The upgrades were for facilities in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and Duncan, South Carolina.

Machinex, Plessisville, Quebec, has announced the completion of upgrades at two single-stream material recovery facilities (MRFs) in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and Duncan, South Carolina. These two projects resulted from a tight and efficient collaboration with Pratt Industries, Atlanta, according to the systems provider.  

According to a news release from Machinex, upgrades started in June 2021 at the Duncan location. This single-stream system needed to replace its rubber disc polishing screen and increase throughput capacity without adding additional sorters to handle around 15,000 tons of recyclables per year. The system was redesigned to sort materials from curbside collection using equipment such as a Mach Ballistic separator and two Mach Hyspec optical sorters to sort fiber, polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and high-density polyethylene (HDPE).  

The upgrade in Fayetteville was completed in August 2021. Pratt wanted to recover more HDPE and PET with the upgrade, which also involved adding a quality control station on its aluminum line to recover used beverage cans. The upgraded system includes a Mach Ballistic separator, two Mach Hyspec optical sorters to eject PET, 3D fiber and mixed paper. It is designed to process 20,000 tons of material annually. The upgrade aims to improve the uptime, recovery and capacity at the MRF. 

"Machinex worked very closely with our team to ensure that the design and components of the upgrades accomplished our objectives,” says Kurt Schmitz Sr., vice president of Pratt Recycling. 

The company says the project will be developed in partnership with the New South Wales government in Parkes, Australia.

Brightmark, a global waste solutions provider in San Fransisco, has announced plans to construct an advanced plastics renewal facility for the Parkes Special Activation Precinct in New South Wales (NSW), Australia.  

Brightmark says it will be the first new circular economy business in the Parkes Special Activation Precinct, as well as the first-of-its-kind advanced recycling, plastics renewal facility in Australia. Construction of the facility will be done in partnership with the NSW government, as part of its commitment to driving economic growth and prosperity in the area.  

“Brightmark is excited to expand our waste solution footprint into Australia, setting the new gold standard in advanced plastic recycling," says Bob Powell, Brightmark founder, and CEO. “Collaborating with the NSW government in their Parkes precinct is ideal due to the sustainably-minded business environment and community; and its location as a transportation and logistics hub.”  

The facility will repurpose all types of plastics (1-7) to be ultra-low sulfur diesel, wax and naphtha to produce fully circular plastics. The construction of the facility will also bring economic opportunity to the Parkes Special Activation Precinct, as it is supported by an AUD $260 million investment and will lead to the creation of 100 new jobs.   

The plant is expected to be operational by 2025, with construction planned to start in mid-2023. It will be capable of processing 200,000 tons of scrap plastics back into the circularity market. Special Activation Precincts are delivered by the NSW government and funded from the $4.2 billion Snowy Hydro Legacy Fund.   

“We are excited to be building what will be the largest facility of its type outside of America,” says Shakil Rahman, Brightmark senior vice president of global plastics development and origination. “Processing up to 200,000 tons of waste plastics back into the circularity market, creating import replacement products and assisting Australia to lower its carbon footprint.”  

“This is a huge opportunity for Parkes and regional NSW to get a slice of the AUD $66 billion global plastics recycling industry which will bring strong economic growth and jobs to the region,” says Paul Toole, the deputy premier and minister for regional NSW. “Brightmark’s AUD $260 million investment in Parkes sends a clear message to other global companies; Parkes is the perfect place to invest, now and into the future.” 

Giovanni Spitale replaces James Murphy, who has been promoted to vice chairman of the Davis-Standard board of directors.

Pawcatuck, Connecticut-based Davis-Standard, a portfolio company of Gamut Capital Management, has appointed Giovanni Spitale as CEO. Spitale replaces Jim Murphy, who has been elected as vice chairman of the board of directors.   

“I am extremely excited to join the Davis-Standard organization,” Spitale says. “Having spent considerable time in the polymer processing and broader capital equipment industries, I have long admired Davis-Standard’s leading position in the market, its unmatched engineering capability and the company’s reputation as a strong partner to its customers through both original equipment and aftermarket support.”  

Spitale previously was vice president of Commercial Parts within Boeing Global Services. In this role, hewas responsible for the profit and loss management and strategic direction of Boeing’s $4 billion portfolio of commercial aircraft and engine parts businesses. Before his tenure at Boeing, Spitale was president of customer service and support at Milacron.  

In addition to Spitale's hiring, Davis-Standard has elected several individuals as members of its board of directors. This includes Brian Marston, Bill Barker and John McGrath, each experienced in Davis-Standard’s markets.   

The board also includes Dan Guthrie, chief operating officer of Davis-Standard; representatives from controlling shareholder Gamut Capital Management; and Marston, Barker and McGrath.

Davis-Standard specializes in the design, development and distribution of extrusion and converting technology. The company’s systems encompass more than 11 product lines to support manufacturing applications and customers in a wide variety of industries, including automotive, building and construction, consumer products, medical and packaging. 

The company reports growth in EBITDA, net income and revenue.

Clean Harbors Inc., a Norwell, Massachusetts-based provider of environmental and industrial services, has announced the financial results for the fourth quarter and 2021. 

“The fourth quarter marked a strong close to the year for Clean Harbors and demonstrated the ongoing success of our comprehensive growth strategy,” says Alan S. McKim, chairman, president and CEO of Clean Harbors. “Favorable market dynamics for both our operating segments drove our performance, including high demand for hazardous waste disposal, industrial services and rerefined products.  

According to the report, revenue in Q4 increased 41 percent to $1.12 billion from $796.2 million in the same period of 2020. Income from operations grew 33 percent to $82.2 million from $61.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2020. 

Net income was $49 million, or 90 cents per diluted share, compared with net income of $39.3 million, or 71 cents per diluted share, for the same period in 2020. Adjusted net income was $48.6 million, or 89 cents per diluted share, for the fourth quarter of 2021, compared with adjusted net income of $35 million, or 63 cents per diluted share, for the same period of 2020. Net income and adjusted net income results for the fourth quarter of 2021 included pretax integration and severance costs of $8.6 million, comparable costs in the fourth quarter of 2020 were $1.9 million. 

Adjusted earnings before income taxation depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) increased 23 percent to $174.3 million from $141.8 million in the same period of 2020. Benefits from Canadian government assistance programs accounted for $300,000 of contributions in the fourth quarter of 2021, compared with $5.6 million in benefits from both Canadian and U.S. government programs in the same period of 2020.  

“This positive market environment, combined with strong execution by our entire team, enabled us to exceed our guidance for both adjusted EBITDA and adjusted free cash flow,” McKim says. “With contributions from HydroChemPSC (HPC), which we acquired in October, we delivered more than $1 billion in quarterly revenue for the first time in our Company’s history.” 

Clean Harbors’ revenue for the year was $3.81 billion compared with $3.14 billion in 2020. Income from operations increased 38 percent to $347.9 million from $251.3 million in 2020. 

Net income was $203.2 million, or $3.71 per diluted share, compared with net income of $134.8 million, or $2.42 per diluted share, for 2020. The company reported adjusted net income for 2021 of $199.6 million, or $3.64 per diluted share, compared with adjusted net income of $129.4 million, or $2.32 per diluted share, for 2020.  

Net income and adjusted net income results for 2021 included pretax integration and severance costs of $19.7 million, with the HPC acquisition representing the largest factor. Comparable costs in 2020 were $12.5 million driven by pandemic-related workforce reductions. 

Adjusted EBITDA increased 18 percent to $676.6 million, which included $12 million of benefits from government assistance programs, compared with adjusted EBITDA of $573.8 million in 2020. This included $42.3 million of benefits from government assistance programs. The company says it also generated a record adjusted free cash flow of $326.3 million in 2021, a 23 percent increase from the prior year. 

“Beyond our financial accomplishments, 2021 was a year of significant achievement for the company, including the HPC acquisition, commencing the expansion of our incineration network in Nebraska and overcoming the deep freeze in the Southern U.S. that temporarily shut down six of our incinerators in early 2021,” McKim says. “In addition, we addressed inflationary conditions not seen in decades with rigorous pricing initiatives and navigated the various phases of the pandemic, while generating $59 million of COVID decontamination revenue.” 

For the first quarter, Clean Harbors expects adjusted EBITDA to increase 30 to 35 percent from the prior year, due to the addition of HPC and higher profitability in the SKSS segment.  

For 2022, the company expects adjusted EBITDA in the range of $765 million to $795 million. This range is based on anticipated generally accepted accounting principles net income in the range of $204 million to $237 million. 

The company is also anticipating adjusted free cash flow in the range of $250 million to $290 million, based on anticipated net cash from operating activities in the range of $560 million to $620 million. 

“We see momentum continuing across all our key business lines, which will support our plans for profitable growth in 2022,” McKim says. “The new year began with a healthy backlog of waste streams in our disposal facilities and at customer sites, with underlying trends in regulations and U.S. manufacturing further supporting our positive view.” 

The company has purchased Premier Waste Services LLC.

FCC Environmental Services, Houston, has completed its first U.S. acquisition, purchasing Premier Waste Services LLC of Dallas. The company has declined to release the purchase price. 

Premier has provided commercial solid waste services in the Dallas/Fort Worth metro area for more than 20 years. The company services more than 4,000 contracts with a fleet in excess of 50 vehicles. FCC says the company’s history, strong workforce and customer focus made it a great fit to expand its footprint in Texas.

“This growth is a key driver for our company as we continue to expand our U.S. presence and work to synergize our operations,” says Inigo Sanz, CEO of FCC Environmental Services. “Thus far, all of our growth has been organically driven, and we are excited about this further lever to grow our company and embrace proven service providers like Premier.” 

He tells the Recycling Today Media Group that the Premier name will be retained initially.

Sanz says FCC is looking for similar acquisition opportunities, adding that "any other company with a similar profile that Premier could be our next target."

He says FCC is interested in acquiring hauling and processing assets. "[O]ur goal is not only to increase our size but also to improve our vertical integration."