WRL Glass Media Ltd., part of the Teesside-based Ward Recycling Group, has made innovative investments to boost productivity at its South Bank site.
The investment has seen the installation of a secondary glass imploder, which has already boosted the volume of glass media output at the firm by 30-40%. The company produces a range of products for the international market, including environmentally-friendly shot-blast and swimming pool filtration materials. This year, the company has already exported more than 4,500 tonnes of its recycled products.
Ward Recycling was founded in 2002 as a small, kerbside recycling firm in the North East. It has grown significantly, and including WRL Glass Media Ltd., now employs 146 people and has a turnover in excess of £10 million. Improving efficiency and increasing outputs will enable the company to sustain its growth and expand further into international markets.
Before the introduction of the new glass imploder, Ward Recycling’s plant took longer to process glass media, increasing the labour-intensity, the cost of production and increased maintenance. By improving outputs, Ward Recycling’s products will become more competitive on the international markets.
Gareth Godwin, manager at Ward Recycling, said: “Although this is a relatively small financial investment, the installation of the imploder is an innovative improvement to our systems which will deliver larger volumes of more cost-effective glass media products.
“Ward Recycling is an ambitious company which has significant growth aspirations. We will continue to develop and seek improvements at our site in the North East and export our unique products across the world.”