk assessments can be conducted to ensure compliance with the various regulations and validate safe operation.
To help with the sizing of dedicated machinery (I.e Balers, Compactors, etc) - it is beneficial to talk with experienced operators to validate realistic tonne/shift capabilities compared to those advertised.
Redundancy in the event of failure is key to minimise downtime and allow for planned maintenance without affecting operations. Duplicating machines, in addition to segregation of machines for certain waste streams can help achieve this plus maximise revenues by reducing cross-contamination, cleaning times, etc.
Permitting
There are various regulatory requirements associated with such facilities. Typically, this can be bolted onto the wider requirements of the facility as a whole. Considerations include EA exemptions for waste storage, processing & scrap recycling. Also, sewerage undertaker consents or small volume letters are required in advance.
Drainage
Pollution prevention is a key consideration when designing your concrete slab and fall levels. We typically install underground foul interceptors to manage effluent from vehicle wash facilities if included in the facility design. Storm bypass interceptors should also feature in the drainage design as part of the wider site masterplan, fed by pre-cast drainage channels which run along the entire facility.
Infrastructure
The concrete slab of the facility should be matched to the requirements of the machinery. Also, due to excessive fatigue caused by RoRo skip movements, armoured joints are a must in skip areas. Underground ducting with dedicated popup entry points for electricity, data, foul sewer, potable water & fire comms should be provisioned in addition to a dedicated distribution board for the facility.
We typically run electrical supplies at height along the fence perimeter to mitigate against material handling equipment clashes. Lighting poles should also be located on the periphery of the facility to avoid skip truck / MHE clashes during manoeuvring. A design LUX assessment should be completed to ensure it complies with operational requirements.
Safety & Security
We have a preference to install solid fencing around the complete facility perimeter to enable restricted access, wind protection and noise attenuation from recycling operations / waste movement. We have developed a solution for recycled plastic fencing which demonstrates a strong commitment to sustainability. Also, twin access points for skip trucks, MHE and operatives can be provisioned via the use of manual/automatic sliding gates depending on their size.
Dedicated operative walkways, protected by Armco barriers and gates at crossing points, is a key requirement to ensure operative safety at all times. We usually run such walkways from a dedicated pedestrian entrance around the rear of the waste operational area to mitigate clashes with skip trucks and MHE activities. We also site machines away from the skip area, and include heavy duty bollards at key locations to further minimise risks to personnel.
Floor marking is a key design consideration to aid area segregation and improve the overall visibility of the operational zones. Fire alarm panels are also installed around the facility with dedicated emergency exit routing out of the facility to a safe assembly area.
Employee Welfare
Operatives typically work around the clock on a shift basis. An operations cabin is typically provisioned with/without restroom facilities depending on proximity to the building facilities. This enables weighbridge operations that require administration, plus offers an air-conditioned breakout area & locker room.
Where recycling machinery is sited externally, we recommend weather protection in the form of canopies over processing areas, especially in wet climates.
Waste Logistics
Transporting your waste from source operations in the manufacturing facility to the external recycling facility requires detailed design and mapping to maximise the efficiency of your movements, and to minimise the entry of external contamination into your facility. Also, waste receptacles should be properly sized and designed to ensure safe-towing can be executed without snaking, ergonomic access during waste removal plus consideration for MHE handling that requires enhanced specification to prevent receptables from buckling due to weight shifts when being emptied.
We hope you found this article useful!
If you are looking to build a recycling centre at your flagship facility or want to optimise an existing facility.
Contact — Biyat Energy & Environment Ltd (biyatenergyenvironment.com)
This article was written by Luay Zayed, founder of Biyat Energy & Environmental Ltd. A global energy and environmental consultancy specializing in turnkey engineering solutions that protect the environment and improve energy efficiency in the manufacturing & industrial sectors.
