LAWR

June 2014 Local Authority Waste & Recycling 11 MRF early stages will save MRF operators money and pitfalls in the long-term, ultimately increasing profitability. Knowledge is king Automation has a lot to offer MRF operators. It can vastly reduce labour requirements, increase recovery of materials, improve quality of materials, deliver consistent plant performance and recover certain materials that the human eye can't easily identify. However, to fully benefit from automation and optimise recovery of target materials, it is essential for MRF operators to optimise the upstream plant design to get the most out of automated sorters. This all starts with a detailed understanding of the composition of the in-feed material – a key factor in the design and build of a new MRF facility. At TOMRA Sorting, we have come across a number projects where there is very little understanding of what the in-feed material will be. In some cases, operators may simply guess what will be put into it or they will base it on average industry figures. This approach is a recipe for disaster. Just as you would with any other production facility, operators need to know what they want to produce and why. They must undertake a waste characterisation study, so that they understand the percentage, sizes, density and variability of the in-feed material. A detailed knowledge of the end markets for the products and residue – outlets, specification and prices – is also key to understanding what is worth recovering and what isn't. Trials should also be considered as these will identify any issues at an early stage in the design process. If things go wrong when a plant becomes operational, plant builders may try to avoid paying penalties by claiming that the in-feed material wasn't right. In these situations nobody wins, so it is essential that MRF operators get heavily involved in the design process. It's definitely a case of 'if you would be well served, serve yourself'. In our experience, some of the most successful UK MRFs – examples include Viridor West Sussex (takes single stream commingled material), UPM Shotton (commingled with focus on producing paper), Weir's Waste in the West Midlands (commercial and industrial) and Wastebeater in Northern Ireland (commercial and industrial) – all adopted the same approach. The people behind their development took a keen interest in design, really knew their business, tested where possible and consulted TOMRA Sorting in a huge amount of detail from the earliest stages. There's a lot that MRF operators could learn from adopting this approach when developing any new facilities in the months and years ahead. Jonathan Clarke is global sales director for TOMRA Sorting Recycling.

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